Costa claims 8th stage of Tour
Source: Agencies |
July 10, 2011, Sunday
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PORTUGUESE rider Rui Alberto Costa won the eighth stage of the Tour de France after withstanding a late attack from Philippe Gilbert in the final climb yesterday.
Costa waved his hands in delight and then punched the air as he clinched the first Tour stage win of his career.
The race entered the mountains for the first time in the 189-kilometer trek from Aigurande to Super-Besse Sancy in central France, featuring a sharp category 2 climb up Col de la Croix and a final climb of 1.5 kilometers.
Thor Hushovd kept hold of the race leader's yellow jersey. The Norwegian has been wearing it since his Garmin-Cervelo team won last Sunday's time trial.
Astana's Alexandre Vinokourov closed to within 15 seconds of Costa in the last kilometer, but the Kazakh rider ran out of steam as he had no teammates to help him.
Gilbert was fresher after sitting in with the main pack for much of the day's climbs. He overtook Vinokourov after launching an attack with about 400 meters left.
None of the main Tour contenders lost any significant time. Defending champion Alberto Contador of Spain, Luxembourg's Andy Schleck and Cadel Evans of Australia - both two-time runners-up - tested each other out with mini-attacks.
Since Gilbert is not considered an overall Tour contender, they didn't feel the need to chase down the Belgian when he went after Vinokourov.
Earlier in the day, American Chris Horner pulled out of the Tour after failing to recover from a crash in another blow for Radioshack, the team said.
Horner, who was 10th overall last year, crashed heavily with some 40 kilometers left in the seventh stage on Friday, briefly losing consciousness before crossing the line over 13 minutes off the pace.
A team spokesman said that Horner would spend the weekend at the hospital.
Horner only remembers riding the Tour's team time trial and has no recollection of the crash, he added.
The American also broke his nose and sustained a calf injury in the crash.
Horner, who won the Tour of California last May, is the second of four Radioshack leaders to abandon the race after Slovenian Janez Brajkovic pulled out after a crash last Wednesday.
Radioshack will now rely on German veteran Andreas Kloeden, twice a Tour runner-up, for a possible podium finish in Paris as American Levi Leipheimer lost over three minutes after crashing on Friday.
Briton Bradley Wiggins also crashed out on Friday and will undergo surgery on a broken left collarbone and is expected back on his bike within 10 days, his Team Sky said yesterday.
Costa waved his hands in delight and then punched the air as he clinched the first Tour stage win of his career.
The race entered the mountains for the first time in the 189-kilometer trek from Aigurande to Super-Besse Sancy in central France, featuring a sharp category 2 climb up Col de la Croix and a final climb of 1.5 kilometers.
Thor Hushovd kept hold of the race leader's yellow jersey. The Norwegian has been wearing it since his Garmin-Cervelo team won last Sunday's time trial.
Astana's Alexandre Vinokourov closed to within 15 seconds of Costa in the last kilometer, but the Kazakh rider ran out of steam as he had no teammates to help him.
Gilbert was fresher after sitting in with the main pack for much of the day's climbs. He overtook Vinokourov after launching an attack with about 400 meters left.
None of the main Tour contenders lost any significant time. Defending champion Alberto Contador of Spain, Luxembourg's Andy Schleck and Cadel Evans of Australia - both two-time runners-up - tested each other out with mini-attacks.
Since Gilbert is not considered an overall Tour contender, they didn't feel the need to chase down the Belgian when he went after Vinokourov.
Earlier in the day, American Chris Horner pulled out of the Tour after failing to recover from a crash in another blow for Radioshack, the team said.
Horner, who was 10th overall last year, crashed heavily with some 40 kilometers left in the seventh stage on Friday, briefly losing consciousness before crossing the line over 13 minutes off the pace.
A team spokesman said that Horner would spend the weekend at the hospital.
Horner only remembers riding the Tour's team time trial and has no recollection of the crash, he added.
The American also broke his nose and sustained a calf injury in the crash.
Horner, who won the Tour of California last May, is the second of four Radioshack leaders to abandon the race after Slovenian Janez Brajkovic pulled out after a crash last Wednesday.
Radioshack will now rely on German veteran Andreas Kloeden, twice a Tour runner-up, for a possible podium finish in Paris as American Levi Leipheimer lost over three minutes after crashing on Friday.
Briton Bradley Wiggins also crashed out on Friday and will undergo surgery on a broken left collarbone and is expected back on his bike within 10 days, his Team Sky said yesterday.
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