Mads Pedersen did not try to hide what his third Tour de France stage victory meant.
After a difficult spring, an altered build-up and outside doubts about whether he could still reach his best level, the Lidl-Trek rider powered to victory on stage 4 in Foix and used the moment to answer his critics directly.
Quoted by Eurosport, Pedersen said: “It is always nice to win, and winning at the Tour de France is also fantastic. I know you are not allowed to say it, but this is a middle finger to everyone who said my season was over, and that I was finished and all that bullshit.”
The 29-year-old had spent much of the year trying to recover from the consequences of a heavy crash at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana in February. But in the heat of southern France, he delivered the kind of performance that reminded everyone why he remains one of the most dangerous riders in the peloton.
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A painful route back to form
Pedersen’s season began with a major setback almost immediately.
According to IDL Pro Cycling, he broke his left wrist and right collarbone in a crash at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana on 4 February, before returning just six and a half weeks later at Milan-Sanremo.
He still managed to finish inside the top ten in every spring classic he started, including Milan-Sanremo, E3 Saxo Classic, Dwars door Vlaanderen, the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. But the season had never quite flowed the way he wanted.
That made his Tour preparation more unusual than normal. Rather than racing the Baloise Belgium Tour, Pedersen and Lidl-Trek chose a controlled training block, with TV 2 Sport reporting that the build-up included motorpacing and heat training.
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Some questioned whether skipping racing before the Tour was the right decision. Pedersen now feels the answer came on the road.
“It has not been the easiest season, but it has not been the hardest either, even though I broke some bones in the spring,” he said. “I still think it was a decent season. And with the change in preparation for the Tour, it now shows that it was not so bad.”
Lidl-Trek deliver a perfect plan
Pedersen’s win was not built alone.
The stage developed into a major breakaway day, and Lidl-Trek placed key riders in exactly the right positions. Mathias Vacek and Quinn Simmons played decisive roles, controlling the final kilometres and giving Pedersen the platform to finish the job.
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In a separate Eurosport interview, Pedersen said: “It was a masterpiece in teamwork. Maybe not in climbing, because I really suffered a lot on the last climb.”
He continued: “But with Quinn and Vacek there, it was an incredible day. They did fantastically on the climb and made sure we did not lose too much time over the top.”
From there, Lidl-Trek kept the race under control. Vacek could potentially have attacked for his own chance, while Simmons had the legs to challenge, but the plan was clear: Pedersen was the finisher.
“Today I had to win”
Pedersen admitted there was no sentiment in the finale.
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Asked whether part of him had wanted Simmons or Vacek to take the victory after their work, he was blunt.
“It may sound a bit arrogant, but not today,” he said. “Today the plan was for me to win. I wanted to win, I had to win, also for the points. That is why we did not let Vacek go.”
He added that both teammates would get their chances later if the race allowed it.
For Lidl-Trek, the result was close to perfect. Pedersen won the stage, Simmons completed a one-two finish, and the Dane also strengthened his position in the points classification.
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Described by The Guardian, stage 4 was raced in extreme heat of around 40 degrees Celsius, with four categorised climbs and emergency measures to help riders cope with the conditions.
Pedersen sends a clear message
The victory was Pedersen’s third career stage win at the Tour de France, following earlier successes in Saint-Étienne in 2022 and Limoges in 2023.
This one may have carried a different emotional weight.
It came after injury, after doubt and after a preparation plan that did not look like his usual route into a Grand Tour. It also came on a day when Lidl-Trek rode with total commitment to their leader.
Pedersen did not just win a stage. He reclaimed control of the story around his season.
For those who had decided he was finished, the answer came in Foix, with a sprint, a team celebration and a quote that said exactly how much it meant.
