Florian Lipowitz takes third in the Tour de France

Paris (dpa) – Cyclist Florian Lipowitz crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées on Sunday evening, waving to the crowd as he celebrated a sensational third-place finish in the Tour de France. He stood on the podium behind Slovenian rider Tadej Pogacar and Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard. The former biathlete and latecomer to professional cycling became the first German since 2006 to reach the Tour podium. 

“It’s always been my dream. I never thought it would come true. To make it onto the podium in my first Tour – it’s really amazing,” said Lipowitz. The 24-year-old also became the first German since Jan Ullrich in 1998 to win the white jersey as the Tour’s best young rider. 

Tour winner Pogacar recently praised Lipowitz in glowing terms: “I think we’ll be seeing a lot more of him in the coming days and years,” said the top cyclist after the German’s strong showing in the Pyrenees.