Jonas Vingegaard has claimed victory at the Saitama Criterium – a race organized by the ASO in Saitama, Japan. The Dane crashed early in the race, managed to recover from the setback, and even crossed the finish line first with a clear lead.
The Saitama Criterium has been held annually by the ASO since 2013. In the past, big names like Chris Froome, John Degenkolb, Mark Cavendish, and Alejandro Valverde have won this race. This year again featured several top riders at the start, including Jonas Vingegaard, Primoz Roglic, Jonathan Milan, and Kaden Groves.
The race was marred early on by a crash: none other than Vingegaard went down in rainy Saitama, a city near Tokyo. The Dane was able to rejoin the peloton – with help from 19-year-old Italian Davide Stella, who, as a guest teammate, seized the opportunity to lend a hand.
Victory sealed! 🔥
Jonas Vingegaard recovers from an early crash at the Saitama Criterium and launches a late attack to take the win! 👏 pic.twitter.com/NBzR8TuCwn
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) November 9, 2025
And that’s not all: shortly after, Vingegaard went on the attack and became a co-initiator of a strong breakaway group. Also present in this elite group was his former teammate Primoz Roglic. The two former teammates joined forces and rode away together, but the race didn’t end in a royal sprint duel for the victory.
In the finale, Vingegaard saw his chance to break away from Roglic and crossed the finish line solo. The experienced Slovenian was even caught in the final kilometer by the chasing group, which included Milan and Groves, who then sprinted for second place. Milan won this sprint battle ahead of Groves, but it all happened in the shadow of the victorious solo rider Vingegaard.
Tour de France Saitama Criterium| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 01:26:49 | |
| 2 | + 08 | |
| 3 | " | |
| 4 | " | |
| 5 | " | |
| 6 | " | |
| 7 | " | |
| 8 | " | |
| 9 | " | |
| 10 | " |
