Former road cycling world champion Julian Alaphilippe celebrated after mistakenly believing he had won the 15th stage of the Tour de France, hours after fixing his own dislocated shoulder. It was an eventful Sunday for the Frenchman, who was in the chasing group and won the sprint within it but actually crossed the finish line in third place in Carcassonne.
Former road cycling world champion Julian Alaphilippe celebrated after mistakenly believing he had won the 15th stage of the Tour de France, hours after fixing his own dislocated shoulder.
It was an eventful Sunday for the Frenchman, who was in the chasing group and won the sprint within it but actually crossed the finish line in third place in Carcassonne.
The stage victory went to Belgian rider Tim Wellens, who broke away from the pack. Fellow Belgian Victor Campenaerts also crossed the finish line ahead of Alaphilippe.
"Unfortunately, my radio stopped working after a crash, so I tried to put in the best sprint possible and thought about the stage win. Like an idiot, I raised my hands, but there were a few guys ahead of me," the 33-year-old Alaphilippe told French television.
This is not the first time the 2020 and 2021 world champion has made such a mistake. During the 2020 Liège-Bastogne-Liège classic, he raised his hands in celebration too early, only for Slovenia's Primož Roglič to take the victory.
Other cycling stars have also fallen victim to errant celebrations, including Belgian sprint star Jasper Philipsen during the 2022 Tour de France.
In the first half of the stage, Alaphilippe dislocated his shoulder in a crash.
"I remembered what they did to me in the hospital previously and managed to pop it back in," Alaphilippe said. "The day could have gone better, but I could also have had to go home, so it's OK."
Category: General Sports
