Remco Evenepoel takes first ever Tour de France win on stage 7 time trial but Tadej Pogacar holds onto the Maillot Jaune
Cycling
After a thriller of a time trial, the titans of the 2024 Tour de France went head to head against the clock with Remco Evenepoel proving strongest, gaining time on the likes of Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Primoz Roglic.
The first time trial of the 2024 Tour de France, the record breaking, history making Mark Cavendish was the first man down the start ramp in Nuits-Saint-Georges. The Astana Qazaqstan Team sprinter just about managed to be the first rider across the finish line too, narrowly finishing ahead of teammate Michael Morkov, although it was Morkov who had the faster time of the duo.
Of the early riders, by the far the quickest proved to be Groupama - FDJ's Lenny Martinez. The Frenchman clocked 31:40 when he crossed the line, 59 seconds quicker than anyone else who finished their efforts to that point. The next man into the hotseat was Luke Dudbridge, although the Australian wasn't able to get too comfortable as first Nils Politt and then Stefan Bissegger went ever quicker. The Swiss rider having the new benchmark time of 30:06.
Whilst Bissegger's effort looked like ensuring a relatively lengthy stay in the hotseat for the Swiss, Kevin Vauquelin had other ideas. The Frenchman, who has already taken a victory on stage 2, became the first rider to go under 30 minutes with his time of 29:44. After spending a fair while as stage leader, Vauquelin was eventually narrowly unseated as Victor Campenaerts went less than a second quicker.
Stefan Kung then looked as if he would threaten the time of Campenaerts. Mid-ride though, the Groupama - FDJ time trial specialists saw his chain slip off momentarily. A potentially key factor in denying Kung the new fastest time as he crossed the line 8 seconds down on Campenaerts. Wout van Aert gave it a go, but was nearly a minute slower than his compatriot at the line.
Julien Bernard, riding on home roads was given a hero's welcome by a legion of his supporters on the day's only climb. It was Ben Healy, who was the next rider to threaten the Lotto Dstny man in the hotseat. Fading somewhat in the final run in however, the Irishman eventually finished 7 seconds down. Derek Gee also made a solid effort, stopping the clock 25 seconds behind Campenaerts. When the big four of Primoz Roglic, Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel and Tadej Pogacar took to the course however, Campenaerts was still in the hotseat.
As soon as the big 4 were on the course however, the timings were almost immediately turning green, making it unlikely Campenaerts would be able to hold onto the stage win. At the first time check, Evenepoel was the fastest, 2 seconds clear of Pogacar, 10 to Vingegaard and 20 to Roglic. At the second check, Evenepoel had increased his lead over Pogacar to 10 seconds, 23 seconds ahead of Vingegaard and 37 seconds faster than Roglic.
Crossing the line, Roglic took the provisional lead, over 17 seconds quicker than Campenaerts. The stage win wasn't forthcoming for the BORA - hansgrohe leader however, despite Vingegaard dropping to 3 seconds slower. There was then a moment of concern for Evenepoel as the Belgian suffered a minor mechanical with just over 2km to go. Nevertheless, he crossed the line in the provisional lead, 34 seconds quicker than Roglic. Would the gear problems prove fatal for the stage win though? As it turned out, no. Pogacar crossed the line 12 seconds down, missing out on the stage but keeping yellow.
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Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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All the riders have passed through the second checkpoint of the #TDF2024 stage 7 and @EvenepoelRemco holds the fastest time. Photo: @BeelWout
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