The German rider crashed on a bend a good six kilometres from the finish and was treated at the scene. He was then escorted to an ambulance, holding his shoulder. Lipowitz had been on course for a podium finish, sitting just three seconds behind Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl – Trek) at the final intermediate time check; Skjelmose ultimately finished third. The Dane finished 1 minute and 4 seconds behind the winner, Evenepoel. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates – XRG) also stood no chance against the 26-year-old, finishing 28 seconds behind him.

However, this has had little impact on his comfortable lead. Pogacar continues to lead by 4 minutes and 32 seconds ahead of Evenpoel. Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates – XRG / +6:51 mins) remains in third place and is therefore the best young rider, although, having finished fifth on the day, he lost five seconds to Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM), who lost 1:17 minutes to Evenepoel.

For him, it was the 76th victory of his professional career, the 26th of which came in a time trial – secured on Belgium’s National Day. “I’m really delighted with this victory. It was a great time trial,” said Evenepoel in his post-race interview. “My parents have come, and my wife is here. It was very emotional. However, I’ve also heard that my team-mate Lipowitz has crashed. That made the whole thing bittersweet. I wish him all the best and hope it’s not too serious.”

Lipowitz is therefore the second rider from last year’s podium, after Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike), who will be unable to finish the 2026 Tour.

2026 Tour de France – Results of Stage 16

Here’s how the 16th stage of the 2026 Tour de France unfolded

Spread over 4 hours and 15 minutes, a further 166 riders took to the time trial of Stage 16. Starting in reverse order of the general classification, many sprinters and their lead-out men were among the first to set off, but Josh Tarling (Netcompany INEOS) – a recognised specialist – was the 18th rider to take to the course. His finishing time of 34 minutes and 21 seconds – an average speed of 45.6 km/h – was to remain the fastest for quite some time.

Neither Daan Hoole (Decathlon CMA CGM / +0:39 min) nor Tarlings’ team-mate Filippo Ganna (+0:05 min) were able to beat the time, meaning the Briton found himself in the hot seat for quite some time. It was only after more than an hour and a half that Bruno Armirail (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) took his place. The Frenchman was six seconds faster than Tarling and, following the withdrawal of team captain Jonas Vingegaard on the previous stage, was riding with plenty of motivation and a fire in his belly. The same had been expected of Victor Campenaerts, but the former European time trial champion took it easy.

Lipowitz slips out of the Kuve and is forced to withdraw

Mattia Cattaneo (Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe) then spring a surprise by beating the previous best time by a further 13 seconds. It was certainly a sign that the equipment is working well for Evenepoel’s team.

Thymen Arensman (Netcompany INEOS) proved that the momentum then slowly shifted in favour of the climbers. The Dutchman crossed the line five seconds behind Cattaneo, although he too had missed his start – the clock was already ticking before he appeared on the ramp and actually set off.

Then it was Skjelmose who beat Cattaneo by more than half a minute. But the Italian was glad to be able to carry on, as Lipowitz – who was just as fast as the Dane – had crashed shortly before and had to withdraw from the race. None of the youngsters could keep up with Skjelmose. Both his team-mate Juan Ayuso and Seixas and Del Toro had to settle for places behind him.

However, Skjelmose was also unable to make any headway against Evenepoel. The world champion took 1 minute and 4 seconds off him. And Pogacar, who also struggled on the bend where Lipowitz crashed, was clearly left behind. At the finish line, he was 28 seconds behind the winner.