Remco Evenepoel wins time trial for back-to-back Tour de France stage victories, Tadej Pogacar still leads - NBC Sports

What the report says

NBCSports.com, carrying an Associated Press report, said Remco Evenepoel won Stage 16 of the 2026 Tour de France, taking the race’s only individual time trial on July 21. The Belgian time trial world champion covered the 26.1-kilometer route from Évian-les-Bains to Thonon-les-Bains in 32 minutes, 19 seconds, cutting 28 seconds from Tadej Pogacar’s overall advantage.

Evenepoel’s ride gave him consecutive stage victories after his Stage 15 win and marked the third straight year he has won a Tour time trial, according to the report. Pogacar, a four-time Tour winner, still produced the day’s second-best time and remained firmly in control of the general classification, leading Evenepoel by 4 minutes, 32 seconds with five stages left before the race finishes Sunday in Paris.

The stage also brought concern for Evenepoel’s Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe teammate Florian Lipowitz, who crashed on a sharp bend late in the course and could not continue. NBCSports.com reported that team director Paxti Vila said Lipowitz was being taken to a hospital for evaluation. Lipowitz, described as Germany’s top rider, had been fifth overall before the time trial.

The course featured a category 2 climb and a technical descent before the finish, and the same corner nearly caught out Pogacar, who wobbled but stayed upright. The AP report also noted renewed attention on doping controls after Pogacar’s main rival, Jonas Vingegaard, crashed out over the weekend following early-morning testing for the leading riders, while Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe riders underwent controls without having their sleep interrupted.