Tour de France Stage 9: Press Car Ploughs Into Crowd Near Finish, 8 Injured

A press vehicle ploughed into roadside barriers and spectators near the finish line of Tour de France Stage 9 in Ussel on Sunday, 12 July 2026, leaving eight people injured. The driver of the car—carrying journalists from the French newspaper L'Équipe—suffered a medical episode and lost consciousness moments before the crash .

What Happened and Why

Around 17:00 local time, approximately 350 m before the finish line and about 20 minutes before the riders arrived, the press vehicle veered left and struck metal crowd-control barriers . French media reported the driver experienced a "vague malaise" (sudden loss of consciousness), causing the loss of control . The local prosecutor has opened an investigation into the incident .

The Injured

Eight spectators standing behind the barriers were hit :

• Seven people sustained minor injuries.
• One 59-year-old woman was seriously injured, though local authorities stated her condition was not life-threatening .

Two of the injured were taken to hospital .

Stage 9 Result: Van der Poel Wins

The race itself continued without visible disruption. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) won the stage from a four-rider breakaway, crossing the line in 3h 27 51s .

Place	Rider	Country	Time
1	Mathieu van der Poel	Netherlands	3:27:51
2	Tobias Halland Johannessen	Norway	+ 0:00
3	Tom Pidcock	Great Britain	+ 0:00
4	Alex Baudin	France	+ 0:00
5	Filippo Ganna	Italy	+ 0:06

How the Heatwave Affected the Route

Météo-France had placed the Corrèze department on red alert for an "exceptionally intense heatwave," with forecast temperatures of 38 °C at the start, 36 °C at the finish, and a possible peak of 41 °C near the route .

In response, race organisers ASO shortened Stage 9 by 30 km, from 185.5 km to 155.5 km (the actual ridden distance was 154.6 km) . The cut removed an early sector near Brive-la-Gaillarde . The time limit was also extended under the UCI Extreme Weather Protocol to protect rider health .

Previous Convoy Safety Incidents at the Tour

The 2026 Ussel crash is the most serious spectator injury incident involving a convoy vehicle in recent Tour history, but it is not the first safety incident linked to the race convoy or fans:

• 2025, Stage 14 – A spectator was struck and knocked to the ground by an INEOS-Grenadiers team car on the Col de Péresourde in the Pyrenees. The team's directeur sportif was fined .
• 2021 – A spectator holding a large cardboard sign ("Go Grandpa-Granny!") caused a massive pile-up on Stage 1; she was later fined €1,200 by a French court .
• 2015, Stage 3 – William Bonnet's bike touched another rider's wheel near Côte de Bohissau, triggering a pile-up that left roughly 20 riders on the ground, with several suffering serious injuries .