Ecuadorian cyclist Richard Carapaz won the 18th stage of the Tour de France today at the summit of Orcières-Merlette in the Alps.

Carapaz managed to break away from six riders 3.5 kilometers from the finish line, securing his second victory in the Tour de France.

The Tokyo Olympics champion finished 45 seconds ahead of Swiss Mauro Schmid and American Matteo Jorgenson, who placed second and third respectively, while Frenchman Valentin Paret-Peintre finished fourth, 1 minute and 14 seconds behind.

Slovenian Tadej Pogačar retained the overall lead with a margin of 4 minutes and 32 seconds over Belgian Remco Evenepoel, followed by Mexican Isaac Del Toro and Frenchman Paul Seixas, ahead of the two Alpine stages on Friday and Saturday.