Marcel Kittel edged Bryan Coquard to win stage four of the Tour de France ©Getty Images

Germany’s Marcel Kittel celebrated the ninth Tour de France stage win of his career after a photo-finish saw him edge France’s Bryan Coquard to victory in Limoges.

Following the leisurely pace of yesterday, the peloton appeared far more willing to increase the tempo on the longest route of this year’s race, taking them 232 kilometres from the start point in Saumur.

Germany’s Andreas Schillinger, Spain’s Markel Irizar and Belgium’s Oliver Naesen joined home favourite Alexis Gougeard in the day’s breakaway but their effort was doomed after their lead was reduced to just two minutes in the final 100km.

The move came to an end 20 kilometres from the finish when the sprinters' teams begun to jostle for position.

A crash was narrowly avoided inside the closing three kilometres after the peloton attempted to negotiate a tight roundabout.

With Britain’s Mark Cavendish, the winner of the first and third stages, finding himself boxed in towards the finish, Kittel launched the sprint and appeared a certainty for victory in the International Cycling Union (UCI) WorldTour race.

He was nearly pipped on the line by the fast finishing Coquard, with a photo-finish required for the second consecutive day, which ultimately confirmed Kittel as the stage winner in a time of 5 hours 28min 30sec.

The pace in the peloton was considerably higher than yesterday's stage ©Getty Images
The pace in the peloton was considerably higher than yesterday's stage ©Getty Images

"My physio told me I had won, I felt super proud and so happy,” said Etixx Quick-Step's Kittel, who endured a difficult 2015 after he was the dominant sprinter at the previous two Tour de France editions 

“After missing out on the Tour last year, changing teams, the expectations were very high.

“We came with the goal to win on the first stage but we missed out on the yellow jersey.

“We were disappointed but the team remained focused, I felt the pressure, that also explains the emotion."

The top of the general classification remains unchanged as Slovakia’s Peter Sagan, who ended third on the stage, remains in the overall race lead.

France’s Julien Alaphilippe and Spain’s Alejandro Valverde lie 12 and 14 seconds respectively behind the reigning road world champion.

Britain’s Chris Froome, the defending champion, and Colombia’s Nairo Quintana of Colombia, both lie 18 seconds behind Sagan, along with France’s Warren Barguil.

Climbers will be able to test their legs tomorrow with a hilly 216km route from Limoges to Le Lioran.