Tour de France 2009: Mark Cavendish makes history with ninth stage win
Cavendish, who rides for Columbia, held off green jersey rival Thor Hushovd of Norway with a wicked turn of pace in the final few hundred metres of the sprint after he had been led in by teammate Tony Martin.
Hushovd finished second while Germany's Gerald Ciolek took third on the 169km stage which began in Bourgoin-Jallieu and which failed to produce a winning breakaway.
Ahead of Saturday's 20th stage, which includes the 21.1km climb to the summit of the Mont Ventoux, Spaniard Alberto Contador of Astana remains the race leader with a 4min 11sec lead on Luxembourg's Andy Schleck.
Third place overall, Lance Armstrong finished just behind the sprinters to close his gap to Contador by four seconds, although the American is still over five minutes off the pace at 5:21.
Cavendish won four stages last year and with his five from this edition it means he eclipses the previous British record of eight, held by England's Barry Hoban, who raced in the 1960s and 70s.
Hushovd finished second while Germany's Gerald Ciolek took third on the 169km stage which began in Bourgoin-Jallieu and which failed to produce a winning breakaway.
Ahead of Saturday's 20th stage, which includes the 21.1km climb to the summit of the Mont Ventoux, Spaniard Alberto Contador of Astana remains the race leader with a 4min 11sec lead on Luxembourg's Andy Schleck.
Third place overall, Lance Armstrong finished just behind the sprinters to close his gap to Contador by four seconds, although the American is still over five minutes off the pace at 5:21.
Cavendish won four stages last year and with his five from this edition it means he eclipses the previous British record of eight, held by England's Barry Hoban, who raced in the 1960s and 70s.
No comments:
Post a Comment