After traveling along the Atlantic Coast and near the beaches of Normandy, the 2011 Tour De France turns to the interior of the country with Stage 7 starting at Le Mans. As the cyclists make their way along the 218 km (135 mi) course to Châteauroux, they will not need to contend with any climbs and it won't be as twisted as the previous stage.
This is a very flat stage and will be the last one for a couple of stages as they enter the mountains over the weekend. The sprint will come at Buzançais from 189.5 km to 192.5 km. Philippe Gilbert and Jose Joaquin Rojas, the green jersey wearer and the second-place rider in points, respectively, could do well on this stage.
Thor Hushovd enters this stage with the yellow jersey for another day with a one-second lead over Cadel Evans. His Team Garmin-Cervelo holds a two-second lead in the team time category.
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