{"success":true,"data":{"id":"5db474fc-9958-41a4-a772-a04c6baf7adb","title":"American cyclist barely avoids potentially fatal crash over cliff in jaw-dropping Tour de France video","summary":"American cyclist barely avoids potentially fatal crash over cliff in jaw-dropping Tour de France video American cyclist Sepp Kuss crashed into the netting at the Tour de France and narrowly escaped what could have been a tragic fall down a cliff.","content":"# American cyclist barely avoids potentially fatal crash over cliff in jaw-dropping Tour de France video\n\nAmerican cyclist Sepp Kuss crashed into the netting at the Tour de France and narrowly escaped what could have been a tragic fall down a cliff.\n\nAs the leader pushing for a Stage 20 victory Saturday during the four kilometers of the course, Kuss misjudged a right-hand bend, his bicycle veered across three lanes and he crashed into the short wall separating road from mountainside. He wound up on the seat of his shorts, with his back up against the netting.\n\nBut video shows that the netting stops just inches away from where Kuss’ ride went haywire, meaning he could’ve tumbled down the side of the mountain if the same thing happened just a second or two later.\n\n> Sepp Kuss crashed twice in the final kilometres. Once in the tunnel and then this crash, which cost him the lead. Richard Carapaz now in front. [#TDF2026](https://x.com/hashtag/TDF2026?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)[https://t.co/cBbfZdpUGj](https://t.co/cBbfZdpUGj)[pic.twitter.com/vFyml1bisk](https://t.co/vFyml1bisk)\n> — René Bugner (@RNBWCV) [July 25, 2026](https://x.com/RNBWCV/status/2081023316257636610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)\n\n## Explore More\n\nTNT Sports analyst Matt Stephens said the barrier “might have saved his life.”\n\n“This could have been a life-or-death moment,” [Stephens said](https://x.com/cyclingontnt/status/2081044859746418965?s=20). “The other side of that netting is a precipitous drop. The organizers have played a blinder.”\n\nIt was the second crash of the stage for the Colorado native Kuss, who also slipped inside a dark, wet tunnel.\n\nSepp Kuss during the 20th stage of the Tour de France on July 25, 2026. YOAN VALAT/EPA/Shutterstock\n\nSepp Kuss after the 20th stage of the Tour de France on July 25, 2026. Pierre Teyssot/Shutterstock\n\n“I was so on the limit, I misjudged the corner a bit,” Kuss said to the Tour’s media team. ‘First in the tunnel, and then after that I was still trying to make up too much time. It was a bit scary. Sorry to my wife and my family watching at home! That’s racing.”\n\nA bloodied Kuss remounted his bike and finished third in the stage.\n\nKuss said that he wasn’t “entirely clear-headed.”\n\n“I wasn’t too scared,” he told France Télévisions. “I thought I’d read the right line. Luckily, there were nets.\n\nThere have been four deaths in the history of the Tour de France, including the last in 1995 when Italian Olympic gold medalist Fabio Castarelli sustained a fatal head injury during a high-speed crash in the 15th Stage.\n\nFiled under\n\n### Unlock full access to Post sports columnists and newsletters\n\n#### Sports Podcasts\n\nThe best insights from the ultimate insiders\n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/up-in-the-blue-seats-a-ny-rangers-hockey-podcast/id1488953625)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/03504GVx5Aa7xqH7Hu5zb9?si=c26472910d1d4e15) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-show-a-ny-post-baseball-podcast-with-joel/id1623601003)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/2LRI64fBETlvJQMJ8NTd0y) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dodgers-post/id1876623874)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/75dzRPz1WxpxWUlysAFiGi) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/blue-rush/id1484131113)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/7uhghUOZTdPg0cywRBERaS) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gangs-all-here/id1484134393)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/7jDCCrLbSMuwNlOxCiEPcv) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/new-york-got-game-a-ny-basketball-podcast-from-new/id1484555736)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/0M5frhaBtSyp7CTAuYJzXY) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pinstripe-post-with-joel-sherman-yankees-podcast/id1501456485)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/7jLpHrJaETybtQsZblxqIv) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/against-the-cage-a-new-york-post-sports-podcast/id1780722245)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/5TGU9Q53RrWyMjmBjgl6gF?si=4WOaPlbYSOehh6UjaE_nMQ&nd=1&dlsi=30399f93f9674055) \n\nListen on [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/straight-outta-flushing-mets-podcast/id1500933736?at=1001l3bo9&ct=93051X1547088Xae9959384180228c1ca4ae8ab811b4e4)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/3XmKlynqLVkWY4IC6iUslX) \n\n#### Scoreboard\n\n#### Trending Now  in Sports\n\n*   [![Image 12: How World Series hero’s drinking and drug spiral cost him everything](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/07/scott-spiezio.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&1785065184&w=260&h=174&crop=1)](https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/how-world-series-heros-drinking-and-drug-spiral-cost-him-everything/)This story has been shared 24,683 times.24,683   ### [How World Series hero’s drinking and drug spiral cost him everything](https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/how-world-series-heros-drinking-and-drug-spiral-cost-him-everything/) \n*   [![Image 13: Horrifying audio reveals what cops saw when they found 49ers head coach after car crash](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/07/crop-40094091.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=260&h=174&crop=1)](https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/dispatch-audio-sheds-new-light-on-kyle-shanahans-horror-car-crash/)This story has been shared 22,822 times.22,822   ### [Horrifying audio reveals what cops saw when they found 49ers head coach after car crash](https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/dispatch-audio-sheds-new-light-on-kyle-shanahans-horror-car-crash/) \n*   [![Image 14: Yankees All-Star lands on IL in crushing blow to banged-up lineup](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/07/crop-40094470.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=260&h=174&crop=1)](https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/cody-bellinger-lands-on-il-in-crushing-blow-to-yankees-lineup/)This story has been shared 10,954 times.10,954   ### [Yankees All-Star lands on IL in crushing blow to banged-up lineup](https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/cody-bellinger-lands-on-il-in-crushing-blow-to-yankees-lineup/) \n\n## More Stories\n\n### Page Six\n\n### Decider\n\n### NYPost","source_name":"New York Post","source_url":"https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/sepp-kuss-barely-avoids-potentially-fatal-tour-de-france-crash-over-cliff/","url":"https://nypost.com/2026/07/26/sports/sepp-kuss-barely-avoids-potentially-fatal-tour-de-france-crash-over-cliff/","author":"Ryan Dunleavy","author_name":"Ryan Dunleavy","published_at":"2026-07-26T19:06:21.000Z","publication_date":"2026-07-26T19:06:21.000Z","image_url":"https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/07/us-cyclist-sepp-kuss-team-135474281.jpg?w=1024","category":"world","topic":"world","tags":[],"political_bias":null,"bias_score":null,"confidence_score":null,"credibility_score":null,"factual_quality":null,"reading_time":3,"word_count":575,"view_count":0,"breaking":false,"breaking_news":false,"ai_analysis":null,"fact_check_status":"unverified","archive_status":"hot","language":null}}