LAVAL, France — Italian rider Jonathan Milan timed his attack perfectly to win the eighth stage of the Tour de France in a sprint finish on Saturday.

Stage 8, 171km from Saint-Meen-le-Grand - the birthplace of three-time Tour winner Louison Bobet - was always heading for a battle among the fast men, and it was the Italian who surfed the wheels best after losing his lead-out train, hopping onto Mathieu van der Poel ’s leadout before breaking clear.

Jonathan Milan is the first Italian to win a stage at the Tour de France since Vincenzo Nibali’s success in Val Thorens (stage 20 of the Tour 2019). That was 113 stages ago. Stage eight winner Jonathan Milan: "I think I still don't understand what we did. To come with expectations and dreams and to bring them home are two different things.