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Almeida’s Stage-9 Withdrawal Redraws Tour de France Tactics—and Portuguese Dreams

Sports
By The Portugal Post, The Portugal Post
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Every July, cafés from Porto to the Algarve tune their televisions to the Tour de France. This week the chatter turned somber. Portugal’s most promising Grand Tour rider, João Almeida, climbed off his bike midway through Stage 9, leaving countryman Tadej Pogačar’s super-team suddenly lighter on firepower. For expatriates who have adopted Portugal as home, the story offers a window into how cycling stirs national pride—and how one cracked bone can reorder a billion-euro sporting spectacle.

A Sudden Exit on Stage 9

The drama unfolded on a windswept Sunday, 13 July. Almeida, usually a metronome of consistency, rolled up to the medical car grimacing; a fractured rib from a high-speed crash two days earlier had pushed his pain threshold beyond reason. Moments later, television cameras showed the Peloton receding while his UAE Team Emirates car eased to a halt. The Stage 9 retirement became the first major storyline of week two, underlining how fragile a Tour de France campaign can be even for the best-funded squads. In Lisbon’s sports bars, patrons who had planned an afternoon of patriotic cheer suddenly found themselves replaying the slow-motion tumble from Stage 7 on their phones.

Why Almeida Matters to Portugal—and to Pogačar

To many locals, Almeida embodies the modern Portuguese athlete: multilingual, analytical, and ambitious on the world stage. He entered the race as Pogačar’s primary climbing gregário—a role that involves controlling tempo on Alpine slopes so the Slovenian superstar can launch decisive attacks. His recent victories at Paris–Nice and the Tour de Romandie suggested his form was peaking; bookmakers even floated a long-shot podium finish if team orders loosened. Within the squad, though, his job was clear: act as mountain bodyguard, fetch bottles, and discourage raids from rivals like Visma-Lease a Bike. Pogačar’s public lament—“Estamos muito tristes por ter perdido o João”—was more than etiquette. Losing that level of road captaincy strips strategic layers from a leader who has grown accustomed to multi-tiered protection.

How the UAE Emirates Will Replot Their Route

With Almeida sidelined, manager Mauro Gianetti signaled an immediate pivot: the remaining roster will race “all-in for Tadej.” That means Adam Yates graduates from co-leader to indispensable sherpa, Marc Soler will likely burn matches earlier than planned, and Pavel Sivakov’s lingering illness becomes a looming variable. Expect fewer flashy ambushes and more defensive pacing—the classic hold-the-yellow-jersey playbook that forces Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel to chase. For spectators, the change could translate into calmer valley sections and tense summit finishes where every attack is measured against energy budgets instead of glory.

What Expats Should Know About Portugal’s Cycling Stars

Newcomers often discover that football dominates headlines, yet cycling punches above its weight in cultural importance. From the historic Volta a Portugal to Sunday club rides along the N2 road, the sport weaves through everyday life. When a rider like Almeida breaks through on the WorldTour, local municipalities paint roundabouts yellow and children queue for autographs at Fátima’s annual criterium. For foreigners settling in, following these heroes becomes an easy gateway into small-town festivities, language immersion, and even bureaucratic shortcuts—mentioning a famous ciclista can thaw many a municipal clerk.

Looking Ahead: Recovery Timelines and Vuelta Hopes

Team doctors expect a four-to-six-week convalescence for Almeida’s left-side rib fracture. The window would place him on the start line of the Vuelta a España, beginning 23 August, where he has unfinished business after last year’s near-miss at the podium. Rehabilitation will involve altitude training at Sierra Nevada, physiotherapy in Vilamoura, and the occasional appearance at sponsor events to maintain visibility. For armchair fans—and anyone navigating Portugal’s August heat waves—a late-summer Almeida comeback could offer perfect evening entertainment, especially as streaming platforms court Lusophone audiences with multi-camera race feeds.

Big Picture for the 2025 Tour

Pogačar still leads the race by 54 seconds, but the loss of Almeida changes the psychological landscape. Visma-Lease a Bike’s analysts have already inserted extra climbing accelerations into their algorithms; Soudal-Quick-Step senses an opening for Evenepoel’s time-trial engine. Meanwhile, broadcasters note that Portuguese viewership held steady despite the heartbreak, a testament to how deeply the country has invested in the Slovenian-Portuguese alliance. Should Pogačar hoist the maillot jaune in Paris, the narrative may read: Portugal’s pain became his fuel. Until then, expats and locals alike will keep one eye on the Pyrenees and another on Almeida’s social-media updates, waiting for the moment he clicks that race number back onto his jersey.