The Swiss Mauro Schmid signed the greatest success of his career on Friday by winning the 13th stage of the Tour de France in Belfort. The 26-year-old from Zurich won in the sprint ahead of Colombian Harold Tejada. The rider from the Jayco-Alula team scores his first success on the Grande Boucle in this stage for adventurers including the ascent of the Ballon d’Alsace and marked by a river breakaway which included up to 57 riders.
The Briton Tom Pidcock, who was best placed in the breakaway at the start of the stage (10th at 11:49 in the yellow jersey), finished third and made a good comeback in the general classification before the two mountain stages of the weekend.
Revealed on the track and in time trials, Mauro Schmid has established himself as a specialist in classics and stage races thanks to his power and his burst of speed. Swiss time trial champion, he notably counts a stage victory in the Tour of Italy to his list of achievements. He created a surprise by winning the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race 2025, before following up in 2026 with success in the Muscat Classic and in the general classification of the Settimana Coppi e Bartali.
All eyes on Pogacar
From Saturday, the peloton will return to the mountains with a 14th stage of 155 kilometers between Mulhouse and Le Markstein Fellering. The route includes four climbs for 3,800 meters of altitude difference, including the brand new Col du Haag, a first category climb which is making its appearance on the Tour.
11.2 kilometers long at an average gradient of 7.3%, this pass recently built on an old forest road has several passages at more than 12%, particularly in its last kilometer. “The last ramp is a real springboard for making deviations,” underlines Thierry Gouvenou, the course designer.
The stage is announced as ideal terrain for contenders for the general classification. All eyes will be on Tadej Pogacar, who has already recognized this rise and could take advantage of this new difficulty to further widen the gap on his rivals.
