Pedersen third on Champs-Élysées, secures Tour de France points jersey

Danish cyclist Mads Pedersen narrowly missed out on a victory on the Champs-Élysées, finishing third in the final stage of the Tour de France. While he felt his sprint was strong, Pedersen acknowledged the superior performance of Mathieu van der Poel, who ultimately took the win.

"Van der Poel was exceptional, and he is a world-class winner on the Champs-Élysées," Pedersen told TV 2 Sport. The Lidl-Trek rider found himself in a chasing position after the overall winner, Tadej Pogacar, dropped back from van der Poel's wheel in the final kilometer.

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I rode a pretty decent sprint, but van der Poel was exceptional, and he is a world-class winner on the Champs-Élysées.

Despite not winning the stage, Pedersen celebrated a significant personal achievement: securing the green jersey for the points classification. He finished with 559 points, well ahead of Jasper Philipsen, who had been his main rival for the jersey until the penultimate stage. This victory adds to Pedersen's impressive record, as he has now won the points classification in all three Grand Tours – the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and Vuelta a España.

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After a couple of failed attempts, it is special and wonderful. It is an extremely nice podium to stand on. Crazy.