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Meet the best American cyclists from this year’s race

VaselineJuly 1, 2024

0 2 minutes read

Meet the best American cyclists from this year’s race

An overall victory may be out of reach for the American riders in the Tour de France, but ending a three-year stage win drought is within their reach.

Sepp Kuss, 29, became the last American to win a stage when he took Stage 15 of the 2021 Tour de France. The Durango, Colorado native is the best rider the country has seen in a decade. Last year, Kuss finished 12th as the best American in the Tour de France and went on to win the 2023 Vuelta a España, becoming the first American Grand Tour winner since Chris Horner won the same race in 2013. Kuss, Jonas Vingegaard’s top support rider for the 2024 Tour de France, withdrew from this year’s edition after testing positive for COVID-19 ahead of the race.

Greg LeMond remains the only American to ever win the general classification category at the Tour de France, achieving the feat in 1986, 1989 and 1990. American Lance Armstrong won the Tour from 1999-2005 but was subsequently stripped of his seven Tour the France titles. titles for doping by the International Cycling Union in 2012.

So who’s left in this year’s race to give the United States a shot at glory—at least for one stage? Here’s a look at the three Americans competing in the 2024 Tour de France.

Matteo Jorgenson (UCI WorldTeam Visma-Lease a bike)

25-year-old Jorgenson is enjoying a successful season with an overall victory at Paris-Nice 2024 and a second place at the 2024 Criterium du Dauphine.

Jorgenson is a strong contender in this year’s race for the white jersey, which recognizes the best young rider under the age of 26. A versatile rider, Jorgenson is poised to be America’s best hope—alongside Kuss—for a future Tour de France general classification winner. But for now, he’ll take over from Kuss and play the primary supporting role to teammate Jonas Vingegaard, who won the 2022 and 2023 Tours de France.

This year will be Jorgenson’s third Tour de France. The Idaho-raised cyclist finished 20th overall in 2022 and was forced to withdraw from 2023 after injuries sustained in a crash along the course.

Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost)

A standout mountain biker during his young adulthood in California, 27-year-old Powless switched to road and turned professional in 2018.

Powless made history in 2020 as the first Native American to compete in the Tour de France. Since then, he has continued to improve, enjoying his strongest season yet with overall victories at the 2023 Grand Prix of La Marseillaise and Étoile de Bessèges.

In Kuss’s absence, Powless is the best American candidate to win a stage as he is known for his success with breakaways and his talent for climbing. Last year, Powless led the King of the Mountain standings for the first half of the Tour, but was ultimately defeated by Italian Giulio Ciccone. This year he hopes to finally secure the polka dot jersey by the end of the Big Boucle.

Sean Quinn

Hailing from Los Angeles, Quinn is a 24-year-old up-and-coming cyclist riding in his first Tour de France in support of EF Education-EasyPost team leader Richard Carapaz. After winning the US National Road Race Championships in May, Quinn is a strong all-round rider who excels in climbing and can produce strong sprint kicks. Quinn will certainly be one to keep an eye on as he develops in the coming years.

VaselineJuly 1, 2024

0 2 minutes read

Matteo Jorgenson (UCI WorldTeam Visma-Lease a bike)

Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost)

Sean Quinn

Vaseline

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