Following the serious highs in last year’s Tour de France for Ireland’s Ben Healy – including two days in the yellow jersey – the 2026 edition has been a test of endurance so far for the EF Education-EasyPost rider.
After a top-10 finish in the general classification (GC), including a memorable stage victory, Healy came into this year’s race as something of a marked man.
Though he has come back from a forced lay-off due to a bone fracture, before falling ill at his comeback race, the 25-year-old feels like he is in good condition to push for stage glory again.
The biggest issue has been the unrelenting heat.
Temperatures for the last 10 days have ranged between 35-47 degrees. Organisers advised fans not to travel to the third stage over safety fears, while Sunday’s stage 9 was shortened by 30km due to a forecasted afternoon peak temperature that was set to exceed 41 degrees.
Healy lies 105th in the GC, but admits his struggles in the heat have affected him on the saddle, despite extensive preparation with hot baths, sauna sessions, hot rides on the turbo trainer and a couple of weeks training in high temperatures coming into the race.
“I’m managing okay and optimistic for the rest of the Tour,” he told RTÉ’s Inside Sport on Monday’s rest day.
“I’m definitely riding better that I ever have in the heat. It’s so hot and intense, you can’t be missing any sort of percentage.”
Healy in the famed maillot jaune in 2025
Healy, who last year became the first Irishman to don the Tour’s fabled yellow jersey since Stephen Roche back in 1987, says there has been greater scrutiny on him following his exploits 12 months ago.
“100%. After everything that happened last year, there was a lot of expectation,” he said. “I just want to take it day-by-day and that’s what I have been doing.
“I’ve been enjoying the moments I can and getting stuck in as well.
“This first week has been pretty quiet, not too many opportunities for me. People have been asking ‘where’s Ben? What’s he doing?
“I’m going to show up at some point. I’m sure my day is coming.”
Healy’s optimism is borne out of two factors. Firstly, a slight drop in temperature is expected, but the scheduling is another.
On Friday and Saturday, category one climb Ballon d’Alsace features, with Friday’s stage slated to be the only one north of 200km, a largely flat day’s cycling before two late climbs, while the following day contains four big climbs in the Vosges mountains.
Sunday sees a summit finish on the Plateau de Solaison, and Healy is optimistic he can challenge on the medium mountain stages that suit his skillset.
“Even just a five degree difference can make a difference for me,” he said. “I’m in the right place to perform. There are some really good stages for me coming up. I’m going to be there for sure.
“The body in the right place to fight for a stage win.”