Tour de France 2025 through the lens of James Startt - Stage 21
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.
The Tour de France finale returned to Paris after a one-year hiatus on Sunday, but Paris wasn’t how the Tour had left it. Inspired by the success of the 2024 Olympics and, specifically, by the remarkable carnival provided by the road races, ASO decided to bring a little of that spirit to the Tour, routing the final stage over three laps of Montmartre.
The tweak divided opinion in the peloton, with the sprinters aggrieved at losing out on their annual jamboree on the Champs-Élysées, while some GC contenders also expressed concern at the risks of a full peloton racing up those narrow streets.
The crowds massed on the Butte Montmartre, however, immediately validated the experiment, and so did the racing that followed the decision to neutralise the last 50km for GC.
Tadej Pogacar, inevitably, was to the fore on the climb. Even though he was surprisingly dropped by a resurgent Wout van Aert on the final time up Montmartre, his aggressive evening of racing – when the clock had already stopped – felt like a fitting way to wrap up his fourth Tour victory.
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.
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