Tour de France 2023 is nearing the finish line, with a number of Australians in contention for strong finishes at cycling's most prestigious event.
Jai Hindley entered the race as third favourite behind past winners Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar, while the likes of Ben O'Connor and Jack Haig were also flying the flag.
Vingegaard won his first Tour de France in 2022, usurping two-time champion Pogacar, but the Slovenian will be keen to strike back in their personal battle in 2023.
The Sporting News will collate all the Australian results at this year's Tour de France.
Australian results and positions at Tour de France 2023
The Tour de France commenced on July 1 in Bilbao, Spain and will finish on July 23 on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France.
SBS is broadcasting the event in Australia.
Results and positions will be updated as Le Tour progresses.
Australian entrants at Tour de France 2023
Final overall results
Three Australians finished in the top 20 with Jai Hindley leading the way in seventh.
Hindley won stage five of the race and held the yellow jersey briefly.
Chris Harper (16th) and Ben O'Connor (17th) were also in the top 20.
Defending champion Jonas Vingegaard won his second Tour de France title from two-time champion Tadej Pogacar.
| Position | Rider | Team | Time behind leader |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Jai Hindley | BORA - hansgrohe | + 00h 14' 44'' |
| 16 | Chris Harper | Team Jayco AlUla | + 00h 57' 29'' |
| 17 | Ben O'Connor | AG2r Citroen Team | + 01h 04' 59'' |
| 28 | Jack Haig | Bahrain Victorious | + 02h 10' 32'' |
| 39 | Nick Schultz | Israel-Premier Tech | + 02h 43' 32'' |
| 46 | Chris Hamilton | Team DSM-Firmenich | + 02h 51' 00'' |
| 58 | Matthew Dinham | Team DSM-Firmenich | + 03h 13' 32'' |
| 109 | Simon Clarke | Israel-Premier Tech | + 04h 50' 33'' |
| 130 | Luke Durbridge | Team Jayco AlUla | + 05h 16' 18'' |
| 144 | Sam Welsford | Team DSM-Firmenich | + 05h 42' 20'' |
| 146 | Alex Edmonson | Team DSM-Firmenich | + 05h 44' 39'' |
Withdrawn: Caleb Ewan (Lotto Dstny)
Australian contenders at Tour de France
Jai Hindley (BORA - hansgrohe)
A fourth-placed finish at the recent Criterium du Dauphine saw Hindley soar into third favourite for Le Tour, behind last year's winner Jonas Vingegaard and double champion Tadej Pogacar.
Hindley has tasted success before in a Grand Tour, winning the Giro d'Italia in 2022, and is now ready for a podium assault at Tour de France 2023.
Alongside Cadel Evans' Le Tour triumph in 2011, the 27-year-old is the only other Aussie to win a Grand Tour.
Ben O'Connor (AG2R Citroen)
O'Connor was on the sixth line of pre-race betting for Tour de France 2023, showing that he could be a contender, especially after finishing third in the recent Criterium du Dauphine.
The 27-year-old has several quality Grand Tour finishes including a fourth in Tour de France 2021 and an eighth-place at Vuelta a Espana 2022.
However, O'Connor failed to finish Le Tour last year after suffering an early crash.
Jack Haig (Bahrain Victorious)
A fifth-place finish in the Criterium du Dauphine saw the 29-year-old hit Le Tour in impressive form.
Haig's most impressive result in a Grand Tour was third place at the Vuelta a Espana in 2021.
Caleb Ewan (Lotto Dstny)
The 28-year-old abandoned his Tour on stage 13 in 2023 and was unable to add to five career stage wins at the event.
Ewan won three stages at Tour de France 2019 and two the following year.
His most recent Grand Tour stage win came at the Giro d'Italia in 2021.
Tour de France 2023 confirmed route and stages
| # | Date (local time) | Length | Stage | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | July 1 | 182 km (113.09 miles) | Bilbao (hilly) | Adam Yates |
| 2 | July 2 | 209 km (129.86 miles) | Vitoria-Gasteiz to San Sebastian (hilly) | Victor Lafay |
| 3 | July 3 | 185km (114.95 miles) | Amorebieta-Etxano to Bayonne (flat) | Jasper Philipsen |
| 4 | July 4 | 182 km (113.09 miles) | Dax to Nogaro (flat) | Jasper Philipsen |
| 5 | July 5 | 165km (102.53 miles) | Pau to Laruns (mountain) | Jai Hindley |
| 6 | July 6 | 145km (90.1 miles) | Tarbes to Cauterets-Cambasque (mountain) | Tadej Pogacar |
| 7 | July 7 | 170km (105.63 miles) | Mont-de-Marsan to Bordeaux (flat) | Jasper Philipsen |
| 8 | July 8 | 201km (124.9 miles) | Libourne to Limoges (hilly) | Mads Pedersen |
| 9 | July 9 | 184km (114.33 miles) | Saint-Leonard-de-Noblat to Puy de Dome (mountain) | Michael Woods |
| — | July 10 | — | Rest | - |
| 10 | July 11 | 167km (103.77 miles) | Vulcania to Issoire (hilly) | Pello Bilbao |
| 11 | July 12 | 180km (111.85 miles) | Clermont-ferrand to Moulins (flat) | Jasper Philipsen |
| 12 | July 13 | 169km (105.01 miles) | Roanne to Belleville-en-Beaujolais (hillly) | Ion Izagirre Insausti |
| 13 | July 14 | 138km (85.74 miles) | Chatillon-sur-Chalaronne to Grand Colombier (mountain) | Michal Kwiatkowski |
| 14 | July 15 | 152km (94.45 miles) | Annemasse to Morzine les Portes du Soleil (mountain) | Carlos Rodriguez |
| 15 | July 16 | 180km (111.85 miles) | Les Gets les Portes du Soleil to Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc (mountain) | Wout Poels |
| — | July 17 | — | Rest | - |
| 16 | July 18 | 22km (13.67 miles) | Passy to Combloux (individual time trial) | Jonas Vingegaard |
| 17 | July 19 | 166km (103.15 miles) | Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc to Courchevel (mountain) | Felix Gall |
| 18 | July 20 | 186km (115.58 miles) | Moutiers to Bourg-en-Bresse (hilly) | Kasper Asgreen |
| 19 | July 21 | 173km (107.5 miles) | Moans-en-Montagne to Poligny (flat) | Matej Mohoric |
| 20 | July 22 | 133km (82.64 miles) | Belfort to Le Markstein-Fellering (mountain) | Tadej Pogacar |
| 21 | July 23 | 115km (71.46 miles) | Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines to Paris Champs-Elysees (flat) | - |
Tour de France past winners
Pogačar was unable to claim his third straight win in the Tour de France, which would have made him the sixth cyclist to win the event in at least three consecutive years. The others are Louison Bobet (1953-55), Jacques Anquetil (1961-64), Eddy Merckx (1969-72), Miguel Induráin (1991-95) and Chris Froome (2015-17).
Lance Armstrong won seven straight races from 1999 to 2005, but his victories have been vacated due to doping.
| Year | Winner | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Jonas Vingegaard | Denmark |
| 2021 | Tadej Pogačar | Slovenia |
| 2020 | Tadej Pogačar | Slovenia |
| 2019 | Egan Bernal | Colombia |
| 2018 | Geraint Thomas | Wales |
| 2017 | Chris Froome | England |
| 2016 | Chris Froome | England |
| 2015 | Chris Froome | England |
| 2014 | Vincenzo Nibali | Italy |
| 2013 | Chris Froome | England |
| 2012 | Bradley Wiggins | England |
| 2011 | Cadel Evans | Australia |
| 2010 | Andy Schleck* | Luxembourg |
| 2009 | Alberto Contador | Spain |
| 2008 | Carlos Sastre | Spain |
| 2007 | Alberto Contador | Spain |
| 2006 | Oscar Pereiro** | Spain |
| 2005 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 2004 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 2003 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 2002 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 2001 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 2000 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 1999 | Lance Armstrong*** | USA |
| 1998 | Marco Pantani | Italy |
*Aberto Contadro won the race, but failed a drug test later
**Floyd Landis won the race, but failed a drug test later
***Lance Armstrong has had all his titles vacated due to doping. No winner was named in his place.
How to watch the Tour de France in Australia on TV
Every stage of the Tour de France 2023 will be shown live and free on SBS.
The broadcaster has the exclusive television and streaming rights to the event.
Due to the varying start times of each stage, the SBS broadcast will begin at a different time each evening, although it will generally be between 8:00 pm - 9:30 pm AEST.
For those unable to watch a stage live, SBS will air a 'Daily Update' in the morning before their 'Evening Highlights - Bonjour Le Tour' show later in the day.
Commentary will be led by a team featuring Matt Keenan, Bridie O’Donnell and Simon Gerrans.
How to live stream the Tour de France in Australia
All 21 stages of this year's Tour de France will be live-streamed via SBS on Demand.
The action will also be available on the broadcaster's dedicated app, the SBS Skoda Tour Tracker app.
On top of this, fans can visit the SBS Sport Tour de France website hub, which will host full on-demand replays, mini stage recaps, highlights and other content.
