<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> ← 2017 2019 → </Td> </Tr> <P> The 2018 Tour de France was the 105th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's three Grand Tours . The 3,351 km (2,082 mi) race started from Noirmoutier - en - l'Île, in the Vendée department, on 7 July and concluded with the Champs - Élysées stage in Paris, on 29 July . A total of 176 riders across 22 teams were participating in the 21 - stage race . The Tour was the shortest of the millennium and was the fifth time a tour had set out from Vendée . The race was won for the first time by Geraint Thomas of Team Sky . Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) placed second, with Thomas' teammate and four - time Tour champion Chris Froome coming third . </P> <P> The opening stage was won by Fernando Gaviria of Quick - Step Floors, who became the Tour's first rider to wear the general classification leader's yellow jersey . Peter Sagan (Bora--Hansgrohe) then took the race lead the following stage . BMC Racing Team won stage three's team time trial, putting their rider Greg Van Avermaet in yellow . He held the jersey for eight days until the second high mountain stage, where stage winner Thomas took the lead . He held it for the rest of the race to become the first Welshman to win the overall race . As a result, Team Sky--and additionally British riders--won six of the previous seven Tours dating back to 2012 . </P> <P> Sagan won the points classification for the sixth time, Julian Alaphilippe (Quick - Step Floors) won the mountains classification, and Pierre Latour of AG2R La Mondiale won the young rider classification . Movistar Team won the team classification, and UAE Team Emirates rider Dan Martin was named the most combative for the entire race . </P>

Who won the first stage of the 2018 tour de france