NIMES, France — Nils Politt posted his first Tour de France stage win on Thursday after pulling away from a breakaway group.
The German rider from the Bora-Hansgrohe team attacked from a reduced group of three riders with about 12 kilometers left and reached the finish in the southern city of Nimes on his own.
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Race leader Tadej Pogacar rode with all other main contenders well behind the breakaway. The defending champion was expected to keep the yellow jersey since none of the breakaway riders were threats in the general classification.
Politt was part of a larger group that jumped out of the main pack in the early stages of the 159.4-kilometer (99-mile) Stage 12 between Saint-Paul-Trois-Chateaux and Nimes.
Mark Cavendish, who is one stage win shy of Eddy Merckx‘s career record of 34, was denied a chance at a sprint victory due to the breakaway.
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Mark Cavendish denied first chance at Tour de France record by breakaway originally appeared on NBCSports.com