The 25-year-old won the final day's time trial in Nice, where this unique Tour de France ended with different routes due to the Olympic Games in Paris. Pogacar added a third crown to his 2020 and 2021 titles, completing the Giro and Tour double in 2024. He won the final time trial in Nice, and has now won six stages, the same number as in the Giro. At 25, he is the youngest cyclist in history to achieve such a feat.

Defending champion Jonas Vingegaard finished second, 1:03 back, to take second place overall ahead of a disappointed Remco Evenepoel, who finished third on the day. Evenepoel, a specialist and debutant, was emotional about finishing third overall in his first Grand Boucle.

Pogacar dominated, winning six stages in this edition of the Tour de France, just as he did in the 2024 Giro d'Italia. At 25, he is the youngest rider ever to win both the Giro and the Tour in the same season. This feat has not been achieved since Marco Pantani in 1998.

The usual final day spectacle on the Champs-Élysées was replaced by a time trial in Nice due to the upcoming Olympic Games. Despite the change in route, the positions had already been decided by a dominant Pogacar. He rode at over 90 kilometres per hour to win the final stage. 

With five stage wins to his name, Pogacar raced out of his adopted home of Monaco and along the coast to Nice, with its pebble beach and famous Promenade des Anglais, where he jumped into the arms of his teammates.

Pogacar showed no mercy over the three weeks. He took the overall lead on a descent on the fourth day as the race crossed the Alps from Italy to France. He was preceded in the yellow jersey by Romain Bardet. The Frenchman had won the first stage in his year of retirement. On Sunday, Bardet was honoured by fans as he arrived in Nice. 

Bardet, who finished second overall in previous Tours, bid farewell with a stage win and the yellow jersey. Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz also wore the yellow jersey. He also won a stage and the King of the Mountains classification. Carapaz climbed the podium in Nice to collect his polka dot jersey. Apart from Pogacar, only Bardet and Carapaz led the race. Without them, the Slovenian would have worn yellow from start to finish.

By the time the race returned to the Alps, Pogacar had built up a 3-minute lead. Vingegaard was beginning to falter due to his serious crash in March. Vingegaard, a fierce competitor, couldn't match his performances in previous editions where he had outpaced Pogacar on the long climbs. 

Until stage 19, back in the Alps and after crossing the Pyrenees, Vingegaard tried to challenge Pogacar. On that day he gave up and tried to hold on to second place under pressure from Evenepoel.

Vingegaard's crash in March was significant and he was praised for making it to the start line. He expressed his desire to win another stage before Sunday's race. He won in the Pyrenees in a neck-and-neck sprint with Pogacar. His lead of over six minutes in the general classification is reminiscent of cycling's golden age. 

Third-placed Evenepoel, more than nine minutes behind, cried at the finish and shared the podium on his debut with the winners of the last five Tours. The Belgian did not win the time trial on the final day, but he did win the first time trial of the second week. 

He is the reigning world champion in the discipline. He showed his talent in the world's most important race. He won the white jersey for best young rider at the age of 23. Having already won the Vuelta a España, his aim was to see if he could cope with the demands of the Tour. He did, and admirably so. With Pogacar and Vingegaard's approval, he will be a favourite if he continues to improve.

The Tour also thrilled riders like Eritrea's Biniam Girmay. He won three stages, the green sprint points jersey and hero status in his homeland. He was the first black rider born in Africa to win a stage at the Tour, and he did it three times, beating Philipsen and the world's best sprinters. 

Riding a green bike and dressed from head to toe in green, Girmay was cheered on by his compatriots in Monaco. He narrowly beat 2023 sprint king Jasper Philipsen, who won three stages but never led the points race.

Olympic champion Richard Carapaz is being hailed as the most combative rider of the 2024 Tour. His participation has been remarkable. He has won a stage for EF and almost won more, as he was always in the breakaways. He was the best climber on the final day, wearing the polka dot jersey, and crossed the line with Pogacar and Vingegaard.

Mark Cavendish was also honoured. He won a record 35th stage and was given a special podium presentation for his career achievement. Asked if this was his last race, he replied: "Probably, yeah.

The 2024 Tour will be remembered for Pogacar's dominance and his precocious records at the age of 25. The gaps in the standings will be reminiscent of the sport's golden age. It will also be remembered for the golden generation of young riders. 

"We are seeing a generation of success, the best cycling in history and the quality of the riders. It's spectacular to see Vingegaard, Evenepoel, Roglic competing... It's crazy," said Pogacar at the finish line in Nice after receiving his medal.

Another rider who should have been fighting for the podium was Primoz Roglic. He was absent due to a crash. At 34, the Slovenian is not a member of the golden generation, but he is one of the greats. With three wins in the Vuelta a España and one in the Giro d'Italia, he has one of the best records of any active rider.

The 2024 Tour also saw second-tier riders like Mikel Landa, fifth, and Joao Almeida, fourth, re-emerge. Adam Yates, sixth, was always close to his team-mate Pogacar. And Ineos' 23-year-old Spaniard Carlos Rodriguez confirmed his leadership of the Ineos team by finishing seventh despite suffering in the final week.