French police shoot knife attacker at Tour de France stage four finish

The 21-year-old man had allegedly stabbed an officer before being shot in the leg

Rouen knife attack stage four tour de france 2025
(Image credit: Getty Images)

A knife-wielding attacker was shot in the leg by police in the run-up to yesterday's Tour de France finish in Rouen.

According to French outlet Le Parisien, the attacker was a 21-year-old man, who appeared disorientated and was on the run from a hospital. He had allegedly threatened people and stabbed a police officer as the crowd waited for riders to arrive on stage four, which was won by UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider Tadej Pogačar.

The officer stabbed was a member of the French riot police – the Republican Security Corps (CRS) – and was wearing a chest protector that enabled him to walk away uninjured.

Concerns for the safety of riders and teams had been sparked by the large crowds that had gathered at the foot of the brutal final climb in the Norman city of Rouen – crowds that, once the riders had passed, ran en masse towards the finish line to see Pogačar win and then beyond to the team buses.

"Thanks to his chest protector, the riot police officer was not injured. Seeing his colleague under attacked, another riot police officer fired a shot," multiple French media reported public prosecutor Sébastien Gallois as saying.

It had been an ugly prelude to a thrilling finale to yesterday's stage, which began in Amiens Métropole and transported riders 174km south-west to the cathedral city of Rouen – the capital of Normandy.

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After cutting his teeth on local and national newspapers, James began at Cycling Weekly as a sub-editor in 2000 when the current office was literally all fields.

Eventually becoming chief sub-editor, in 2016 he switched to the job of full-time writer, and covers news, racing and features.

He has worked at a variety of races, from the Classics to the Giro d'Italia – and this year will be his seventh Tour de France.

A lifelong cyclist and cycling fan, James's racing days (and most of his fitness) are now behind him. But he still rides regularly, both on the road and on the gravelly stuff.

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