FRANCE (Reuters) -Reigning champion Tadej Pogacar overtook race leader Mathieu van der Poel just before the line to win stage four of the Tour de France on Tuesday, and is now level at the top of the general classification after earning his 100th career victory.
The 174.2km ride from Amiens to Rouen came down to a sprint finish between the top three in the overall standings, with the Slovenian world champion getting the better of the Dutchman, and Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease A Bike) coming in third.
Pogacar, the world champion, tried to go it alone, and while Van der Poel retains the yellow jersey, the three-times Tour de France champion hit his milestone win, along with joining the Dutchman at the top of the leaderboard.
"To win at the Tour is incredible, in this jersey even more, and to have 100 victories is amazing," Pogacar said.
A breakaway group of four riders -- Lenny Martinez, Jonas Abrahamsen, Thomas Gachignard and Kasper Asgreen -- got away early but the peloton, led by Van der Poel's Alpecin-Deceuninck team, kept them well within reach.
The action was always going to come in the closing 50km, with five categorised climbs packed into the finale, and Martinez was the last to be caught with 20km remaining, shortly after a crash had brought down several riders in the bunch.
Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates took control at the front coming to the penultimate climb, before Visma-Lease a Bike took over, pushing hard on the descent, as anticipation grew for a late attack.
When it came on the final climb, it was the expected break from Pogacar, but he was unable to shake off two-times champion Vingegaard, and the pair were joined by five other riders, including Van der Poel, to set up a high-stakes finish.
Van der Poel went first, looking for his second stage win in three days, but Pogacar had the legs to overtake before the line, and made up the four seconds which separated the pair overall thanks to the stage win bonus.
"With so many good riders in the final, you're always a bit on the edge and nervous about what's going to happen," Pogacar said.
"You never until the final, like today. You get this adrenaline. It's pure racing and I enjoy it."
Vingegaard and Pogacar have won the last five Tours between them, and the Dane remains third overall, eight seconds behind the leading pair.
(Reporting by Trevor StynesEditing by Christian Radnedge)
