Norwegian rider Edvald Boasson Hagen stormed to a maiden Tour de France victory on Thursday, as Team Sky registered the first win by a British-run professional team in the Tour.

Boasson Hagen outsprinted Australian Matt Goss at the end of the sixth stage to win by a bike's length at the end of a 226.5km ride from Dinan, the Tour's longest stage. The Norwegian benefited from excellent work by team mate Geraint Thomas, who kept Boasson Hagen in his slipstream as the Dutch rider Bauke Mollema broke for the line, providing the ideal platform for the 24-year-old's victory.

"The team bus nearly turned over we were jumping up and down and shouting so much," Team Sky principal Daive Brailsford told reporters after Boasson Hagen's victory.

"I've been criticised for my ambition and for saying that I believed we could come here and win stages. But I honestly believed it and the proof will be in the riding.

"It's a huge moment for the ream and its development. We're not even a year-and-a-half old and we've won a stage in the Tour de France so from our point of view I'm delighted."

The win takes the burden off Team Sky leader Bradley Wiggins, who is himself steadily moving up the rankings. Sports director Sean Yates agreed the win relieved some pressure and he hoped there was more to come.

"It's not the icing on the cake. It's the under layer. We now hope to perform well for GC (general classification)," he told told Reuters.

Yates also praised Thomas's performance, saying, "He is the undisputed lead-out man in the peloton. You ask him to be somewhere and he is there."

Brailsford added that it was exciting for British cycling.

"It doesn't matter how good your planning or your set-up is, it's all about momentum, energy and confidence," he said.

"It's perfect for Brad. It takes the pressure off the team and we can now focus on getting down to the mountains unscathed and plotting the GC campaign."

Norwegian Thor Hushovd retained the overall leader's yellow jersey after coming third.

Edvald Boasson Hagen
Boasson Hagen claims Team Sky's maiden Tour victory.

Live coverage

The 98th Tour de France started on Saturday 2 July, with 22 teams racing over 3,430km in 21 stages, culminating with a finish at the Champs-Élysées in Paris -- a full list of dates is available here.

Live online coverage of the Tour is available in the UK and Europe via Eurosport, with subscriptions starting from £3.99. Full race highlights are available every evening on ITV.

In the US, the tour will be shown live on Versus, with repeats and highlights being aired on NBC. The entire event is also available online. NBC is selling a Tour de France all access pass for $29.95, which provides HD video of every stage of the race all the way through to the final leg, when cyclists reach Paris on 24 July. Read more at NBC, via GigaOm.

For viewers in other countries, Steephill.tv has a comprehensive list of channels showing the Tour in other regions.