Stage Recap: Pedersen Triumphs in Limoges, Vingegaard Still Leads Tour de France

Danish Mad Pedersen, riding for Lidl Trek, found space at the perfect moment to deny Jasper Philipsen a late surge and grabbed victory in the 200.7km eighth stage from Libourne to Limoges. Jonas Vingegaard still wore the overall leader’s jersey but had to bow out after a fall that would have made breaking the record shared by Mark Cavendish and Eddy Merckx impossible.

Pedersen sealed his win by blocking Philipsen’s plan in a finish that left the 27-year-old from Tollose unable to find a clean path. The sprint showed Pedersen’s growing confidence as he held firm in the final meters. In the end, the Belgian powerhouse faced a strong challenge and Wout van Aert lingered close, adding a sharp spark to the finale.

Mark Cavendish was absent from the immediate contention as he rode through the aftermath of the crash that stymied his record ambitions. The Limousin stage delivered a surprising winner, with the field waiting to see who could handle the demanding last kilometers. Alex Aranburu, widely expected to surge, did not manage to deliver the stage result his name had suggested.

The peloton finished with a flurry of attacks and tactical moves. Pogacar edged out the field in the day’s tenth sprint to claim a coveted stage-win moment, while Vingegaard retained the yellow jersey the day before the climb to Puy de Dôme. In the overall standings, Vingegaard led by 25 seconds over Pogacar and 1 minute 34 seconds over Jai Hindley, with Carlos Rodríguez rising to fourth after Simon Yates slipped 47 seconds behind, the result of a crash that also involved Mikel Landa.

On the road, Landa crossed the line in fourteenth place with a time set at 6.36 from the winner, followed by teammate Pello Bilbao in twelfth at 6.10.

General classification of the Tour de France

1. Jonas Vingegaard TJV 34:09:38

2. Tadej Pogacar UAD +00:25

3. Jai Hindley BOH +01:34

4. Carlos Rodriguez IGD +03:30

5. Adam Yates IAD +03:40

6. Simon Yates JAY +04:01

7. David Gaudu GFC +04:03

8. Romain Bardet DSM +04:43

9. Thomas Pidcock IGD +04:43

10. Sepp Kuss TJV +05:28

11. Ben O’Connor ACT +06:10

12. Peio Bilbao TBV +06:10

13. Emanuel Buchmann BOH +06:32

14. Mikel Landa TBV +06:36

15. Louis Meintjes ICW +06:52

16. Guillaume Martin COF +07:08

17. Thibaut Pinot GFC +07:38

18. Felix Gall ACT +08:19

19. Skjelmose Jensen LTR +08:47

20. Jonathan Castroviejo IGD +12:53

[Citation: Tour de France Stage 8 recap, official results and standings.]