Pogacar beats French teen Seixas to win 4th Liege-Bastogne-Liege

Advertising Pogacar beats French teen Seixas to win 4th Liege-Bastogne-Liege Sport

World champion Tadej Pogacar won a third straight Liege-Bastogne-Liege on Sunday after a thrilling battle with French teen sensation Paul Seixas.

Issued on: 26/04/2026 - 16:07Modified: 26/04/2026 - 16:36

1 min Reading time Share By: FRANCE 24

World champion Tadej ​Pogacar pulled ahead of 19-year-old French debutant Paul ​Seixas in the final climb to secure his third straight Liege-Bastogne-Liege title on Sunday, his fourth overall ​victory ‌in the race.

Read moreTour de France 2026 routes feature peaks, passes and Montmartre

Pogacar romped to his 13th Monument victory and fourth in total at La Doyenne after finally cracking Seixas with 14km to ride of the 260km slog through the Ardennes, halfway up the last of 11 punchy climbs along the route.

Seixas came home 45 seconds later with Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel winning the sprint for third place from a large group 1min 42sec back.

"It means a lot to win again one of the biggest races of the year," Pogacar told Belgian television at the finish line.

In what was only his fifth race this year, Pogacar claimed a fourth victory -- and three of those in Monuments -- while his only blip was a second place behind Wout van Aert at Paris-Roubaix two weeks ago.

"I don't have a lot of opportunities to win because I don't race a lot," added Pogacar.

"So it's a lot of pressure for me to deliver on days like today.

"I'm really, really happy that we succeeded. I couldn't be more proud of the team."

In what was only his fifth race this year, Pogacar claimed a fourth victory -- and three of those in Monuments -- while his only blip was a second place behind Wout van Aert at Paris-Roubaix two weeks ago.

Read moreFrench teen star Seixas becomes youngest ever winner of Basque Tour

But in 19-year-old Seixas, he now has a rival seemingly capable of pushing him to the limit.

It was Seixas's first attempt at Liege and only his second ever Monument race having finished a distant seventh behind Pogacar at last October's Tour of Lombardy.

But having won the Fleche Wallonne build-up race on Wednesday, Seixas continues to prove with every outing that he is Pogacar's heir apparent.

FRANCE 24 with AFP

Advertising Keywords for this article

• sport
• cycling
• Belgium
• Tadej Pogacar
• France