Tour de France 2025 through the lens of James Startt - Stage 14
On each stage at the Tour de France, James Startt selects his image of the day, offering a unique perspective on the rolling citadel and the characters who inhabit it.
There was a Back to the Future feel to stage 14 of the Tour de France, which brought the peloton from Pau to Superbagnères over the same route used on the 1986 race, when Greg LeMond won to move to within 40 seconds of teammate Bernard Hinault.
But the throwback feel wasn’t limited to that key moment in the first American Tour victory. It was also present in the break of the day, with Lenny Martinez wearing the polka dot jersey that his grandfather Mariano Martinez carried to Paris in 1978.
The latest scion of the Martinez dynasty began Saturday’s final Pyrenean stage wearing the jersey on behalf of overall leader Tadej Pogačar, but he would make the garment his own – for now at least – with a battling display.
Martinez led alone over the mighty, mist-shrouded Col du Tourmalet, picking up the Prix Jacques Goddet in the process, and he also led over the Col d’Aspin. He had to settle for second on the Col de Peyresourde, but he did enough to take the lead in the king of the mountains classification.
There are more battles to come in the Alps, and Martinez knows his mission. “I’ll try to do the same thing again,” he said at Superbagnères on Saturday evening.
James Startt is covering his 36th Tour de France. He is a two-time winner of the World Sports Photography awards and he currently serves as the creative director to inGamba luxury cycling tours.
