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Remco Evenepoel in time trial mode.

TdF stage 7 report: Evenepoel wins against the clock

The world time trial champion beats Tadej Pogačar to take his first Tour de France stage win, giving him victories in all three Grand Tours.

Dane Cash
by Dane Cash 05.07.2024 More from Dane +

Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep), the reigning world time trial champion, took his first career Tour de France stage win on Friday’s stage 7, the first of TT in this year’s race. With rainbow bands accenting his kit and bike but wearing the white jersey of the Tour’s best young rider, Evenepoel covered the 25.3 km course from Nuits-Saint-Georges to Gevrey-Chambertin in 28:52. That would prove to be 12 seconds faster than race leader Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), who secured runner-up honors on the stage.

With the win, Evenepoel has now won stages in all three Grand Tours.

Primož Roglič of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe was the third fastest rider on the day with Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) just behind him in fourth. Pogačar maintained his grip on the yellow jersey, albeit with Evenepoel inching slightly closer in the overall standings, while Roglič and Vingegaard ceded a few seconds on a day where most of the top GC favorites delivered strong rides without huge gaps separating them.

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How it happened

I was on a good day. The climb was actually pretty tough because I wanted to start fast, and I had to keep something for the climb, which wasn’t easy. The descent, when you’re on the limit, it was pretty technical and fast. I enjoyed every meter of this TT. Coming out with a win is simply amazing.

—Remco Evenepoel after his stage victory
Tadej Pogačar in the stage 7 time trial at the Tour de France.
Pogačar had to settle for second on the stage, but he did pick up 25 seconds on Vingegaard.

Brief analysis

Up next

The sprinters could have another opportunity to shine on Saturday’s stage 8, a 183.4 km trek from Semur-en-Auxois to Colombey-les-Deux-Églises, but that’s not quite guaranteed on a profile of rolling hills. A chance of rain and a bit of wind could add to the intrigue, and the finish is slightly uphill, too, which could favor the more versatile speedsters in the peloton.

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