Saturday, July 10, 2010
Hesjedal Climbs to 3rd Overall at Tour
France — The Tour de France entered the mountains Saturday and the Garmin-Transitions team’s top GC man Ryder Hesjedal proved up to the task of riding with the big guns. The Canadian finished the 165.5km Stage 7 from Tournus to Station des Rousses safely in an elite group of contenders and moved up to third place overall. On a stage that included six categorized climbs, Hesjedal put in an impressive ride on his Felt F1 team bike. The Canadian's ride was the latest bright spot for the Garmin-Transitions team. One day earlier the team’s top sprinter, Tyler Farrar, showed signs that he’s recovering from injuries sustained in a crash on Stage 2 when, even with a fractured bone in his wrist, he dashed to a second-place finish.
Sunday's Stage 8 will be another one for the climbers, and Hesjedal will be tested again in the Alps with the first summit finish of the race in Morzine-Avoriaz.
TOUR DE FRANCE
Stage 7, July 10
1. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra), Quick Step, 4:22:52
2. Rafael Valls (Spa), Footon-Servetto, at 0:57
3. Juan Manuel Garate (Spa), Rabobank, at 1:27
4. Thomas Voeckler (Fra), Bbox Bouygues Telecom, at 1:40
5. Mathieu Perget (Fra), Caisse d’Epargne, same time
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra), Quick Step, 33:01:23
2. Cadel Evans (Aus), BMC, at 1:25
3. Ryder Hesjedal (Can), Garmin-Transitions, at 1:32
4. Andy Schleck (Lux), Saxo Bank, at 1:55
5. Alexander Vinokourov (Kaz), Astana, at 2:17
9. Johan Van Summeren (Bel), Garmin-Transitions, at 2:33 |