Tour de France: Tim Merlier Wins in Bordeaux—His Gesture at the Finish Line Brings a Smile. Tadej Pogacar Remains Comfortably in the Yellow Jersey

Tim Merlier, a rider for Soudal Quick-Step, claimed victory in the seventh stage of the 2026 Tour de France, which took the riders from Hagetmau to Bordeaux, the capital of the Gironde department, after a relatively flat 175.1-kilometer route. The Belgian, who made the most of his sprinting skills in the final 200 meters, finished ahead of Norway’s Søren Wærenskjold (Uno-X Mobility) and Eritrea’s Biniam Girmay (NSN Cycling Team), who rounded out the day’s podium.

Merlier himself made an interesting gesture at the finish line: after raising his arms to the sky, he seemed to brush the dust off his shoulders, bringing a smile to the faces of more than a few insiders. There were no changes in the general classification, where Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), following yet another solo feat on the stage featuring Aspin and Tourmalet, leads by 2’42” over Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma-Lease a Bike) and 3’27” over the Slovenian’s teammate, Isaac Del Toro.

The Italians were decidedly overshadowed: you have to scroll all the way down to 46th place to see an Italian flag, next to the name of Davide Ballerini of the XDS Astana Team. In the general classification, the best of the Italian riders is Davide Piganzoli, Vingegaard’s support rider, who is 16th overall, 10’46” behind Tadej Pogacar.

The rider from Morbegno moved up one spot following the withdrawal of Torstein Træen, who had worn the yellow jersey for two days until yesterday; Træen crashed while wearing the leader’s jersey on the descent of the Tourmalet and did not start today’s stage. The Grande Boucle will continue for all riders still in the race on Saturday, with another flat stage of 180.4 kilometers starting in Périgueux and finishing in Bergerac, the city in the Dordogne region famous for the theatrical character Cyrano, made famous by Edmond Rostand in the late 19th century.