Christian Hartmann/Reuters
Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors), left, pips Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data) on stage seven of the 2017 Tour de France.
NUITS-SAINT-GEORGES - Six millimeters.
After after more than five hours of racing in the high heat and 213.5 kilometers (132.6 miles), that's how much German sprint star Marcel Kittel won stage seven of the Tour de France by here on Friday, just edging the Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen in a photo finish.
It was Kittel's third stage win of this race and his 12th in the Tour ever.
You have to some feel sympathy for "Eddy the Boss," who was looking to get his Dimension Data team a win after its leader Mark Cavendish was forced to abandon the race after crashing on stage four and breaking his shoulder.
Kittel said it was the closest finish of his life.
He made history on stage two in Liége, Belgium, by winning a stage of the Tour on a bike with disc brakes.
Business Insider profiled Kittel, the self-described would-be "computer nerd," last year.
You can watch the ever-so-close finish below:
Photo finish, @marcelkittel gagne devant @EBhagen ! / Kittel takes the win! #TDF2017 pic.twitter.com/pe2YmHmoIg
- Le Tour de France (@LeTour) July 7, 2017Closest finish of my life. Big battle with a strong @EBhagen to the line! Again Thank you! to my @quickstepteam for an incredible ride. 👐🙌 https://t.co/DQLKsVZdgF
- Marcel Kittel (@marcelkittel) July 7, 2017