Tour de France Stage 8: Sprinters Set for Battle in Laval

Saint-Méen-le-Grand, France – The eighth stage of the 2025 Tour de France rolled out on Saturday, July 12, from Saint-Méen-le-Grand, heading towards Laval Espace Mayenne. The route spans 171.4 kilometers and is designed to favor sprinters, with a largely flat profile and only one minor climb.

As the peloton began the stage, the atmosphere was calm despite high temperatures reaching 30 degrees Celsius. The race conditions were made more challenging by a constant northeastern wind that would face the riders for most of the stage, averaging 15 km/h.

This stage marks a significant moment for sprinters after a series of hilly challenges earlier in the Tour. With just one categorized climb, the Côte de Nuillé-sur-Vicoin, the sprinters looked forward to showcasing their speed in a mass finish, especially after weeks of tougher racing.

Before the start, Jayco Alula announced the withdrawal of Irish rider Eddie Dunbar due to pain from a crash the previous day, making the competing rider count drop to 176.

Oscar Onley, a young sprinter from Picnic-PostNL, gained attention from pundits after his impressive third-place finish in the previous stage. He expressed optimism for the upcoming challenges: ‘These kinds of stages suit me well. I’m looking forward to Monday’s mountain stage.’

Today’s stage also includes an intermediate sprint in Vitré, where points for the green jersey will be contested. Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) and Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) are expected to vie for the win, along with other fast riders.

As the riders neared the finish, team dynamics and strategies would be critical. Fans lined the route to support their favorites, making for an exciting atmosphere as the sprint teams prepared for the showdown. The expected finish time is around 5:04 PM CEST.