The seventh stage of the Tour de France burst into life at the finish on Friday as Marcel Kittel claimed his third victory in this year’s edition, pipping Edvald Boasson Hagen to the line in the final sprint.
The results long stayed provisional as the race jury looked at the photo finish to determine the winner of the 213.5km flat ride from Troyes to Nuits-Saint-Georges.
Kittel was declared the victor ahead of Dimension Data’s Boasson Hagen by just 6mm and joins Erik Zabel as the German rider with most stage wins on the Tour de France at 12.
Photo: AP
“It’s nice to be now one stage win shy of the record. I’m enjoying every single victory. I just concentrate on my job. It’s just cycling that makes me happy,” Kittel said.
Australian Michael Matthews of Team Sunweb was a distant third as Team Sky’s Chris Froome retained the overall leader’s yellow jersey.
The German also snatched the green jersey for the points classification from FDJ’s Arnaud Demare after the French champion, who had been ill overnight, was not a factor in the final sprint.
Kittel has 197 points to Demare’s 182.
“It is the closest win of my career. What a difference 6mm can make between a big joy and a big disappointment,” Kittel said.
“I focus on the green jersey. These victories bring me big points,” he added.
“I’m happy that I managed to throw my bike just the right way,” Kittel said.
Until the final straight, the day had gone without any drama — the usual scenario for long, flat stages.
Four riders broke away from the gun, but their advantage was controlled by the sprinters’ teams and the fugitives were caught with the finish line in sight, leaving it to the big-thighed sprinters to fight it out for victory in the stage.
Overall, Froome still leads teammate Geraint Thomas by 12 seconds and Italian Fabio Aru of Astana by 14 seconds.
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