Italian sprinter Jonathan Milan claimed his maiden Tour de France stage victory, outsprinting Belgium’s Wout van Aert and Australia’s Kaden Groves after 171.4 km from Saint-Méen-le-Grand to Laval. The 24-year-old Lidl-Trek rider stopped the clock at 3h 50m 26s on the slight uphill finish, ending Italy’s six-year drought at the race—the nation’s first stage win since Vincenzo Nibali in July 2019. Race leader Tadej Pogacar finished safely in the peloton to retain the yellow jersey. The Slovenian remains 54 seconds ahead of Remco Evenepoel, with two-time champion Jonas Vingegaard 1 minute 17 seconds adrift in fourth overall. The largely flat stage was marred briefly by a late crash involving Germany’s Jonas Rutsch, who remounted and completed the day. Sunday’s ninth stage, another sprinter-friendly route to Châteauroux, offers Milan an immediate chance to consolidate his green-jersey ambitions, while Pogacar’s rivals will wait for the mountains to attempt to close the gap.