Norwegian Wärenskjold Outpaces the Top Sprinters

Sören Wärenskjold, 26, launched his sprint 150 meters before the finish line and, much to his own surprise, stayed in the lead until the end. Olav Kooij of the Netherlands, winner of Stage 5, finished in second place. Belgian sprint star Jasper Philipsen, who finished third, once again missed out on his first stage win of the year and was even demoted in the rankings following a jury decision.

Nothing changed in the overall standings on the 161-km flat stage in central France. Tadej Pogacar remains the clear leader, still 3:36 minutes ahead of Jonas Vingegaard. Yannis Voisard remains the top Swiss rider in 16th place.

The “Procyclingstats” website calculated an average speed of 50.91 kilometers per hour. Until now, the record—excluding prologues and time trials—was set during Stage 4 in 1999, which Mario Cipollini won. At that time, the average speed was 50.36.

“I knew there were two or three sprinters in the pack who were faster than me,” explained a beaming Wärenskjold after the victory. “I just had to hope that a gap would open up and then seize my chance.” That’s how the 1.95-meter-tall giant achieved his greatest success to date; previously, his biggest win had been the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, a “semi-classic” in Flanders.

On Thursday's 12th stage, the spotlight will once again be on the sprinters. The stage will start at the Magny-Cours racetrack near Nevers. From there, the route will head east for 179 km to Chalon-sur-Saône.