NEVERS, France (AP) 鈥� Norwegian rider Soeren Waerenskjold attacked late and powered to victory in the fastest ever stage of the Tour de France on Wednesday while Tadej Poga膷ar protected his overall lead on the 11th day of racing.
Waerenskjold finished just ahead of Olav Kooij, Jasper Philipsen and a host of other riders in a sprint finish that seemed inevitable on the relatively short and flat 161.3-kilometer (100.2-mile) route from Vichy to Nevers in central France.
Poga膷ar, who stretched his lead to more than 3陆 minutes with his , finished among a bunch of riders with his main challenger Jonas Vingegaard to maintain his advantage.
For the 26-year-old Waerenskjold, it was his first stage win, and no one seemed more surprised by it than himself.
鈥淚t means everything, it鈥檚 my biggest win so far and like I said when I came here, I knew that there are two or three guys that are faster than me but if I鈥檓 lucky and I have a good sprint like today then it鈥檚 possible,鈥� he said.
From last to first
Waerenskjold finished last among the 175 riders after a crash on the hilly stage to Le Lioran the day before. Early on Wednesday’s stage, the Uno-X Mobility rider called the race doctor for treatment on his right hand.
鈥淪ometimes I have really good confidence and I believe in myself, but there鈥檚 many, many times where I feel super tired and like it鈥檚 impossible to win here,” Waerenskjold said. “So yeah, it鈥檚 crazy that it happened today.鈥�
Fastest stage ever
With an average speed of 50.9 kph (31.6 mph), the riders set a record for a road stage on the Tour.
Mathieu van der Poel and Valentin Paret-Peintre attacked from the off and were reined in before four riders managed to get away 鈥� Julian Alaphilippe, Mathis Le Berre, Nelson Oliveira and Anthon Charmig.
They reached Moulins with 100 kilometers to go with a lead of 1 minute, 15 seconds from the peloton.
Alaphilippe fell behind when they reached the category 4 C么te de Billy-Chevannes, a 1.4-kilometer climb at 5%, leaving three leaders with a gap of 45 seconds going into the last 20 kilometers.
That gap shrank to 19 seconds with 10K remaining, the rest of the riders gathered ominously in a huge bunch just behind, and it was no surprise when the leaders were finally caught with 5.5K remaining.
The peloton slowed with the breakaways back on board as the riders positioned themselves among teammates for the looming final sprint.
Waerenskjold was quickest to react when it got going.
鈥淚 thought I was too far back and then it opened up on the right side like it usually doesn鈥檛 do, but it was a bit same feeling as my first big win in (Belgian race) Omloop het Nieuwsblad,鈥� the Norwegian said. 鈥淭hat was also like I was too far back and suddenly I鈥檓 at the front, and then, yeah it鈥檚 unbelievable.鈥�
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