Belgian rider Tim Merlier won the seventh stage of the Tour de France in a sprint finish on Friday. Merlier was moved into position to attack by his Soudal Quick-Step team and timed his move well to clinch his fourth Tour stage win.
Stage 7 Recap
Four-time Tour champion Tadej Pogacar finished safely in the main pack along with two-time winner Jonas Vinegaard, his closest rival. Pogacar maintained his lead of 2 minutes, 42 seconds over second-placed Vinegaard in the overall standings.
Stage 7 took riders on a mostly flat 175-kilometer route from Hagetmau to the wine-loving city of Bordeaux. In sweltering conditions, Frenchman Baptiste Veistroffer formed a two-man breakaway with Czech Jakub Otruba. They were caught with 18 kilometers left by the chasing pack as teams looked to place their leading sprinter in position to contest the victory.
Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.