2010 Tour de France, Prologue to Stage 10
Encyclopedia
The 2010 Tour de France
begins on 3 July in Rotterdam
in the Netherlands
with a prologue time trial
, and stage 10 occurs on 14 July, with a medium mountain stage in Gap
.
(Netherlands
), 8.9 km (5.5 mi) (individual time trial
)
This time trial was short and nearly totally flat, with two very small rises in elevation (the first for the crossing of the Erasmus Bridge
) occurring in the first half of the course. Tony Martin
of led for most of the stage, being the eleventh person to complete the prologue. It was not until world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara
, the second-to-last rider of the day, took the course that Martin's time was bettered. Rain showers plagued the middle portion of the stage, but for the riders who started at the end the rain had stopped and the course was primarily dry. This was Cancellara's fourth win in a time trial to start the Tour de France in his career. Martin's efforts did not go unrewarded; he was awarded the white jersey
for best young rider.
Prologue result and General Classification after Prologue
), 223.5 km (138.9 mi)
This stage is flat, winding through the islands of Zeeland
before heading south into Belgium before the finish in the nation's capital. It was thought that the winds from the North Sea
would cause some mayhem for this very flat stage, but this did not happen. Just 100 m (328.1 ft) after the peloton passed the stage's true beginning three riders broke away from the pack. Those riders were Lars Boom
of , Maarten Wijnants
of , and 's Alan Pérez
. The trio stayed in front of the peloton for over 170 km (105.6 mi). With about 30 km (18.6 mi) to go, Wijnants sprinted away from the other two breakaway members, who were quickly taken in by the charging peloton. Moldova road race champion Alexandre Pliuschin
, representing , escaped from the peloton and joined Wijnants with about 25 km (15.5 mi) left in the stage. The two gained a maximum advantage of a minute over the peloton, and were caught with 8 km (5 mi) to go. As the peloton turned around a right hand bend, with under 3 km (1.9 mi) remaining, there was a small crash that took out two top sprinters, Mark Cavendish
and Óscar Freire
. Further crashes occurred in the stage's final kilometer, and riders high in the overall standings such as Lance Armstrong
and Fabian Cancellara
were caught up in them, along with many others. The few riders who were in front of the crash sprinted to the line, with 's Alessandro Petacchi
claiming his first Tour de France stage win since 2003
. Wijnants was named the most combative rider for Stage 1. All 158 riders who were together when the peloton passed through 3 km (1.9 mi) to go were given the same time regardless of when they actually finished.
(Belgium), 201 km (124.9 mi)
There are six categorized climbs in this stage, three each in the third and fourth categories. The finish comes off the descent of the Rosier Pass, visited 12 km (7.5 mi) before the conclusion of the stage. Just 10 km (6.2 mi) after passing through kilometer zero, an eight man breakaway formed. The riders that made up the breakaway were Sylvain Chavanel
and Jerome Pineau
of , Matthew Lloyd
and Jurgen Roelandts
both from , 's Marcus Burghardt
, Sébastien Turgot
of , Rein Taaramae
, and 's Francesco Gavazzi
. As the breakaway passed through the classification four mountains Jerome Pineau picked up enough climbing points to earn the polka dot jersey
at the end of the stage, and the first polka jersey of the Tour. By the time the breakaway reached the Stockeu Sylvain Chavanel was by himself, having dropped Jurgen Roelandts who later got reabsorbed into the peloton. As the peloton caught Burghardt, 's Maxime Monfort
jumped off the front of the peloton. On the descent of the Stockeu several crashes occurred. Francesco Gavazzi, who was reabsorbed by the peloton, slipped and fell to the ground causing a crash that took down GC contender Andy Schleck
, the points competition leader Alessandro Petacchi
, and most of the peloton. The riders that came out of the wreckage unscathed went on with the stage, but began to wait for the other riders that were involved in the crash. Most of the peloton regrouped, but they didn't try to chase down Sylvain Chavanel. While approaching the finish line the peloton caught Monfort, the only remaining escapee other than Chavanel. Fabian Cancellara
called for the peloton to not go for the sprint finish, out of fairness to those who had crashed and concern for the safety of the riders who might contest the sprint. As a result, no sprint points were awarded at the finish except to Chavanel, the stage winner, who was not involved in the slowdown.
This was his second career Tour de France stage victory, and along with the stage win he became the overall leader and the leader of the of the points classification.
(Belgium) to Arenberg Porte du Hainaut, 213 km (132.4 mi)
This is a difficult stage, incorporating 13 km (8.1 mi) of cobblestone
s in seven cobbled sectors over the last 77.5 km (48.2 mi). The cobbles culminate with the Arenberg Trench, which is known for being one of the most difficult sectors used in Paris–Roubaix. The race entered France for the first time midway through the cobbled sections, where Damiano Cunego
, David Zabriske, and a few other riders were caught in a small pileup. 13 km (8.1 mi) into the stage, seven men jumped off the front of the peloton to form a breakaway. Steve Cummings
of , Ryder Hesjedal
of , Pavel Brutt
of , Pierre Rolland of , 's Roger Kluge
, Stéphane Auge
of and 's Imanol Erviti
. The peloton and the breakaway passed over the first few sets of cobbles with no problem. Ryder Hesjedal soon jumped off the front of the breakaway, leaving the remaining to get picked up by the peloton. Then as Fabian Cancellara
took the reins of the peloton and began to whip up the pace; a crash occurred. The crash took out most of the peloton, except for the few who were in front of Fränk Schleck
. Fränk Schleck and a few other riders went to the ground, taking up the whole road. Later, Fränk Schleck would abandon the Tour with a broken collarbone.
As Cancellara, Cadel Evans
, Andy Schleck
, and Thor Hushovd
sped away, the rest of the field was trying to pick their way around the pileup. This created some distance between the GC hopefuls, such as Alberto Contador
and Lance Armstrong
. Initially Contador was knocked off of his bike. As the whole field made its way past the wreckage there were now two pelotons. Armstrong was initially in the first bunch of riders, but dropped off the back after needing a front wheel change. Contador fought back to the first main field, which was further up the road than the second peloton. Armstrong charged back, only to join the second peloton, and ultimately lost two minutes of time to the winners, and one minute to Contador. Ryder Hesjedal was caught by the chase group, led by Cancellara, with 6.7 km (4.2 mi) to go in the stage. The group made its way to the line where Thor Hushovd
won the stage, also taking the lead in the points classification. Cancellara took the overall lead back from Sylvain Chavanel
. Over a minute later Alexander Vinokourov
led the second group over the line, with Contador coming in a few seconds later due to a flat tyre. Two minutes after Hushovd crossed the line, the group containing Armstrong crossed the line.
to Reims
, 153.5 km (95.4 mi)
This stage is short and mostly flat, undulating gently for its duration and incorporating one fourth-category climb. The stage got off to a normal start, with a five man group jumping off the front of the peloton to form a breakaway. Those five riders were Dimitri Champion
of , Iban Mayoz
of , Nicolas Vogondy
of , Francis De Greef
of and 's Iñaki Isasi
. The peloton would not let the breakaway gain more than three minutes advantage on them, but they stayed out in front until the final kilometres. The breakaway dropped De Greef with just under 6 km (3.7 mi) remaining in the stage. As the sprinters teams were gearing up for the sprint finish, they absorbed the remaining breakaway members. As the sprinters came to the line Alessandro Petacchi
jumped off of Thor Hushovd
's back wheel and sprinted to the line for the stage win.
to Montargis
, 187.5 km (116.5 mi)
This is another flat stage, with two fourth-category climbs occurring early on. Stage 5 got off to a normal start, 6 km into the stage the riders broke away from the peloton. Jurgen Van De Walle
of , José Ivan Gutierrez Palacios of , and 's Julien El Fares
made up the three man breakaway. The breakaway gained a maximum advantage of eight minutes before being pulled back in by the peloton. As the final kilometers were approaching, Van De Walle and El Fares were caught by the peloton. Gutierrez remained out in front for only a little while longer, until being caught. Then the sprinters teams fought for position. As the teams came down to the final stretch; Mark Renshaw
lead out Mark Cavendish
for the stage win. This was Cavendish's eleventh Tour de France stage win of his career.
to Gueugnon
, 227.5 km (141.4 mi)
This stage is also classified flat, though it contains a bit more climbing than the previous stages. There are four fourth-category climbs on the course, and other less steep uncategorized rises. Just 3 km after passing through kilometer zero a three man breakaway formed. Those three riders were Mathieu Perget
of , Sebastian Lang
of and 's Rubén Pérez
. The breakaway would gain a maximum advantage of eight minutes on the day. As the stage went on the gap slowly went down and the sprinters teams started preparing for a sprint finish. With 20 km to go in the stage Dimitri Champion
of and Anthony Charteau of broke away from the peloton and joined the breakaway. The two riders would help stretch out the gap between the breakaway and the peloton, but not for long. The sprinters teams reeled in the breakaway just after passing under the 10 km to go banner. Then the sprinters and their lead out trains came to the front for the sprint finish. Mark Renshaw
led out Mark Cavendish
for his second consecutive stage win. Carlos Barredo
and Rui Costa
came to blows after the stage.
to Station des Rousses
, 165.5 km (102.8 mi)
The Tour's first stage in the mountains has six climbs in the Jura
, three in the second category, two in the third, and one in the fourth. The two most difficult climbs are the last two, the Col de la Croix de la Serra and the Lamoura, both second-category climbs reaching over 1000 m (3,280.8 ft) in elevation. 4 km (2.5 mi) of flat racing follow the Lamoura climb before the stage finish. After numerous failed attempts at forming a breakaway; a five man breakaway formed 2 km into the stage. The breakaway was composed of Danilo Hondo
, Samuel Dumoulin
of , Rubén Pérez
of , Christian Knees
, and King of the Mountains classification leader Jérôme Pineau
of . Hondo crossed the first three intermediate sprints of the stage first. Sylvain Chavanel
crossed the fourth and final intermediate sprint of the stage first. Pineau crossed the first five classified mountains first, increasing his lead in the King of the Mountains classification. On the ascent of the second to last climb of the day, the Col de la Croix de la Serra, everyone started attacking and other riders started to fall off the back of the peloton at an alarming rate. When the peloton reached the penultimate climb a large group of riders jumped off the front of the peloton to chase after Pineau and the slowing Hondo. When the breakaway reached the final mountain the breakaway only contained two riders, Pineau and Hondo. On the final climb Pineau had climbed away from Hondo; who was beginning to crack. Sylvain Chavanel was a member of the chase group that broke away from the peloton on the Col de la Croix de la Serra. Chavanel attacked and started gaining ground fast, he quickly caught Hondo and then his own teammate Pineau. Chavanel would go on by himself to claim the stage win, his second of this year's Tour, and the maillot jaune. Pineau won the most combative rider of Stage 7.
Stage 8 was the Tour's first taste of the Alps. Starting at the previous day's concluding town of Station des Rousses, the stage incorporated two Category 1 climbs: the Col de la Ramaz which crested with 35 km (21.7 mi) left to race and the summit finish at Morzine-Avoriaz. As the stage wore on, groups began form off the back of the peloton. set a blistering pace on the ascent of the Les Gets, this caused a group of elite riders to form a trailing group. Soon Lance Armstrong
, after crashing twice in the stage, dropped off the back of the peloton. Once word reached they took control of the lead elite group, whipping up the pace. This group contained Alberto Contador
, Andy Schleck
, Cadel Evans
, and about 30 others. Once the group reached the flamme rouge, attacks began, aiming at the stage win. Andy Schleck attacked, with Samuel Sánchez
trailing him. Schleck out-sprinted Sánchez at the finish for his first Tour stage win. Cadel Evans took the yellow jersey gaining from Sylvain Chavanel
.
, 204.5 km (127.1 mi)
After the first rest day, at Morzine-Avoriaz, the next Alpine stage contains one of this Tour's hardest climbs, the hors catégorie Col de la Madeleine
. The Col de la Colombière
and the Col des Saisies
, both first-category, are visited earlier in the stage, and the finish line comes after the descent from the Madeleine and a short flat section.
to Gap
, 179 km (111.2 mi)
The Bastille Day
stage gives a last taste of the Alps for the 2010 Tour. There are three categorized climbs on course, starting with first-category Côte de Laffrey, and finishing with the second-category Col du Noyer
; the tallest of them all. The finish into Gap is on a descent, from the Noyer and then from an uncategorized hill. Numerous breakaways tried to form, but none were successful at the beginning of the stage. 36 km into the stage a breakaway finally got clear of the peloton. The break contained Mario Aerts
of , Dries Devenyns
of , Vasili Kiryienka of , and 's Sérgio Paulinho
. The breakaway was later joined by two Frenchmen, Maxime Bouet
of and Pierre Rolland of . No one in the breakaway was seen as a threat to Andy Schleck
, the new wearer of the maillot jaune. The closest rider to him in the break was thirty minutes behind at the start of the stage. The peloton did not really make an effort to catch the breakaway, letting the breakaway's advantage rise to the twelve minute mark for most of the stage. As the breakaway passed under the 10 km to go banner, the breakaway members began to attack. The first attack was by Devenyns, but he was soon passed. Paulinho sprinted in front of Devenyns, and Kiryienka followed closely behind. The two would gain a minutes advantage over the other riders that were in the chase group. As the finish approached Paulinho sprinted from behind Kiryienka to grab the stage win. Jerome Pineau
reclaimed the lead in the King of the Mountains Classification by one point.
2010 Tour de France
The 2010 Tour de France was the 97th edition of the Tour de France cycle race, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started on with an 8.9 km prologue time trial in Rotterdam, the first start in the Netherlands since 1996...
begins on 3 July in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
with a prologue time trial
Individual time trial
An individual time trial is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock . There are also track-based time trials where riders compete in velodromes, and team time trials...
, and stage 10 occurs on 14 July, with a medium mountain stage in Gap
Gap, Hautes-Alpes
Gap is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Hautes-Alpes department.-Geography:An Alpine crossroads at the intersection of D994 and Route nationale 85 the Route Napoléon, Gap lies above sea level along the right bank of the Luye River...
.
| Legend | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Denotes the leader of the general classification |  |
Denotes the leader of the points classification Points classification in the Tour de France The points classification in the Tour de France is a secondary competition in the Tour de France, that started in 1953. Points are given for high finishes in a stage and for winning intermediate sprints, and these are recorded in a points classification. It is considered a sprinters' competition... |
 |
Denotes the leader of the mountains classification |  |
Denotes the leader of the young rider classification Young rider classification in the Tour de France -History:From 1968 to 1975, there was a white jersey awarded in the Tour de France to the lead rider in the combination classification . In 1975, this classification was removed, and replaced by the Best Young Rider Classification... |
 |
Denotes a rider representing the leaders of the team classification Team classification The team classification is a prize given in the Tour de France to the best team in the race. It has been awarded since 1930, and the calculation has changed throughout the years.-Calculation:... |
 |
Denotes the rider designated as the day's most combative Combativity award The combativity award, , is a prize given in the Tour de France. It favours constant attackers and since 1981 the winner of the award has not won the whole Tour.- History :... |
| s.t. indicates that the rider crossed the finish line in the same group as the one receiving the time above him, and was therefore credited with the same finishing time. | |||
Prologue
3 July 2010 - RotterdamRotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
(Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
), 8.9 km (5.5 mi) (individual time trial
Individual time trial
An individual time trial is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock . There are also track-based time trials where riders compete in velodromes, and team time trials...
)
This time trial was short and nearly totally flat, with two very small rises in elevation (the first for the crossing of the Erasmus Bridge
Erasmusbrug
The Erasmusbrug is a cable stayed bridge across the Nieuwe Maas river, linking the northern and southern halves of the city of Rotterdam, The Netherlands....
) occurring in the first half of the course. Tony Martin
Tony Martin (cyclist)
Tony Martin is a German professional road bicycle racer riding for the UCI ProTeam . Martin is known as a time trial specialist: in 2011, he won a time trial stage in the Tour de France and in the Vuelta a España, and became world champion...
of led for most of the stage, being the eleventh person to complete the prologue. It was not until world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . A time trial specialist, he is a four-time World Time Trial Champion and is the current Olympic gold medalist...
, the second-to-last rider of the day, took the course that Martin's time was bettered. Rain showers plagued the middle portion of the stage, but for the riders who started at the end the rain had stopped and the course was primarily dry. This was Cancellara's fourth win in a time trial to start the Tour de France in his career. Martin's efforts did not go unrewarded; he was awarded the white jersey
Young rider classification in the Tour de France
-History:From 1968 to 1975, there was a white jersey awarded in the Tour de France to the lead rider in the combination classification . In 1975, this classification was removed, and replaced by the Best Young Rider Classification...
for best young rider.
Prologue result and General Classification after Prologue
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
10' 00" | |
| 2 | |
+ 10" | |
| 3 | + 20" | ||
| 4 | |
+ 22" | |
| 5 | + 23" | ||
| 6 | + 27" | ||
| 7 | + 28" | ||
| 8 | |
+ 28" | |
| 9 | + 32" | ||
| 10 | + 35" |
Stage 1
4 July 2010 - Rotterdam (Netherlands) to Brussels (BelgiumBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
), 223.5 km (138.9 mi)
This stage is flat, winding through the islands of Zeeland
Zeeland
Zeeland , also called Zealand in English, is the westernmost province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the south-west of the country, consists of a number of islands and a strip bordering Belgium. Its capital is Middelburg. With a population of about 380,000, its area is about...
before heading south into Belgium before the finish in the nation's capital. It was thought that the winds from the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
would cause some mayhem for this very flat stage, but this did not happen. Just 100 m (328.1 ft) after the peloton passed the stage's true beginning three riders broke away from the pack. Those riders were Lars Boom
Lars Boom
Lars Anthonius Johannes Boom is a professional cyclo-cross and road racing cyclist who was born in Vlijmen in the Netherlands. Boom rides for UCI ProTeam Rabobank cycling team, having previous ridden for the junior and continental teams. Boom won the cyclo-cross world championships in 2008...
of , Maarten Wijnants
Maarten Wijnants
Maarten Wynants is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .- Palmares :200420062010-Tour de France 2010:...
of , and 's Alan Pérez
Alan Pérez
Alan Pérez Lezaun is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer. He currently rides for the UCI ProTeam Euskaltel-Euskadi.- External links :*...
. The trio stayed in front of the peloton for over 170 km (105.6 mi). With about 30 km (18.6 mi) to go, Wijnants sprinted away from the other two breakaway members, who were quickly taken in by the charging peloton. Moldova road race champion Alexandre Pliuschin
Alexandre Pliuschin
Alexandre Pliuschin is a Moldovan road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He won the National Road Race Champion .Pliuschin also represented Moldova in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, having participated in the Men's Road Race and the Men's Individual Pursuit.-Palmares:2004 - U192005 - U19...
, representing , escaped from the peloton and joined Wijnants with about 25 km (15.5 mi) left in the stage. The two gained a maximum advantage of a minute over the peloton, and were caught with 8 km (5 mi) to go. As the peloton turned around a right hand bend, with under 3 km (1.9 mi) remaining, there was a small crash that took out two top sprinters, Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish MBE is a Manx professional road racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTeam until the end of this season when the team is dissolved. He will join Team Sky at the start of the 2012 season...
and Óscar Freire
Óscar Freire
Óscar Freire Gómez is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding for the UCI ProTeam Rabobank. He is one of the top sprinters in road bicycle racing, having won the world championship a three times, equalling Alfredo Binda, Rik Van Steenbergen and Eddy Merckx...
. Further crashes occurred in the stage's final kilometer, and riders high in the overall standings such as Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
and Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . A time trial specialist, he is a four-time World Time Trial Champion and is the current Olympic gold medalist...
were caught up in them, along with many others. The few riders who were in front of the crash sprinted to the line, with 's Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling...
claiming his first Tour de France stage win since 2003
2003 Tour de France
The 2003 Tour de France started and ended in Paris. Lasting from July 5 to July 27 the race covered 3,427.5 km , proceeding clockwise in twenty stages around France, including six major mountain stages...
. Wijnants was named the most combative rider for Stage 1. All 158 riders who were together when the peloton passed through 3 km (1.9 mi) to go were given the same time regardless of when they actually finished.
Stage 1 Result
|
General Classification after Stage 1
|
Stage 2
5 July 2010 - Brussels (Belgium) to SpaSpa, Belgium
Spa is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liège. It is situated in a valley in the Ardennes mountain chain, some southeast of Liège, and southwest of Aachen. As of 1 January 2006, Spa had a total population of 10,543...
(Belgium), 201 km (124.9 mi)
There are six categorized climbs in this stage, three each in the third and fourth categories. The finish comes off the descent of the Rosier Pass, visited 12 km (7.5 mi) before the conclusion of the stage. Just 10 km (6.2 mi) after passing through kilometer zero, an eight man breakaway formed. The riders that made up the breakaway were Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel Albira is a French professional road bicycle racer. His brother Sébastien Chavanel is also a cyclist.Chavanel started his professional career in 2000 with Jean-René Bernaudeau's team Bonjour, which became Brioches La Boulangère in 2003...
and Jerome Pineau
Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau is a French professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, he rides on the UCI ProTour for .- Major achievements :20022003-External links:*...
of , Matthew Lloyd
Matthew Lloyd (cyclist)
Matthew Lloyd is an Australian professional road bicycle racer currently without a team, having last ridden for UCI ProTour team . Lloyd is the first Australian cyclist to win a King of the Mountains competition in a grand tour...
and Jurgen Roelandts
Jurgen Roelandts
Jürgen Roelandts is a Belgian road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam team .-Palmares:20012002Jürgen Roelandts is a Belgian road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam team .-Palmares:2001...
both from , 's Marcus Burghardt
Marcus Burghardt
Marcus Burghardt is a German professional road bicycle racer, currently riding for UCI ProTeam .Burghardt turned pro in 2005, having already raced as an amateur in the U-23 Wiesenhof team, with which he had already tasted success in the shape of the overall win at the Bundesliga Gerlingen in 2004...
, Sébastien Turgot
Sébastien Turgot
Sébastien Turgot is a French road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental team .His biggest result came when he came in third in the 2008 Paris–Tours after leading in the last 100 metres, but was beaten by Philippe Gilbert of Francaise des Jeux and Jan Kuyckx of Landbouwkrediet - Tönissteiner...
of , Rein Taaramae
Rein Taaramäe
Rein Taaramäe is an Estonian road bicycle racer for UCI Professional Continental cycling team .-Career:Taaramäe turned professional in 2008 for after riding for the team as a stagiaire in late 2007 and winning a stage at the Circuit des Ardennes early in the season. In 2008 he won two stages of...
, and 's Francesco Gavazzi
Francesco Gavazzi
Francesco Gavazzi is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Lampre-N.G.C..-Palmares:2011* 1st, Stage 18 2011 Vuelta a Espana* 1st, Stage 5, Tour of the Basque Country...
. As the breakaway passed through the classification four mountains Jerome Pineau picked up enough climbing points to earn the polka dot jersey
Polka dot jersey
The Mountains classification in the Tour de France is a secondary classification in the Tour de France, in which cyclists receive points for reaching a mountain top first...
at the end of the stage, and the first polka jersey of the Tour. By the time the breakaway reached the Stockeu Sylvain Chavanel was by himself, having dropped Jurgen Roelandts who later got reabsorbed into the peloton. As the peloton caught Burghardt, 's Maxime Monfort
Maxime Monfort
Maxime Monfort is a Belgian racing cyclist with UCI ProTeam . Monfort is a climbing specialist.-Palmares:2004...
jumped off the front of the peloton. On the descent of the Stockeu several crashes occurred. Francesco Gavazzi, who was reabsorbed by the peloton, slipped and fell to the ground causing a crash that took down GC contender Andy Schleck
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck is a Luxembourgish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He is the younger brother of Fränk Schleck, who also rides for . Their father Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France and Vuelta a España between 1965 and 1974...
, the points competition leader Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling...
, and most of the peloton. The riders that came out of the wreckage unscathed went on with the stage, but began to wait for the other riders that were involved in the crash. Most of the peloton regrouped, but they didn't try to chase down Sylvain Chavanel. While approaching the finish line the peloton caught Monfort, the only remaining escapee other than Chavanel. Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . A time trial specialist, he is a four-time World Time Trial Champion and is the current Olympic gold medalist...
called for the peloton to not go for the sprint finish, out of fairness to those who had crashed and concern for the safety of the riders who might contest the sprint. As a result, no sprint points were awarded at the finish except to Chavanel, the stage winner, who was not involved in the slowdown.
This was his second career Tour de France stage victory, and along with the stage win he became the overall leader and the leader of the of the points classification.
Stage 2 Result
|
General Classification after Stage 2
|
Stage 3
6 July 2010 – WanzeWanze
Wanze is a Walloon municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège. It consists of the former municipalities of Wanze, Antheit, Bas-Oha, Huccorgne, Moha and Vinalmont....
(Belgium) to Arenberg Porte du Hainaut, 213 km (132.4 mi)
This is a difficult stage, incorporating 13 km (8.1 mi) of cobblestone
Cobblestone
Cobblestones are stones that were frequently used in the pavement of early streets. "Cobblestone" is derived from the very old English word "cob", which had a wide range of meanings, one of which was "rounded lump" with overtones of large size...
s in seven cobbled sectors over the last 77.5 km (48.2 mi). The cobbles culminate with the Arenberg Trench, which is known for being one of the most difficult sectors used in Paris–Roubaix. The race entered France for the first time midway through the cobbled sections, where Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego
Damiano Cunego is an Italian professional road racing cyclist who rides for the Italian UCI ProTeam . His biggest wins are the 2004 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Amstel Gold Race, and the Giro di Lombardia in 2004, 2007, 2008. He finished second in the UCI Road World Championships in 2008 and in the...
, David Zabriske, and a few other riders were caught in a small pileup. 13 km (8.1 mi) into the stage, seven men jumped off the front of the peloton to form a breakaway. Steve Cummings
Steve Cummings
Stephen Philip Cummings is an English racing cyclist for UCI ProTour team .-Biography:Cummings won the team pursuit at the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Los Angeles and at the 2006 Commonwealth Games. He also took bronze in the individual pursuit...
of , Ryder Hesjedal
Ryder Hesjedal
Ryder Hesjedal is a Canadian professional racing cyclist for . He is a former mountain biker, winning a silver medal at the 2001 Under-23 world championship...
of , Pavel Brutt
Pavel Brutt
Pavel Brutt is a Russian professional track and road bicycle racer. He currently rides for UCI ProTour team Team Katusha the first Russian-owned team to compete in European cycling's elite,...
of , Pierre Rolland of , 's Roger Kluge
Roger Kluge
Roger Kluge is a German professional racing cyclist for UCI Professional Continental team .-Career highlights:2003...
, Stéphane Auge
Stéphane Augé
Stéphane Augé is a French former road racing cyclist. He is currently a sporting director for UCI Professional Continental team...
of and 's Imanol Erviti
Imanol Erviti
Imanol Erviti Ollo is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .- Palmares :20042007- External links :...
. The peloton and the breakaway passed over the first few sets of cobbles with no problem. Ryder Hesjedal soon jumped off the front of the breakaway, leaving the remaining to get picked up by the peloton. Then as Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . A time trial specialist, he is a four-time World Time Trial Champion and is the current Olympic gold medalist...
took the reins of the peloton and began to whip up the pace; a crash occurred. The crash took out most of the peloton, except for the few who were in front of Fränk Schleck
Fränk Schleck
Fränk René Schleck is a Luxembourgish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . At the start of 2005, Schleck was joined by his younger brother Andy on , and they split the 2005 national championships between them, with Fränk winning the road race and Andy winning the time trial...
. Fränk Schleck and a few other riders went to the ground, taking up the whole road. Later, Fränk Schleck would abandon the Tour with a broken collarbone.
As Cancellara, Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
, Andy Schleck
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck is a Luxembourgish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He is the younger brother of Fränk Schleck, who also rides for . Their father Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France and Vuelta a España between 1965 and 1974...
, and Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer riding . He has signed for from 2012 onwards. He is known for sprinting and time trialing and is the 2010 Norwegian and world road champion. He is the first Norwegian to lead the Tour de France, and first Scandinavian to win the road...
sped away, the rest of the field was trying to pick their way around the pileup. This created some distance between the GC hopefuls, such as Alberto Contador
Alberto Contador
Alberto Contador Velasco is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . He was the winner of the 2007 Tour de France with the team. With the Astana team he has won the 2008 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Vuelta a España, the 2009 Tour de France, the 2010 Tour de France and won 2011 Giro...
and Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
. Initially Contador was knocked off of his bike. As the whole field made its way past the wreckage there were now two pelotons. Armstrong was initially in the first bunch of riders, but dropped off the back after needing a front wheel change. Contador fought back to the first main field, which was further up the road than the second peloton. Armstrong charged back, only to join the second peloton, and ultimately lost two minutes of time to the winners, and one minute to Contador. Ryder Hesjedal was caught by the chase group, led by Cancellara, with 6.7 km (4.2 mi) to go in the stage. The group made its way to the line where Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer riding . He has signed for from 2012 onwards. He is known for sprinting and time trialing and is the 2010 Norwegian and world road champion. He is the first Norwegian to lead the Tour de France, and first Scandinavian to win the road...
won the stage, also taking the lead in the points classification. Cancellara took the overall lead back from Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel Albira is a French professional road bicycle racer. His brother Sébastien Chavanel is also a cyclist.Chavanel started his professional career in 2000 with Jean-René Bernaudeau's team Bonjour, which became Brioches La Boulangère in 2003...
. Over a minute later Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana...
led the second group over the line, with Contador coming in a few seconds later due to a flat tyre. Two minutes after Hushovd crossed the line, the group containing Armstrong crossed the line.
Stage 3 result
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General Classification after Stage 3
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Stage 4
7 July 2010 - CambraiCambrai
Cambrai is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.Cambrai is the seat of an archdiocese whose jurisdiction was immense during the Middle Ages. The territory of the Bishopric of Cambrai, roughly coinciding with the shire of Brabant, included...
to Reims
Reims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
, 153.5 km (95.4 mi)
This stage is short and mostly flat, undulating gently for its duration and incorporating one fourth-category climb. The stage got off to a normal start, with a five man group jumping off the front of the peloton to form a breakaway. Those five riders were Dimitri Champion
Dimitri Champion
Dimitri Champion is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . In 2009 he won the French National Road Race Championship.- Palmares :2009*...
of , Iban Mayoz
Iban Mayoz
Iban Mayoz Exteberria is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, currently not under contract to any team...
of , Nicolas Vogondy
Nicolas Vogondy
Nicolas Vogondy is a French road racing cyclist who rides for UCI Professional Continental team .Vogondy won the Tour de Lorraine in 1995 as a junior. He became a professional rider in 1997 when he signed for Française des Jeux. His first professional win came in that same year when he won the...
of , Francis De Greef
Francis De Greef
Francis De Greef is a Belgian road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .-Palmares:2005...
of and 's Iñaki Isasi
Iñaki Isasi
Iñaki Isasi Flores is a Spanish racing cyclist who rides for the Euskaltel-Euskadi team in the UCI ProTour. Isasi turned professional in 2001 and has yet to record a major result of note in his five years as a professional...
. The peloton would not let the breakaway gain more than three minutes advantage on them, but they stayed out in front until the final kilometres. The breakaway dropped De Greef with just under 6 km (3.7 mi) remaining in the stage. As the sprinters teams were gearing up for the sprint finish, they absorbed the remaining breakaway members. As the sprinters came to the line Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi
Alessandro Petacchi is an Italian professional road racing cyclist for .A specialist sprinter, Petacchi has won 51 grand tour stages with wins of the points jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004, the Vuelta a España in 2005 and the Tour de France in 2010.In 2007 Alessandro was banned from cycling...
jumped off of Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer riding . He has signed for from 2012 onwards. He is known for sprinting and time trialing and is the 2010 Norwegian and world road champion. He is the first Norwegian to lead the Tour de France, and first Scandinavian to win the road...
's back wheel and sprinted to the line for the stage win.
Stage 4 Result
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General Classification after Stage 4
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Stage 5
8 July 2010 - ÉpernayÉpernay
Épernay is a commune in the Marne department in northern France. Épernay is located some 130 km north-east of Paris on the main line of the Eastern railway to Strasbourg...
to Montargis
Montargis
Montargis is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France. The town is located about south of Paris and east of Orléans in the Gâtinais....
, 187.5 km (116.5 mi)
This is another flat stage, with two fourth-category climbs occurring early on. Stage 5 got off to a normal start, 6 km into the stage the riders broke away from the peloton. Jurgen Van De Walle
Jurgen Van de Walle
Jurgen Van de Walle is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam .- Palmares :20002006-External links:...
of , José Ivan Gutierrez Palacios of , and 's Julien El Fares
Julien El Fares
Julien El Fares is a French road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Cofidis.-Palmares:20062009-External links:...
made up the three man breakaway. The breakaway gained a maximum advantage of eight minutes before being pulled back in by the peloton. As the final kilometers were approaching, Van De Walle and El Fares were caught by the peloton. Gutierrez remained out in front for only a little while longer, until being caught. Then the sprinters teams fought for position. As the teams came down to the final stretch; Mark Renshaw
Mark Renshaw
Mark Renshaw is an Australian racing cyclist with UCI ProTeam , who is considered one of the best lead-out men in the world.- Early career :...
lead out Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish MBE is a Manx professional road racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTeam until the end of this season when the team is dissolved. He will join Team Sky at the start of the 2012 season...
for the stage win. This was Cavendish's eleventh Tour de France stage win of his career.
Stage 5 Result
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General Classification after Stage 5
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Stage 6
9 July 2010 - MontargisMontargis
Montargis is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France. The town is located about south of Paris and east of Orléans in the Gâtinais....
to Gueugnon
Gueugnon
Gueugnon is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France....
, 227.5 km (141.4 mi)
This stage is also classified flat, though it contains a bit more climbing than the previous stages. There are four fourth-category climbs on the course, and other less steep uncategorized rises. Just 3 km after passing through kilometer zero a three man breakaway formed. Those three riders were Mathieu Perget
Mathieu Perget
Mathieu Perget is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .- Palmarès :2005...
of , Sebastian Lang
Sebastian Lang
Sebastian Lang is a German professional road bicycle racer and time trialist for UCI ProTour team . He rode on Team Gerolsteiner from 2002 until its demise in 2008, and in 2006 became Germany's national time trial champion....
of and 's Rubén Pérez
Rubén Pérez
Rubén Pérez Moreno is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team Euskaltel-Euskadi....
. The breakaway would gain a maximum advantage of eight minutes on the day. As the stage went on the gap slowly went down and the sprinters teams started preparing for a sprint finish. With 20 km to go in the stage Dimitri Champion
Dimitri Champion
Dimitri Champion is a French professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . In 2009 he won the French National Road Race Championship.- Palmares :2009*...
of and Anthony Charteau of broke away from the peloton and joined the breakaway. The two riders would help stretch out the gap between the breakaway and the peloton, but not for long. The sprinters teams reeled in the breakaway just after passing under the 10 km to go banner. Then the sprinters and their lead out trains came to the front for the sprint finish. Mark Renshaw
Mark Renshaw
Mark Renshaw is an Australian racing cyclist with UCI ProTeam , who is considered one of the best lead-out men in the world.- Early career :...
led out Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish MBE is a Manx professional road racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTeam until the end of this season when the team is dissolved. He will join Team Sky at the start of the 2012 season...
for his second consecutive stage win. Carlos Barredo
Carlos Barredo
Carlos Barredo Llamazales is a Spanish road racing cyclist with UCI ProTeam . He was issued a suspension for the first two months of the 2011 season in response to a fight with Rui Costa after a 2010 Tour de France stage, with Barredo claiming that Costa had ridden dangerously in the final stages...
and Rui Costa
Rui Costa (cyclist)
Rui Alberto Faria da Costa is a Portuguese professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam ....
came to blows after the stage.
Stage 6 Result
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General Classification after Stage 6
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Stage 7
10 July 2010 - TournusTournus
Tournus is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France.-Geography:Tournus is located on the right bank of the Saône, 20 km. northeast of Mâcon on the Paris-Lyon railway.-Sights:...
to Station des Rousses
Les Rousses
Les Rousses is a commune in the Jura département in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France.Lac des Rousses is located on the territory of the commune.-Demographics:As of the census of 1999, the population was .The estimate for 2006 was .-Tourism:...
, 165.5 km (102.8 mi)
The Tour's first stage in the mountains has six climbs in the Jura
Jura mountains
The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...
, three in the second category, two in the third, and one in the fourth. The two most difficult climbs are the last two, the Col de la Croix de la Serra and the Lamoura, both second-category climbs reaching over 1000 m (3,280.8 ft) in elevation. 4 km (2.5 mi) of flat racing follow the Lamoura climb before the stage finish. After numerous failed attempts at forming a breakaway; a five man breakaway formed 2 km into the stage. The breakaway was composed of Danilo Hondo
Danilo Hondo
Danilo Hondo is a German professional road bicycle racer, for . He was banned from professional cycling and then later won his appeal to return to the sport....
, Samuel Dumoulin
Samuel Dumoulin
Samuel Dumoulin is a French professional road bicycle racer who rides for Cofidis.-Amateur career:Dumoulin rode as an amateur for the TCCT . He won the national youth championship in 1996, then the éspoir Paris–Tours and Paris-Auxerre in 2001. He turned professional in 2002 for Jean Delatour...
of , Rubén Pérez
Rubén Pérez
Rubén Pérez Moreno is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team Euskaltel-Euskadi....
of , Christian Knees
Christian Knees
Christian Knees is a German professional road racing cyclist who rides for . He won the German National Road Race Championship in 2010...
, and King of the Mountains classification leader Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau is a French professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, he rides on the UCI ProTour for .- Major achievements :20022003-External links:*...
of . Hondo crossed the first three intermediate sprints of the stage first. Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel Albira is a French professional road bicycle racer. His brother Sébastien Chavanel is also a cyclist.Chavanel started his professional career in 2000 with Jean-René Bernaudeau's team Bonjour, which became Brioches La Boulangère in 2003...
crossed the fourth and final intermediate sprint of the stage first. Pineau crossed the first five classified mountains first, increasing his lead in the King of the Mountains classification. On the ascent of the second to last climb of the day, the Col de la Croix de la Serra, everyone started attacking and other riders started to fall off the back of the peloton at an alarming rate. When the peloton reached the penultimate climb a large group of riders jumped off the front of the peloton to chase after Pineau and the slowing Hondo. When the breakaway reached the final mountain the breakaway only contained two riders, Pineau and Hondo. On the final climb Pineau had climbed away from Hondo; who was beginning to crack. Sylvain Chavanel was a member of the chase group that broke away from the peloton on the Col de la Croix de la Serra. Chavanel attacked and started gaining ground fast, he quickly caught Hondo and then his own teammate Pineau. Chavanel would go on by himself to claim the stage win, his second of this year's Tour, and the maillot jaune. Pineau won the most combative rider of Stage 7.
Stage 7 Result
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General Classification after Stage 7
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Stage 8
11 July 2010 - Station des Rousses to Morzine-Avoriaz, 189 km (117.4 mi)Stage 8 was the Tour's first taste of the Alps. Starting at the previous day's concluding town of Station des Rousses, the stage incorporated two Category 1 climbs: the Col de la Ramaz which crested with 35 km (21.7 mi) left to race and the summit finish at Morzine-Avoriaz. As the stage wore on, groups began form off the back of the peloton. set a blistering pace on the ascent of the Les Gets, this caused a group of elite riders to form a trailing group. Soon Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
, after crashing twice in the stage, dropped off the back of the peloton. Once word reached they took control of the lead elite group, whipping up the pace. This group contained Alberto Contador
Alberto Contador
Alberto Contador Velasco is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam . He was the winner of the 2007 Tour de France with the team. With the Astana team he has won the 2008 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Vuelta a España, the 2009 Tour de France, the 2010 Tour de France and won 2011 Giro...
, Andy Schleck
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck is a Luxembourgish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He is the younger brother of Fränk Schleck, who also rides for . Their father Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France and Vuelta a España between 1965 and 1974...
, Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
, and about 30 others. Once the group reached the flamme rouge, attacks began, aiming at the stage win. Andy Schleck attacked, with Samuel Sánchez
Samuel Sánchez
Samuel Sánchez González is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer. He was the gold medal winner in the 2008 Beijing Olympics Men's Road Race. In recent years Sánchez has proven himself in hilly classics and stage races as one of the most important riders in the peloton...
trailing him. Schleck out-sprinted Sánchez at the finish for his first Tour stage win. Cadel Evans took the yellow jersey gaining from Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel Albira is a French professional road bicycle racer. His brother Sébastien Chavanel is also a cyclist.Chavanel started his professional career in 2000 with Jean-René Bernaudeau's team Bonjour, which became Brioches La Boulangère in 2003...
.
Stage 8 Result
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General Classification after Stage 8
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Stage 9
13 July 2010 - Morzine-Avoriaz to Saint-Jean-de-MaurienneSaint-Jean-de-Maurienne
Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department....
, 204.5 km (127.1 mi)
After the first rest day, at Morzine-Avoriaz, the next Alpine stage contains one of this Tour's hardest climbs, the hors catégorie Col de la Madeleine
Col de la Madeleine
Col de la Madeleine is a high mountain pass in the Alps in the department of Savoie in France.It connects La Chambre in Maurienne with Aigueblanche and Feissons-sur-Isère in Tarentaise. The southern approach from La Chambre is 19.3 km with an average grade of 8 percent. The northern approach...
. The Col de la Colombière
Col de la Colombière
Col de la Colombière is a mountain pass in the Alps in the department of Haute-Savoie in France.It connects Cluses in the Arve valley with Le Grand-Bornand in the Borne valley...
and the Col des Saisies
Col des Saisies
Col des Saisies is a mountain pass in the Alps in the department of Savoie in France.The pass is delimited by the peak of Bisanne to the west, and by the peaks of Légette and Chard du Beurre to the east....
, both first-category, are visited earlier in the stage, and the finish line comes after the descent from the Madeleine and a short flat section.
Stage 9 Result
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General Classification after Stage 9
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Stage 10
14 July 2010 - ChambéryChambéry
Chambéry is a city in the department of Savoie, located in the Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.It is the capital of the department and has been the historical capital of the Savoy region since the 13th century, when Amadeus V of Savoy made the city his seat of power.-Geography:Chambéry...
to Gap
Gap, Hautes-Alpes
Gap is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Hautes-Alpes department.-Geography:An Alpine crossroads at the intersection of D994 and Route nationale 85 the Route Napoléon, Gap lies above sea level along the right bank of the Luye River...
, 179 km (111.2 mi)
The Bastille Day
Bastille Day
Bastille Day is the name given in English-speaking countries to the French National Day, which is celebrated on 14 July of each year. In France, it is formally called La Fête Nationale and commonly le quatorze juillet...
stage gives a last taste of the Alps for the 2010 Tour. There are three categorized climbs on course, starting with first-category Côte de Laffrey, and finishing with the second-category Col du Noyer
Col du Noyer
Col du Noyer is a high mountain pass in the Alps in the department of Hautes-Alpes in France.-Appearances in Tour de France:The pass was first included in the Tour de France in 1970 and has since featured 4 times, most recently in 2010....
; the tallest of them all. The finish into Gap is on a descent, from the Noyer and then from an uncategorized hill. Numerous breakaways tried to form, but none were successful at the beginning of the stage. 36 km into the stage a breakaway finally got clear of the peloton. The break contained Mario Aerts
Mario Aerts
Mario Aerts is a professional road bicycle racer since 1997. He has since shifted residence to Molenstede and currently rides for , and has done so since 2005 under the team's various names....
of , Dries Devenyns
Dries Devenyns
Dries Devenyns is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam Quick Step.- Palmares :201120102009*...
of , Vasili Kiryienka of , and 's Sérgio Paulinho
Sérgio Paulinho
Sérgio Miguel Moreira Paulinho is a Portuguese road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He was a domestique in the 2007, 2009 and 2010 Tour de France....
. The breakaway was later joined by two Frenchmen, Maxime Bouet
Maxime Bouet
Maxime Bouet is a French road racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTour team . He caused some controversy on the second stage of the Tour de France 2010 by stealing a bike length on the Peloton's attempt to all finish at the same time...
of and Pierre Rolland of . No one in the breakaway was seen as a threat to Andy Schleck
Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck is a Luxembourgish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He is the younger brother of Fränk Schleck, who also rides for . Their father Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France and Vuelta a España between 1965 and 1974...
, the new wearer of the maillot jaune. The closest rider to him in the break was thirty minutes behind at the start of the stage. The peloton did not really make an effort to catch the breakaway, letting the breakaway's advantage rise to the twelve minute mark for most of the stage. As the breakaway passed under the 10 km to go banner, the breakaway members began to attack. The first attack was by Devenyns, but he was soon passed. Paulinho sprinted in front of Devenyns, and Kiryienka followed closely behind. The two would gain a minutes advantage over the other riders that were in the chase group. As the finish approached Paulinho sprinted from behind Kiryienka to grab the stage win. Jerome Pineau
Jérôme Pineau
Jérôme Pineau is a French professional road bicycle racer. In 2009, he rides on the UCI ProTour for .- Major achievements :20022003-External links:*...
reclaimed the lead in the King of the Mountains Classification by one point.
Stage 10 Result
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General Classification after Stage 10
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