Mathieu Van der Poel is back. The Dutch champion claimed the ninth stage of the Tour de France, 154 kilometers from Malemort to Ussel, delivering Alpecin-Deceuninck their first success in this edition of the Grande Boucle. A significant victory, achieved at the end of an extremely tough day, made even more complicated by extreme heat that forced organizers to shorten the route by approximately 30 kilometers. Despite the modification, the pace remained extremely high and the riders never held back.

For Van der Poel it is his third Tour de France stage victory, following those he secured in 2021 and 2025, but the value of this success goes beyond personal prestige. After a complicated first week and repeated failed attempts in sprints against Jasper Philipsen, Alpecin Premier Tech needed to break through: the Dutchman's triumph restores serenity to a team that can now face the second part of the race with far less pressure.

«It was a really tough day - Van der Poel recounted after the finish line -: the start of the Tour hasn't been the best for our team, but we remained calm. We have a fantastic group and we continued to believe that things would change, maybe not today, maybe in the second or third week. Arriving at the first rest day with a victory is truly wonderful».

Also decisive was the improvement in his physical condition after the difficulties he experienced in the early stages, when the heat seemed to have limited his performance.

«In the first few days I was really struggling and had problems recovering even after the easier stages. Over the last two days I had started to feel better and today, finally, I had the legs to give everything».

The victory matured at the end of a fiercely contested breakaway. Van der Poel had to spend precious energy to fend off the group's return and then beat Tom Pidcock and Anders Halland Johannessen in the sprint.

«I wasn't at all sure I would win. I burned through so much energy keeping the breakaway alive. The group kept pushing and the roads weren't favorable for attackers. We fought all day and I'm really happy we pulled it off».

With this success, Alpecin-Deceuninck regains confidence and morale. The race is still long, but the victory at Ussel represents a release for the entire team. When asked if this is the beginning of a new personal "festival" at the Tour, Van der Poel smiled: «Maybe it will be a festival of just one day, but for now we're enjoying it».

The stage was difficult from the first kilometers, this is because tomorrow there will be the first rest day and all teams will take stock. «Tomorrow's rest day will give us extra motivation, but it will be the same for the entire group. Often, the day before the rest day there's a very tough stage, so I think everyone was prepared for a long and demanding race».

Finally, there's the issue of the heat, which doesn't help riders during the race and Van der Poel himself is among the riders who have struggled to rest these days because of the high temperatures.

«The stage shortening didn't affect things too much; we pedaled in this heat for slightly less time, but it's not like it wasn't hot in recent days. I don't know if you can ever get used to this heat; it also depends on a rider's ability to manage it. I did everything I could to face it as best as possible, but these are extreme conditions».