Jonas Vingegaard STANDS UP FOR Tadej Pogačar after HECKLERS: “Why come to the Tour, then?”

Jonas Vingegaard stood up for his archrival Tadej Pogačar at the start of the eleventh stage of the 2026 Tour de France in Vichy. The yellow jersey was booed by part of the crowd on his way to his stage win at Le Lioran on Tuesday. Afterwards, the world champion said that it had affected him. Vingegaard experienced the same thing in 2023 and is defending him. "I heard it myself along the route," the leader of Visma | Lease a Bike told the Wielerflits camera. "This is something we should not accept in sport. You may not be a fan of him, but stop the booing. Why do you come to a sporting event if you only want to boo someone? Just cheer for the riders and be happy. And I want to advise everyone to just stay at home." The Dane himself also dealt with booing in 2023 when he impressively claimed his second Tour victory by beating Pogačar, no less. "I fully understand that it is unpleasant for Tadej. When you ride the Tour in the yellow jersey, you are the rider whom most people watch. I experienced it myself in 2023. It's really not nice. Once again: people involved in this, please stay at home!" Pogačar cites Djokovic as an advantage Pogačar mentioned it in a small side remark during the flash interview: "There were boos, but that booing actually gives me more strength." Later, during the press conference after his third stage win of this Tour de France, he elaborated extensively. "Haters gonna hate," said the Slovene with a smile. "If they boo me, they’re actually booing the entire peloton. We don’t even know who they are booing for because we all pass together." "When it happens, I always think about the mentality of Novak Djokovic," he referred to the top tennis player. "He had a tough career with many haters, simply because he is the greatest. I mirror myself in him in those moments." And it gives him even more motivation. "In 99 percent of cases, we get fantastic support. Cycling fans are the best in the world. But those people who still boo? They only give a bigger boost to me and my teammates. They just add fuel to the fire." Little discussed At the start, we also asked Pogačar’s teammate, Florian Vermeersch, how the team evaluated the booing at the dinner table on Tuesday evening. "We didn’t pay much attention to it. It seems unpleasant, but I’ve never experienced it myself. Of course, it’s not the nicest thing. You also have to deal with fans of other teams who are not rooting for us. We have to learn to live with that; it’s part of the sport."