Tour de France Stage 7

Marcel Kittel wins stage 7 in a photo finish with Boasson Hagen – Kittel takes green jersey off Demare

RST Cycle Clothing & Trigon Bikes

Tour de France Stage 7

Team Press Release

Marcel Kittel equals Erik Zabel record for most stage victories by a German rider at the Grand Boucle

Photo: Tim DeWaele

Marcel Kittel won by a whisker stage 7 of the Tour de France after another sweltering day in the saddle, which took the riders over 213.5 kilometers from Troyes to Nuits-Saint-Georges.

It was his 12th stage success at the Tour de France, one which saw him equal the record set in 2002 by Erik Zabel, who until today was the most successful German at the Tour de France.

Kittel, already victorious in Liège and Troyes, was delivered into a perfect position by lead-out man Fabio Sabatini and kicked out with 75 meters remaining to capitalize on the excellent work of the his Quick-Step Floors team.

It was a nail-biting finish, one of the closest in a Tour de France victory, with Marcel Kittel and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data) hitting the finish line together and with millimetres between them.

Photo: Tim DeWaele

The Norwegian Boassan Hagen opened the sprint first, but a powerful surge and late bike-throw secured Marcel’s third victory at this edition, one which got him back into the green jersey.

After the stage, “First of all, I want to thank the guys, they were fantastic today. Julien spent close to 1000 kilometers in the wind since the start of the race, which is incredible, while the rest of the team protected me throughout the day and made sure I was right up there when it became serious. Having such a team around me makes me very proud.”

Before going to the podium to receive the winner’s trophy, Marcel took a moment to catch his breath and watch the photo-finish, which showed him take the win for only six millimiters: “It was the closest sprint of my career. Reminds me of last year’s stage in Limoges, but not even that one was so tight.”

“I’m not surprised to see Edvald up there, he’s in good shape and very strong, which we could already notice in Troyes. Seeing that only six millimeters made the difference between joy and disappointment today makes me happy and grateful for having the long arms which helped me get that decisive bike-throw.”

Edvald Boasson Hagen meanwhile admits he’s not a pure sprinter and gets confidence from such a challenge for a stage  ”The team did so well today. They took me all the way to the line with a perfect leadout. It’s a pity I couldn’t finish it off. However, I’m happy with this second place even though I would have liked to take the win. I’m not a pure sprinter, so to be able to be up there on these flat stages gives me a lot of confidence for the remaining part of the Tour”.

The win and green jersey for Kittel which he reclaimed after three days brought a huge joy to the 29-year-old sprinter, but despite today’s remarkable feats and the 15-point cushion he has over the next rider, Marcel isn’t thinking of winning the classification: “It’s still a long way to Paris. We’re just seven stages into the race, so maybe we can talk more about this on the second rest day. Until then, I’m enjoying every moment and every victory I get at the Tour.”

2016_ShuttVeloRapideAdvert

AlpsCyclesMidstory

 

Send your results as well as club, team & event news here

Cero

Other Results on VeloUK (including reports containing results)

Other News on VeloUK

Tags: