'I am ready to show who I am' - João Almeida beats Jonas Vingegaard on a rain-soaked stage 4 of Paris-Nice

João Almeida pipped Jonas Vingegaard on the line to win a rain-soaked stage four of Paris-Nice at La Loges des Gardes.

Vingegaard put in a stinging attack with two kilometres to the finish which quickly distanced Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious), the only rider able to initially hold the wheel of the rampaging Dane. Vingegaard quickly caught and passed the last man standing at the head of the race, Tobias Foss (Ineos Grenadiers), and immediately pushed on under the flamme rouge.

Matteo Jorgenson buried himself behind his teammate and former two-time Tour de France winner as he attempted to mark moves from UAE Emirates duo Almeida and Brandon McNulty as they looked to get back on terms. As Vingegaard faded, the race leader was unable to hold off Visma-Lease a Bike’s rivals as Almeida caught and passed the 28-year-old with the finish line in touching distance.

Vingegaard’s second place ensured that he took over the race lead from Jorgenson, although being beaten by UAE for a second time on the climb would have come as a blow. The 28-year-old was bettered by Tadej Pogačar on the climb at the 2023 edition of the race. Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) completed the top three. Jorgenson finished sixth, six seconds down on Almeida.

"I’m super happy. It was a hard day. Lots happening in the stage of course, we had some snow. We never gave up, and I think we deserved it and I think I’m very happy with it," Almeida said post-race. "I was feeling quite good, I’m not the best guy with the cold temperatures, I was suffering a bit with that.

"I never gave up, the climb was just not steep enough so it was hard to get the group even smaller. When Jonas attacked I was not in the best position, but I gave my best, and I’m super happy now."

"I think I can win, but it’s not just up to me," he added when asked if overall victory was within his grasp. "I think my shape is good, I feel good, I am ready to show who João Almeida is. Not everything goes to plan, but I’ll try my best."

How it happened

Much of the stage took place in horrendous weather conditions, with torrential rain gradually turning to sleet which then led to ice forming on the road. As a result of this, the race was neutralised at the 45 kilometre mark to allow riders to safely navigate the treacherous section of the course at a slower pace, before later stopping to put on further wet and cold weather gear and temporarily shelter in team vehicles.

The state of the roads was evidenced by the sight of a race motorbike upended in a ditch after being caught out on the ice. A handful of riders were in the day’s early breakaway and held a lead of almost two and a half minutes on the peloton when the race was stopped. The nine rider move initially included three riders from Ineos Grenadiers, Ben Swift, Tobias Foss and Josh Tarling.

The race eventually got going again, albeit at a reduced tempo with riders repeatedly slowing down in order to navigate standing water and other obstacles on the route which were brought about by the inclement weather. It remained neutralised until the 28 kilometre to go mark when the action finally got underway again after another brief stop.

With 18 kilometres to go, Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) pushed on from the remnants of the breakaway but with the main field in hot pursuit back down the road. Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), Nils Pollitt (UAE Emirates) were helping to drive the peloton on as they ate into Leknessund’s advantage at speed. The Norwegian rider was briefly joined by several others, although Pedersen’s efforts soon helped the peloton make contact with the head of the race.

Once the riders began the final climb to the finish it was another Norwegian rider, Foss, who pushed on up the slopes to La Loges des Gardes. Meanwhile Pedersen resumed his efforts in the peloton and set an infernal pace in an attempt to bring back the lone leader.

A big attack then came from Jonas Vingegaard as the steep gradients began. The Visma-Lease a Bike rider quickly caught and passed Foss before pushing on to the finish. Vingegaard began to fade as the climb continued, enabling João Almeida to power past him to seal the 14th victory of his career.

Results

2025 Paris-Nice stage four Vichy > La Loge des Gardes (163.4 km)

1. João Almeida (Por) UAE Team Emirates, in 3:37:06
2. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Visma-Lease a Bike, +1s
3. Mattias Skjelmose (Den) Lidl-Trek, +2s
4. Lenny Martinez (Fra) Bahrain Victorious, at same time
5. Florian Lipowitz (Ger) Red Bull- Bora-Hansgrohe, +6s
6. Matteo Jorgenson (USA) Visma-Lease a Bike, at same time
7. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates, +9s
8. Harold Tejada (Col) XDS-Astana Team, +17s
9. Thymen Arensman (Ned) Ineos Grenadiers, at same time
10. Clement Champussin (Fra) XDS Astana Team, +21s

General classification after stage four

1. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Visma-Lease a Bike, in 11:50:59
2. Matteo Jorgenson (USA) Visma-Lease a Bike, +5s
3. Mattias Skjelmose (Den) Lidl-Trek, +33s
4.Florian Lipowitz (Ger) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, +36s
5. João Almeida (Por) UAE Team Emirates, +37s
6. Thymen Arensman (Ned) Ineos Grenadiers, 56s
7. Brandon McNulty (USA) UAE Team Emirates, +58s
8. Tobias Foss (Nor) Ineos Grenadiers, +1:06
9. Lenny Martinez (Fra) Bahrain Victorious, +1:09
10. Pablo Castrillo (Spa) Movistar, +1:22