The seventh stage takes the peloton from Millau to Lavaur, over 168 kilometers. After Thursday’s mountain stage and the attackers who seized their chance, it may be the sprinters’ turn again on Friday. Or will the peloton be surprised by the wind?
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Follow the seventh stage LIVE from start to finish here!
Alexey Lutsenko made it on Thursday after an early flight. Greg Van Avermaet finished third, in the battle for yellow the classification riders kept calm. “Whether I expected a status quo? Quite a bit. There was a scenario that we would race on that climb, but we also took into account a status quo ”, said Tom Dumoulin afterwards. “The final climb was not difficult enough. Whoever preceded the attack, probably got the bill presented in the end. So I think everyone has saved up a bit. ”
“Watch out for the wind”
So no battle for the yellow, and in principle that should not be expected today / Friday. In the first 97.5 km there are three categorized climbs, two in the third and one in the fourth category, with five points to be won for the mountain jersey, but after that it is mainly flat for 70 km towards the finish in Lavaur. “Although you will have to watch out for the wind from Castres (after 125 km),” said course designer Thierry Gouvenou at the presentation in October. “We drive through sunflower fields with little shelter. If there is a crosswind, this could be a treacherous stage. ”
Southwest winds are predicted to be between 15 and 35 km / h, according to the organization’s weather bulletin. A so-called ‘vent d’autan’ may well provide spectacle, and then it might be a very special stage and a surprising sprint in Lavour.
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