Turgis pips Pidcock to win Stage 9 of Tour de France as Pogacar keeps lead

French rider Anthony Turgis pipped Britain's Tom Pidcock on the line in Troyes to win Stage 9, as UAE Team Emirates' Tadej Pogacar maintained his overall lead in the Tour de France .

Turgis and Pidcock were in a group of riders who spent virtually all of the 199km stage in a breakaway and it came down to a reduced sprint, with Pidcock slamming his handlebars in frustration after coming within metres of a second career Tour stage.

Afterwards, Turgis said: “It's incredible. It was a long day, the team put its trust in me by giving me carte blanche today. I dedicate this win to all the people who trusted me.

"It's a year since I'm on the Tour. At the start of the Tour I always saw the cameras for the wins on different riders and always the big favourites. I have always believed that if I go to race, I go to try and win.

"I've never won on the WorldTour. But now, to win on the WorldTour at the Tour de France? It's incredible. It's not any stage, it's one of the key stages. Stages like this are incredible."

Behind the sprint finish, race leader Pogacar tested the mettle of his general classification rivals several times on the 14 gravel sections that characterised the day, with Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic all having issues at different times.

But by the end there were no time gaps between the main contenders as they crossed the line a little under two minutes after Turgis.

The inclusion of a stage featuring some 32 kilometres of gravel sectors – full of jeopardy for those targeting yellow – caused great controversy in the build-up to the Tour but there was no doubting the entertainment value.