Jordan Jegat was the great revelation of the Tour de France, a rider whom few had even predicted could be in GC contention, ended up finishing in the Top10 through good climbing performances, heavy consistency and also well timed breakaways. The Frenchman embodied the aggressive spirit of the French in the Grand Boucle and in 2026 he wants more than a 10th place.”Top 10 it was crazy and before the Tour de France I thought about top 20. During the race, I thought about the top 15, and it got better day after day. So finally I finished in the top 10 just one day before Paris,” the Frenchman said in words to Domestique. “Before the Tour de France, the manager told me ‘please lose time during the first week to go in the breakaway and to try to win a stage’.”
Jegat had finished 14th at the Itzulia Basque Country and Criterium du Dauphiné, so he is someone who values the overall classification ambitions. But at the Tour the level is higher, and a 14th place wouldn’t be valuable to many riders, even at ProTeam level. But that was not the case with Jegat, who continued to make the effort throughout the first week to stay within GC contention. He was in 14th place, again.
Into the Pyrenees, he performed strongly and improved his position, going up to 11th at Superbagnères with a successful breakaway. But stage 11 into Toulouse, with a few hills, was the first day where he felt he was truly in the fight. “It’s the first day when I played with the best riders, and this day I thought, maybe I can do that during the whole Tour de France. And it was the change in my mindset that day.”
He benefited from his small team and the pressure that was on the shoulders of other riders instead of him. “I didn’t really have any pressure also with the French media because there was also Kévin Vauquelin who was in front of me, so it was good to be the second French rider for me, with the media and for the pressure.”
And into the final week of the race, he was strong enough to remain in 11th place, then gaining. On stage 15 he gained serious time on his GC rivals from a breakaway on a hilly day and on the final competitive day to Pontarlier he did the exact same, entering a breakway despite other riders knowing of his danger to the Top10.
“In the third week, it’s different because it’s a final for the GC. For example, stage 20, when I went in the breakaway, Ben O’Connor rode in the bunch to catch up to me […] Now I want to try to do better because now my team and I know that I can do that.”
GC is easier than KOM for Jegat
“Of course, the best goal is the total defense for the GC or for the stage win. Maybe one day for the polka-dot jersey. But now it’s again difficult with Pogacar and the top riders,” he adds. The KOM system currently fully favours the GC riders, with Pogacar and Vingegaard taking up the first two positions this year despite not even contesting for the classification.
Lastly, the Frenchman already knows that he is going in to the 2026 season with a clear set of big goals, and they are all in the main races: “For next year, it’s the Tour de France but also the Basque Country, Dauphiné and Paris-Nice maybe”.
Jegat during the 2025 Tour de France. @Sirotti