New motivation for Jasper Philipsen after Tour de France horror crash

Jasper Philipsen returns to competition at the NordPost Tour of Denmark on Tuesday and is in search of new motivation after a horror crash ruined the main goal of his 2025 season.

Like many riders, the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider’s biggest target for the 2025 season was the Tour de France. It started brilliantly, the Belgian won the opening stage and took the yellow jersey, swapping that for the green points jersey on day two when team mate Mathieu van der Poel won.

But the dream of winning that green jersey literally came crashing down on stage three when he was left with serious injuries after a cruel crash. However, just 36 days after the incident which left Philipsen with a broken collar bone and a number of fractured ribs, he’ll be on the Tour of Denmark start line in Nexø today.

"The rehabilitation went faster than the doctors and I expected,” Philipsen told Niewsblad. “In Herentals, they suggested two weeks off the bike, and only after four weeks could I train outdoors again.”

“In the end, after one week, I was back on the rollers for an hour a day, and after two weeks, I could train outdoors. In training, I'm virtually pain-free. In a real race, I might still feel a little bit in a full sprint, but it certainly won't bother me."

With one flat sprint stage and three more gnarly days to go with Thursday’s time trial, this week’s race is built for a riders like to Philipsen, who is not only among the world’s best sprinters, but can also cope with short punchy climbs better than many.

“This is definitely a good race to get back into competition, but we'll have to see how much my fitness has declined. If you're inactive, you know you're going to lose a lot anyway. I’m not starting this competitive block with a slow build-up and an altitude training camp. On the other hand, this isn't the Tour de France either, and I usually achieve a good base level. There are certainly strong riders here, Mads Pedersen will be very good in his home race and in preparation for the Vuelta,  but if I reach a decent level myself, there should be something in it for me too.”

With only three additions to to his stacked palmarès so far, this has not been Philipsen’s most prolific year, but with his Tour de France target left on the roads of northern France finding new motivation os not always easy. 

“At certain times, it's very easy to focus 110 percent, but for smaller goals that's not easy,” Philipsen explained. “But there are other ways to get motivated, I get a lot of energy from having fun training with a great group of people around me. One of my first training sessions after my crash was a ride with Mathieu van der Poel and Quinten Hermans.

“That was just plain fun. By focusing on fun and enjoying the cycling itself, you can also go very far. Even if your focus is 100 percent instead of 110 percent. As a cyclist, you're fortunate that new goals always present themselves quickly. I've really made the switch to make the most of everything that's yet to come.”

And what is to come after Denmark? Could we see Philipsen at the Vuelta?

"I'd love to ride the Vuelta, it's one of the few major goals left for me this fall. I'm really motivated to be at the start there, but with my limited preparation, we also have to see what's realistic. If I ride around here in Denmark feeling bad for a week, it might not be appropriate to suffer in the mountains for three weeks during a tough Vuelta. We'll have to see."