Kittel surges to fourth Tour stage win

– German Marcel Kittel claimed his fourth victory in this year’s Tour de France when he powered to an impressive Stage 10 victory in a bunch sprint yesterday.

His compatriot John Degenkolb was second and Dutchman Dylan Groenewegen took third place.

Britain’s Chris Froome finished safe in the bunch to retain the overall leader’s yellow jersey.

Elie Gesbert, who on Monday almost set his Fortuneo-Oscaro team hotel on fire after leaving a towel on an electric heater which triggered a partial evacuation of the building, jumped away at the start.

Bergerac

He was accompanied by fellow Frenchman Yoann Offredo (Wanty-Groupe Gobert) and the duo built a maximum advantage of 5:30.

The sprinters’ teams, however, had them on a tight leash and they were reined in 6.8km from the line.

None of his rivals could match Kittel’s power as the Quick-Step Floors rider beat Degenkolb by more than a bike length to extend his lead in the points classification.

It was Kittel’s 13th Tour stage win, taking him one ahead of Erik Zabel’s German milestone of 12. – Reuters