Pedersen wins stage 4, Traeen takes yellow jersey in Tour de France 2026

Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) won the fourth stage of the Tour de France 2026 in a sprint in Foix, while Torstein Traeen (Uno-X Mobility) captured the yellow jersey after a long breakaway succeeded in the extreme heat. Source: elnacionalveSource: infobae

The stage

A group of 34 riders broke away early on the 181.9 km stage from Carcassonne to Foix, which featured four categorized climbs. The peloton, led by Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates, allowed the gap to grow to nearly 13 minutes, as Pogacar opted to save energy for later battles. Source: abces In the final 40 km, the break shattered, leaving ten riders to contest the win. Pedersen, supported by teammates Quinn Simmons and Mathias Vacek, dominated the sprint, finishing ahead of Simmons (2nd) and Raúl García Pierna (3rd, Movistar). Source: elmundoes

New leader

Traeen, who started the day 5:06 behind Pogacar, finished eighth in the stage and inherited the yellow jersey with a 28-second lead over Sean Quinn (EF Education) and 7:53 over Pogacar. Source: excelsiormx The Norwegian becomes the third Norwegian to wear the maillot jaune, after Alexander Kristoff and Thor Hushovd. Source: infobae "I'm lucky to wear yellow. I'll take it day by day and give my best," Traeen said. Source: lavanguardia

Key points

• The successful breakaway was the first to stick in this year's Tour. Source: elnacionalve
• Temperatures exceeded 40°C, forcing riders to use ice vests. Source: elcolombiano
• Pedersen's victory was his third Tour stage win; he also leads the points classification (green jersey). Source: elmundooes
• Colombian riders: Egan Bernal was best placed, finishing 90th at 12:59. Source: elcolombiano

What's next

Stage 5 is a flat 158 km route from Lannemezan to Pau, likely a mass sprint. Heat is expected to continue. Source: elnacionalve