Tour de France: Sandy Casar wins stage 18
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Friday, July 27, 2007
- 5 February 2009: Tour de France: Cédric Vasseur wins stage 10
- 29 July 2007: Tour de France: Alberto Contador wins the grand tour
- 28 July 2007: Tour de France: Levi Leipheimer wins stage 19
- 27 July 2007: Tour de France: Sandy Casar wins stage 18
- 27 July 2007: ETA places explosives on Tour de France route in Spain
Sandy Casar of France has won stage 18 of the 2007 Tour de France in a time of 5h 13' 31". Axel Merckx came in second.
Sandy Casar, Alex Merckx, Laurent Lefevre, and Michael Boogerd took control of the stage with a break-away that gave them a 10-minute lead on the peleton.
Alberto Contador of Spain, who finished with the peleton keeps the yellow jersey. This 211 km long stage, with a few small climbs near the start, was considered by many as the last chance for any surprises.
Cadel Evans of Australia, who is second overall, shaved off 3 seconds of the advantage that Contador holds over him, by finishing in a smaller group that finished just ahead of the peleton.
"I hope I don't lose because of three seconds," said Contador. "This yellow jersey is very important. It's important that I have it tonight. I'm not a time-trial specialist but I'll do all I can not to lose one minute, 50 seconds."
Tomorrow's stage is the second time trial stage, with long straight stretches, some beautiful sections of unbending road, some slight inclines and again favours the soloists. It is 55.5 km long and runs from Cognac to Angoulême. Sunday, will be the grand finale, as the race enters Paris to complete the eight laps of the traditional circuit around the Champs-Élysées.
Meanwhile, former yellow jersey leader, Michael Rasmussen, insists that he did not lie about his whereabouts. "I feel I've won the Tour de France... but victory has been stolen from me." He also said that he will not retire, but continue his career.
Stage 18 result
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sandy Casar | Française des Jeux | 5h 13'31" |
| 2 | Axel Merckx | T-Mobile Team | +01" |
| 3 | Laurent Lefevre | AG2R Prévoyance | s.t." |
| 4 | Michael Boogerd | Rabobank | s.t." |
| 5 | Tom Boonen | Quick Step-Innergetic | +8'34" |
| 6 | Robert Hunter | Barloworld | s.t." |
| 7 | Erik Zabel | Team Milram | s.t." |
| 8 | Sébastien Chavanel | Française des Jeux | s.t." |
| 9 | Bernhard Eisel | T-Mobile Team | s.t." |
| 10 | Thor Hushovd | Crédit Agricole | s.t." |
General classification after stage 18
| Rank | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alberto Contador | Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team | 86h 04' 16" |
| 2 | Cadel Evans | Predictor-Lotto | +1' 50" |
| 3 | Levi Leipheimer | Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team | +2' 49" |
| 4 | Carlos Sastre | Team CSC | +6' 02" |
| 5 | Haimar Zubeldia | Euskaltel-Euskadi | +6' 29" |
| 6 | Alejandro Valverde | Caisse d'Epargne | +10' 18" |
| 7 | Kim Kirchen | T-Mobile Team | +11' 36" |
| 8 | Yaroslav Popovych | Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team | +12' 47" |
| 9 | Mauricio Soler | Barloworld | +13' 31" |
| 10 | Mikel Astarloza | Euskaltel-Euskadi | +13' 42" |
Sources
- "Casar sprints to stage 18 victory". BBC Sport, July 27, 2007
- "Defiant Rasmussen vows to ride on". BBC Sport, July 27, 2007
- Andrew McKenzie "Stage eighteen - as it happened". BBC Sport, July 27, 2007
- "stage 18 - Cahors - Angoulême 211 km". Tour de France, July 26, 2007
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