Tour '26, Stage 17: Without Disaster

I guess I should start with the title.  Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) has a nickname that he hates.  He is oft times called "Jasper Disaster."  He has a tendency to crash in sprints.  To be fair, that does seem to no longer be a thing.  Although, he has not been able to put together a successful sprint for a stage victory this Tour, until now.  He had to work hard in the early phase of the stage to stay with the peloton, most of his sprint rivals were dropped, fought back, and then stayed with the peloton when they let the breakaway go.  Philipsen stayed with the break and was there to fight for the stage.  He was delivered perfectly by his teammate Mathieu Van Der Poel (who has won a stage already).  Then he had the power to drop all of the others trying to win today.  Behind him it was Mauro Schmid (Jayco-Alula) from an early painting. In third was Olav Kooij (Decathlon-CMA CGM), the only other pure sprinter in the finale. Behind the podium were Lewis Adkey (NSN Cycling), Rick Pluimers (Tudor Pro Cycling), Clement Russo (Groupama FDJ-United), Huub Artz (Lotto-Intermarche) and in eighth was Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek).  Despite Philipsen getting the maximum points in the sprint finale, Pedersen's placing means he holds onto the Maillot Vert.  With the mountains to come, he most likely will hold it into Paris.  He will need to add to his total before the intermediate sprint on the Champs Elysees on Sunday.  Given the new final stage's climbs up Montmartre, it makes for a very different final sprint of the Tour.

As you have seen, I normally include all of scene, but sometimes less is more.  Therefore, as I worked on this, I realized all I needed to convey the story of the final sprint of Stage 17 was the riders, and nothing else.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $99 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

Purchase this painting here: "Without Disaster TdF26-127" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Learn more about Greig Leach at The Art of Cycling: About the Artist: Greig Leach

And learn about Leach's published books at The Art of Cycling: Cycling Books by Greig Leach

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