Cycling: Cipollini wins seventh-stage sprint finish

Mario Cipollini's fine run of form in the Tour of Spain continued yesterday when he triumphed in a mass sprint finish on the seventh stage. The Acqua e Sapone rider finished the 101.5-mile leg from Jaen to Malaga, in southern Spain, in 4 hours 33 minutes 46 seconds.

It was the Italian's third victory in this year's Vuelta, after taking the third and fourth stages. Erik Zabel, of the Telekom team, finished second, followed by his fellow German Sven Teutenberg, riding for Festina. Spain's Oscar Sevilla retained the overall lead, 14 seconds ahead of Alexander Vinokourov, of Kazakhstan.

Five riders – German Nieto, Mariano Piccoli, Nicolas Portal, Elio Aggiano and Jürgen van Goolen – broke away early and at one point had a five-minute lead. But they were caught with 20km to go, and Cipollini edged ahead in the final few metres.