
Tour de France 2026 preview: the contenders, sprinters and stage-hunters to watch
From four-time champion Tadej Pogačar to 19-year-old debutant Paul Seixas, a 3,333km route from Barcelona to Paris sets the stage. Here's who to watch across G…

The Italian wins XDS Astana's third stage of this Giro d'Italia
By Tristan Rees
Photography by Luca Bettini / AFP via Getty Images
22 MAY 2026 | UPDATED 11.42 PM BST
Alberto Bettiol (XDS Astana) attacked his way to claim stage 13 of the Giro d'Italia finishing in Verbania. The Italian overcame the move of Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) on the final climb of the day, and in doing so the 2019 Tour of Flanders winner took the second Giro stage win of his career. Leknessund battled to finish as the runner-up for the second time this Giro after his effort on stage eight. Next across the line was Jasper Stuyven (Soudal Quick-Step).
With a challenging run-in to Verbania, which included two categorised climbs in the last 30km, the sprinters' teams weren't interested in chasing the breakaway, so it was left to maglia rosa Afonso Eulálio's Bahrain-Victorious to take charge of the peloton, which finished 12 minutes back.
In total, there were 15 riders in the day's breakaway, which built up a large gap over the peloton. Alongside Bettiol, Leknessund and Stuyven, the break included Francesco Busatto (Alpecin-Premier Tech), Michael Valgren (EF Education-EasyPost), Axel Huens, Johan Jacobs and Josh Kench (Groupama - FDJ United), Toon Aerts (Lotto-Intermarché), Mark Donovan (Pinarello-Q36.5), Mirco Maestri and Diego Pablo Sevilla (Team Polti VisitMalta), Larry Warbasse (Tudor Pro Cycling), Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Markus Hoelgaard (Uno-X Mobility).
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Join today for daily race updates, exclusive content and access to new collection launches.
Le Tour de France: a race defined by colour, passion and history, whose drama and romance continue to shape the identity of cycling’s greatest stage.


Le Tour de France: a race defined by colour, passion and history, whose drama and romance continue to shape the identity of cycling’s greatest stage.
Le Tour de France: a race defined by colour, passion and history, whose drama and romance continue to shape the identity of cycling’s greatest stage.


Le Tour de France: a race defined by colour, passion and history, whose drama and romance continue to shape the identity of cycling’s greatest stage.