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'Things like this don’t happen to guys like me': Rory Townsend's decade of hard graft finally pays off with WorldTour win

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'Things like this don’t happen to guys like me': Rory Townsend's decade of hard graft finally pays off with WorldTour win

Irish champion Rory Townsend spent a decade in third-tier teams battling imposter syndrome before denying Wout van Aert and Jasper Philipsen to win the ADAC Cyclassics.

By Chris Marshall-Bell

Photography by Getty

21 AUGUST 2025 | UPDATED 11.38 PM BST

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Rouleur Issue 144 — The Tour Issue
In printIssue 144

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The Tour Issue

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.