Jasper Philipsen of Alpecin-Deceuninck powered to victory on Stage 7 of the 2026 Tour de France, a flat 189km run from Hagetmau to Bordeaux, claiming his second stage win of this year's race. The Belgian sprinter edged out Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and Mark Cavendish (Astana-Qazaqstan) in a chaotic bunch sprint, crossing the line with a bike throw that gave him a clear margin.
How the Stage Unfolded
The stage, largely expected to end in a mass sprint, saw a four-man breakaway form early: Victor Campenaerts (Lotto-Dstny), Mathieu Burgaudeau (TotalEnergies), Jonas Gregaard (Uno-X), and Michael Valgren (EF Education-EasyPost). They built a lead of over four minutes before the peloton, controlled by Alpecin-Deceuninck and Jumbo-Visma, began reeling them in with 30km to go.
With 10km remaining, the break was swept up, and the sprint trains jockeyed for position. A crash with 3km to go split the peloton, but all main contenders avoided trouble. In the final 500m, Philipsen launched early from the wheel of his lead-out man, Mathieu van der Poel, and held off van Aert and Cavendish.
Philipsen's Dominance
Philipsen's victory was his 12th career Tour de France stage win, and he now sits comfortably in the green jersey competition. “The team was perfect today, especially Mathieu. I felt strong and could finish it off,” Philipsen said after the stage. The win also narrowed the gap to overall leader Tadej Pogacar in the points classification.
General Classification Unchanged
Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) finished safely in the pack and retains the yellow jersey, leading Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) by 1 minute 12 seconds. With no time bonuses on offer for the top finishers, the GC standings remained static.
What's Next
Stage 8 on Saturday takes the peloton on a 200km route from Libourne to Limoges, another flat stage likely to favour the sprinters. However, a series of small climbs in the finale could offer a chance for a breakaway to survive.
