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Poops, pukes, and communication confusions aren’t only the signs of a good night on the grog. They’re regular features of the Tour de France, too.
And this year’s race is no exception.
After 15 stages and more than 2,300km of racing, this year’s Tour has seen its fair share of “WTF” moments and meme-worthy mess-ups.
In no particular order, here are seven of the weirdest things we’ve seen so far at this Tour de France:
The KoM sprint crash nobody saw coming
Vercher and Thomas became the first meme of the 2025 Tour de France (Photo: TNT / Eurosport)
Crashes at the Tour de France are not something to make light of.
Just ask Filippo Ganna, Jasper Philipsen, or any of the other victims from this Tour.
But the bizarre collision between Benjamin Thomas and Mattéo Vercher on stage 1 is one to return to.
Two breakaway riders sprinting so hard for KoM points that they can’t keep control of their bikes?
You don’t see that every day in the precision-calibrated modern Tour.
⚪ @Ben__Thomas_ is first at Mont Cassel after a hard-fought sprint. Unfortunately, both riders crashed as they crossed the line and were caught by the peloton.
⚪ @Ben__Thomas_ passe en tête au Mont Cassel après un sprint très disputé. Malheureusement, les deux coureurs… pic.twitter.com/cFl1jjZ95j
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 5, 2025
As TNT Sports pundit Adam Blythe pointed out at the time of the Tour’s most curious crash, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more aggressive sprint to the line for the mountain jersey, ever.”
Thomas won’t be too concerned by what Blythe has to say.
The journeyman Frenchman wound up wearing the polka dot jersey the next day.
The longest calves in the peloton
All calves for this Red Bull. (Photo: Chris Auld / Velo)
Primož Roglič wound back the years to the era of no-show socks – or maybe embraced his inner triathlete – on the sun-baked 12th stage to Hautacam.
Rogla’s svelte shiny caves spurred so much of a fashion fruror that TV interviewers were compelled to find out more.
“It’s hot, no?” Roglič told TNT Sports after the stage. “I work on my tan for the summer without the lines.”
UCI checking sock length:
Primoz Roglic: try me#TDF25 pic.twitter.com/t6WiUOQHox
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) July 17, 2025
Fair enough.
Roglič has won five grand tours. He’s been around the block. And he knows what works for him, no matter what the fashionistas say.
But while we’re not here to judge, the no-show look certainly … shows up … in a peloton of tall aero socks.
An explosion in an RV
Blessed be the RV, as far as Woods is concerned. (Photo: Gruber Images / Velo)
Mike Woods’ explosive encounter with the toilet of an RV remained off-camera, thankfully.
Woods’ emergency pit stop at the Tour de France is nothing all that unusual.
Most racers will have suffered a “Dumoulin moment” in a pro peloton propelled by thousands of calories of sugars.
But few recount it with the vivid, gut-broiling honesty of the blog that Woods wrote to unpack the Tour’s 10th stage.
“The knot in my stomach only got worse. I tried to breathe, I tried to ride through it, but I was hit with the realization that I was about to have my Dumoulin moment,” he wrote.
Praise be for the roadside camper, Woods typed.
“To the poor, very kind, and dumbfounded, man who opened his RV door to me, I want to first say thank you, but also apologize profusely for the state I left your bathroom in,” reads his blog.
“Let’s just say, 120 g of carbs per hour for four consecutive hours does not come out nicely.”
Say no more.
A puke-provoking attack
PSA: Don’t go in a long range attack with Van der Poel. (Photo: Gruber Images / Velo)
On the topic of G.I. distress, it seems that riding in a two-man breakaway with Mathieu van der Poel can generate some issues, too.
Jonas Rickaert confessed the intensity of his 170km long-bomb with MVDP caused some unforecasted expulsions.
“My stomach couldn’t handle the effort. I vomited five times,” Rickaert told Sporza after his big day off the front of the Tour’s 9th stage.
“My clothes looked terrible after the finish. But it was worth it.”
Worth it indeed.
Rickaert’s joke to attack from the flag-drop became a reality that earned him a career-topping trip to the Tour de France podium to receive “most combative rider” award.
Here’s hoping he cleaned up a bit before he went to collect his trophy.
Alaphilippe, chivalrous sign stealer
Who needs a $300 windbreaker when you can steal a sign instead? (Photo: TNT / Eurosport)
Julian Alaphilippe: French favorite, double world champion, panache merchant … and sign-stealer extraordinaire.
It was a full “WTF” when cameras caught Alaphilippe snatching a sign from a roadside fan on Saturday’s 14th stage.
The written message wasn’t even directed at Alaphilippe? It was to stoke Wout van Aert?
And who wants a soggy bit of cardboard atop the Tourmalet?
It turns out LuLu does.
Stuffing newspaper or cardboard up the jersey as a windblocker is the oldest trick in the book.
Yesterday, just before the summit of the Tourmalet, Julian Alaphilippe grabbed a cardboard sign from a fan. He tucked it under his jersey to keep warm on the descent. Later, he apologized to the woman. The sign read: “Wout doesn’t know it yet, but we’re getting… pic.twitter.com/TIBJTkP834
— Team Visma | Lease a Bike (@vismaleaseabike) July 20, 2025
But fear not, Alaphilippe is a gentleman.
He met with the spectator the next day to make recompense.
“I gave her a bib, and she took a picture with Wout [who was also in attendance],” Alaphilippe said the day after “sign-gate.”
“Because of this, she had a better time compared to what she would have experienced at the top of the Tourmalet.”
Alaphilippe, shoulder-smashing third-place celebrator
Oh Julian … [facepalms]. (Photo: Gruber Images / Velo)
Alaphilippe’s apology was only the beginning of what had to be the craziest day he’s experienced in his seven starts at the Tour de France.
Crash hard, dislocate shoulder, pop it back, break radio, sprint for a “win” that was actually third place?
All in a Sunday’s work for Alaphilippe on the roads into Carcassonne.
“The radio didn’t work after my crash,” Alaphilippe said after Sunday’s stage. “Like an idiot, I sprinted to try and win … et voilà.”
Oh la la.
Possibly the worst bit? Alaphilippe has celebrated a non-win before.
Remember this at the 2020 Liège-Bastogne-Liège?
Kæmpe drama i Liege Bastogne Liege!
Alaphilippe svejer Hirschi, jubler, men så kommer Roglic indenom og tager sejren pic.twitter.com/jWFoQjLoGj
— Forhjulslir (@forhjulslir) October 4, 2020
All the TT helmets
There’s no geting used to images like this. (Photo: Gruber Images / Velo)
Let’s face it, time trial stages at the Tour de France are a day-long weird out.
Enormous TT helmets optimized to smooth airflow across the shoulders have been “a thing” for years. But even now, those oversized lids and face-consuming vizors still draw a bit of a snicker.
Visma-Lease a Bike (Giro), EF Education-EasyPost (POC), Uno-X Mobility (SweetProtection), Bahrain-Victorious (Rudy), and XDS Astana (XDS) were some personal favorites from the stage 5 helmet horror fest.
I like Jonas Vingegaard’s time trial helmet! #TourDeFrance pic.twitter.com/diSSOMHT5r
— Mark Robak (@MarkRobak) July 18, 2025