Victor Lafay lands Tour de France stage in Basque Country

Victor Lafay used a late attack to end a 15-year wait for the Cofidis team to celebrate a Tour de France stage victory as Adam Yates retained the yellow jersey in San Sebastian.

Having watched pre-stage favourite Wout van Aert use up energy shutting down late attacks from Tom Pidcock and Mattias Skjelmose on the run into town, Lafay waited for the flamme rouge to launch his own move, and then held off the chasing pack at the line as Van Aert slammed his handlebars in frustration.

Adam Yates was in a lead group reduced to just 24 riders at the end of the longest stage of this year's Tour, retaining yellow as his team-mate Tadej Pogacar used bonus seconds to move up to second, level on time with Simon Yates six seconds back.

Pogacar had come across the line third on the stage, just ahead of Pidcock and Pello Bilbao.

For Cofidis, it is a first stage win since Sylvain Chavanel triumphed in Montlucon in 2008.

⏪Relive the final km of Stage 2 of the #TDF2023, where @victorlafay won by attacking under the flamme rouge ⏪Revivez le dernier km de la 2ème étape du #TDF2023, où @victorlafay a gagné en attaquant sous la flamme rouge! pic.twitter.com/xLryP6X00E

"In the last metres, I looked down at my computer, I saw 500 metres (to go), 400 metres," said 27-year-old Frenchman Lafay, who added to his Giro d’Italia stage win from 2021.

"I said to myself I will inevitably be caught at 50 metres. It’s sick."

The UAE Team Emirates squad of Adam Yates and Pogacar did a huge amount of work almost all day to control a three-man breakaway, with the peloton needing to negotiate some changeable weather that made stretches of this 209-kilometre route through the rolling terrain of the Basque Country treacherous.

Other teams, not least the Jumbo-Visma squad