Three weeks ago, the Tour de France was a thrilling final day with Tadej Pogachar taking his second overall win. Mark Cavendish's amazing comeback, Wout Van Aert's brilliance, Mathieu Van Der Pol's yellow jersey, and some exciting breakaway action...

Relive all the action of the Tour in the latest issue of Pro Cycling magazine. In addition to race recaps, there are features on Pogachar, Cavendish, and this year's star, Mathieu Van Der Pol. There are also interviews with breakout GC rider Ben O'Connor and the only pair of brothers in the event, Danny and Boy Van Poppel. Other features include recaps of each stage and journals on various parts of the race, including Nick Dlamini's ride, which finished outside the time cut from repeat fans.

Procycling editor Edward Pickering wrote of the Tour as a whole: "Pogachar was on a different level than his rivals in this Tour. For most of the rest of the race, the Slovenian held a five-minute lead, with the top 10 just a few seconds apart, until two summit finishes in the Pyrenees and the final time trial opened up the gap a bit. And while he could not be compared to anyone else in the race, Pogacar's feat of over three minutes ahead of the GC riders over the 30-plus kilometers of stage 8 brought parallels to Eddy Merckx.

The Slovenian won three stages on his way to a crushing victory and never had a single problem on his way to the crown. Kate Wagner writes that he had completed his journey from boy prince to king. [In fact, most pogachars are oddly normal. In fact, much of Pogachar is oddly ordinary. As bicycle racers, they are rather stocky, and in normal clothes you would never know they were bicycle racers at all. On climbs, they pedal "like coal miners," in Tom Dumoulin's famous phrase, and sway from place to place. But despite such inefficient riding, he is exceptional. In a sport dominated by technological advances, meager profits, and an arms race to the strategic brink, Tadei Pogachal rides his bike better than anyone else.

With Mark Cavendish's four stage wins, the great sprinter has tied Eddy Merckx for the Tour stage win record.

Edward Pickering wrote of him: "The 2021 Tour was a medley of Cavendish's greatest hits. Especially in Chateauroux, where he won the third race of his career. Especially in Châteauroux, where he won for the third time in his career."

Mathieu van der Poel was another outstanding rider in this year's race. The Dutch rider won the second stage and took the yellow jersey. Although he left the race to focus on the Olympics, his presence defined the first stage of the Tour.

"Mathieu Van der Poel is like a broom sweeping a hornet's nest in the peloton," writes Kate Wagner. 'He is the chaos agent on a lull as his time card is punched. His signature moves--digging long distances at the start of sprints to force the chasing pack, daring solo escapes in one-day races, and attacks that seem like hell--may not always meet the tactician's demands, but they are always spectacular, especially when they bear fruit. "

One of the most memorable stages of the year was stage 11, which was won by Wout Van Aert, who climbed Mont Ventoux twice. Kate Wagner explores what Jumbo Visma got right that day.

This is the final year of La Course, and Sophie Halcombe talks to two of its protagonists, Leah Kirchmann and Chantal van den Broeck-Braak.

Brittany was one of the highlights of this year's Tour, and the stages there saw a lot of animation. Edward Pickering looks at the chaos, and Adam Beckett discusses the crashes that were the theme of the entire race. [Adam Beckett and Sophie Halcombe spoke to the riders to find out just how hard it was. [Adam Beckett and Sophie Halcombe spoke to Ben O'Connor, a young Australian from Perth who finished fourth in his Tour de France debut. He said: "Everybody loves an underdog. It's a different level, though, when a lesser-known athlete finishes fourth not too far from the podium. I've grown every year, and there's no reason why I shouldn't have a chance to get there. I can see the trajectory, so I am hopeful now. I just want to finish in Paris and wrap all of this up."

He added, "I'm looking forward to the next race, and I'm looking forward to the next one.

There is also an interview with Danny & Boy Van Poppel (on the 30th anniversary of his father Jean Paul's Tour stage win), an analysis of Ineos Grenadier's failure, and a retrospective of one of the greatest cyclists in French history, Charly Motte, from this year's stage town of Valence. Also featured.

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