CYCLING: Soren Waerenskjold wins stage 11 of Tour de France

NEVERS, France — Norway's Soren Waerenskjold completed a remarkable turnaround at the Tour de France on Wednesday, sprinting to victory in Stage 11 in Nevers just one day after finishing last in the previous stage.

The Uno-X Mobility rider launched a powerful sprint to edge Dutch cyclist Olav Kooij of Decathlon CMA CGM at the finish line, while Belgium's Jasper Philipsen of Alpecin-Premier Tech secured third place after race officials overturned an initial relegation.

Philipsen was originally dropped to 119th after the race jury ruled that he had veered into another rider during the closing meters of the sprint. Officials later reviewed the incident and reinstated him to third place.

The 161.3-kilometer stage from Vichy to Nevers was completed at an average speed of about 50.9 kilometers per hour, making it the fastest stage in Tour de France history.

"It means everything. It's my biggest win so far," Waerenskjold said after the race.

"It's incredible. I have to let it sink in, then I will probably be happier than I look now."

There were no major changes in the overall standings, with defending champion Tadej Pogacar of UAE Team Emirates-XRG safely finishing with the main group to retain the yellow jersey.

Belgium's Tim Merlier, who had won two earlier sprint stages, fell short of completing a hat trick and finished outside the top 10.

A four-rider breakaway featuring Julian Alaphilippe, Mathis Le Berre, Nelson Oliveira and Anthon Charmig animated much of the race after attacking on wet roads near Vichy. However, teams backing the leading sprinters kept the gap under control, and the final breakaway riders were caught within the last six kilometers.

Le Berre collected maximum points at the intermediate sprint, while Denmark's Mads Pedersen extended his lead in the green jersey competition by finishing ahead of Eritrea's Biniam Girmay. Charmig also claimed both fourth-category climbs during the stage.

A crash in the feed zone brought down Ben O'Connor, Abel Balderstone and Georg Zimmermann, but all three riders were able to continue after Zimmermann received medical attention. -Reporting by Vincent Daheron; Writing by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru and Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Alison Williams/Reuters