France — Jasper Philipsen edged a thrilling sprint Tuesday to secure his first stage win of this year's Tour de France after finishing as a runner-up twice last week This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Chattanooga Times Free Press Material from the Associated Press is Copyright © 2025 audio and/or video material shall not be published rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium Neither these AP materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for personal and noncommercial use The AP will not be held liable for any delays errors or omissions therefrom or in the transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing Philipsen, winner of four stages in 2023, has struggled in this year’s Tour, but was given a perfect lead-out by teammate, Mathieu van der Poel, the world road race champion, to banish memories of a torrid first week. “It’s never easy to win,” Philipsen said of his first success in this year’s race. “Last week we had a shit week, and today maybe we made it look easy, but we know how difficult it is.” Read moreOnce nicknamed “Jasper disaster” for his accident-prone racing style Philipsen has struggled since the Tour rolled away from Florence But he and Van der Poel finally rekindled the partnership that had proven so effective a year ago he was 10 out of 10,” Philipsen said of his teammate This was what I imagined and what I hoped for to see the world champion leading me out in the last 200 metres Mark Cavendish’s Astana Qazaqstan team hugged the right-hand side of the road on the approach to the finish but as the front group entered the last 300m the 39-year-old had lost his teammates and finished out of the top 10 With Girmay having won two stages and dominating the green points jersey competition after hoovering up more points at intermediate sprints the pressure on Philipsen to be more competitive has been intense With Wednesday’s mountain stage in the Massif Central looming on the horizon most of the peloton were happy to take it easy on a soporific stage characterised by lingering helicopter images of chateaux and hay bale art Meanwhile, as the dust settled following last Sunday’s gravel stage the Tour’s big four – current race leader Tadej Pogacar Tour debutant Remco Evenepoel and multiple Grand Tour winner Primoz Roglic – have ramped up a war of words that had been simmering for much of the first week Claudette and Jacky Lemeije stand in the doorway of their house in the village of Ligny-le-Ribault as Tadej Pogacar (right) and the peloton pass through Photograph: Daniel Cole/APWith his habitual franc-parler Evenepoel criticised Vingegaard’s defensive tactics on stage nine “Sometimes you also need the balls to race,” the Belgian said “Maybe Jonas didn’t have them.” Vingegaard responded in kind the Dane is now also growing a faint moustache “I don’t have so much capabilities of growing a moustache the fresh-faced Pogacar shrugged then said: “This year I’m shaving more than last year the next test of the defending champion’s mettle will come in Wednesday’s stage to Le ­Lioran over some of the nastier climbs in the Corrèze and Cantal where the rivalry between the big four is likely to intensify as leader of the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team has been weakened by the loss of key climbing lieutenant who quit the Tour with a broken ankle after crashing on Sunday’s stage around Troyes who sounded a little bemused by the verbal volleys The former Tour champion has seemed a little on edge in recent days bemoaning the stress of the Tour’s flat stages and saying at the end of last week that “there is nothing to look forward to” after what was effectively a second rest day “They made it a bit too long,” Pogacar said of the 211km 11th stage “but the final is super-nice and really explosive.” if the Slovenian is ready to race with the same aggression that characterised his win in May’s Giro d’Italia After a gravel-filled Stage 9 at the Tour de France 2024 the riders get the chance to enjoy a well-earned rest day Racing will resume Tuesday with a flat Stage 10 and while it doesn't include any challenging gravel or difficult climbs Two-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar still leads the 111th edition of the race and will bring a 33-second advantage over event first-timer Remco Evenepoel into Stage 10.  Two-time defending champion Jonas Vingegaard is third and followed by Primoz Roglic and Juan Ayuso The  top of the General Classification saw no change Sunday, with France's Anthony Turgis coming out on top of the unprecedented and dusty ninth stage which included more than 30 kilometers of gravel across 14 sections FloBikes coverage of Stage 10 will begin Tuesday at 5:55 a.m Eastern and is expected to conclude around 12:05 p.m Here’s what to know about Stage 10 of the Tour de France: In Canada, the Tour de France is streaming live on FloBikes and the FloSports app. the NBC family of networks and the streaming service Peacock are broadcasting the race.  FloBikes and the FloSports app are home to race highlights stage breakdowns and more breaking news.  Stage 10 of the Tour de France 2024 will take the riders on a relatively flat ride through the Sologne forest just as it did on a similar route a decade ago This year's 187.3-kilometer journey will begin in Orleans and finish in Saint-Amand-Montrond and the terrain will not exceed 1,000 meters of elevation at any point Orleans has hosted the Tour de France 12 times though the last time a stage started there was 2001 (Stage 19 of 20) It ended in Evry with a sprint victory earned by Erik Zabel With the 2024 journey to Saint-Amand-Montrond also flat Biniam Girmay and Mark Cavendish picked up wins and made history Girmay became the first Black rider to win a stage of the TDF Cavendish won Stage 5 to become the winningest rider in TDF history taking his record 36th stage victory.  Saint-Amand-Montrond also is a familiar location for the TDF and during a wind-affected run from Tours to Saint-Amand-Montrond in 2013 (Stage 13) it was Cavendish who crossed the finish line first.  Can Cavendish do it again and add to his legacy at the TDF Can the green jersey-wearing Girmay be stopped in 2024 Will the Saint-Amand-Montrond-born Julian Alaphilippe make an appearance bonus seconds will be awarded to the first three riders across the line - 10 Stage 10 of the Tour de France is 187.3 kilometers Here is what the elevation looks like for Stage 10:  Pello Bilbao won Stage 10 of the Tour de France in 2023 He became the first Spaniard in five years to win a stage at the TDF Bilbao dedicated the win to his Bahrain Victorius teammate Gino Maeder who died the month prior after a crash during the Tour de Suisse Here is the map for this year's Tour de France: A live broadcast of the 2024 Tour de France will be available on Peacock for those watching from the United States.  Peacock is the exclusive home of the event in the United States through 2029 with start-to-finish coverage of every stage FloBikes will provide a live broadcast for Canadian audiences Viewers in Canada will be able to watch all 21 stages of the Tour de France 2024 live on FloBikes and the FloSports app FloBikes also will provide updates highlights and behind-the-scenes coverage throughout the entire event for all Flo subscribers.  The Tour de France will be on the NBC network and will stream daily in the United States on Peacock The entire race will be broadcast on NBC's channels and USA Network.  There will be 22 teams and up to 176 competitors in this year’s Tour de France: the cyclists start together to complete the stage of a race Every stage varies in distance and physical demand.  Here is the complete schedule for the 2024 Tour de France FloBikes is the streaming home to some of the best cycling from across the globe. Check out the broadcast schedule to watch more of your favorites in action. Video footage from each event will be archived and stored in a video library for FloBikes subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscriptions Get the most important Cycling stories delivered straight to your inbox A chance for Cavendish to repeat his 2013 win in Saint-Amand-Montrond but GC riders will be on alert for peloton scattering winds Week two of the 2024 Tour de France begins with a four-day ride south to the Pyrénées from Orléans to Saint-Amand-Montrond looks like a straightforward run for the sprinters but history has shown there is a risk it could be anything but an easy return from the rest day for the overall contenders where he sprinted to victory ahead of a green jersey-clad Peter Sagan to claim his 25th win but the GC contenders may be hoping for a less chaotic day than unfolded a little over a decade ago.  Cavendish claimed that win from a leading group of eight as the field was stretched out and scattered behind after the race was unexpectedly affected by wind and echelons That allowed Alberto Contador and Bauke Mollema to pull back more than a minute on Chris Froome while a puncture hit Alejandro Valverde plunged down the overall standings from second to 16th after losing almost ten minutes This time around, it would take far less to dramatically alter the GC landscape with race leader Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) just 33 seconds ahead of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quickstep) and defending champion Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) 1:15 back with Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) another 19 seconds behind in fourth.  In 2024 the race heads out of Orléans and through the Sologne forest on flat and protected roads for the first 62 kilometres to Issoudun but that changes once in the Cher department, where the riders will find themselves working their way towards Saint-Amand-Montrond on roads exposed to the crosswinds Tour de France 2024 Stage 10 profile(Image credit: ASO)Tour de France 2024 Stage 10 route(Image credit: ASO)With three direction switches in the last 30 kilometres there will be a real chance of echelons forming just like they did during the stage in the area just over a decade ago but no doubt this time the overall contenders will be on high alert who will not want to miss out on this chance to either start or add to their Tour tally will be chasing his first win of this edition after having come close with second on stage 8's last sprint battle.  who took his record-breaking 35th victory on stage 5 but certainly hasn't given up the hunt – perhaps he could make it a 36th in Saint-Amand-Montrond she coordinates coverage for North American events and global news As former elite-level road racer who dabbled in cyclo-cross and track Laura has a passion for all three disciplines When not working she likes to go camping and explore lesser traveled roads UCI governance and performing data analysis The Belgian enjoyed the perfect lead out from Mathieu van der Poel finishing well clear of second placed Biniam Girmay Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) ended his Tour de France nightmare with victory on stage 10 of the race between Orléans and Saint-Amand-Montrond.  The Belgian, who had been relegated in a sprint earlier in week one finally got it right to take his first stage of this year’s race after beating Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) and Pascal Ackermann (Israel-Premier Tech) to the line.  Philipsen benefited from a near-perfect lead-out from his team with Mathieu van der Poel dropping him off in the final 150 metres The Belgian then moved to the right-hand side of the road as he came around his team-mate and opened up his sprint eventually winning with a huge margin over his rival for the green jersey Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) finished safely in the peloton to retain his yellow jersey and overall lead in the race ahead of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) in second Philipsen had been under huge pressure as the first week of the race unfolded after he was criticised by rivals and commentators alike for his sprint antics He was warned ahead of stage 6 by the UCI and then relegated at the end of the stage for deviating from his line and closing Wout van Aert towards the barriers on stage 10 he roared back to winning ways taking his first Tour stage win since dominating the fast finishes and winning the Green jersey in 2023.  “I think you can say it like that,” Philipsen said when asked if his main feeling was one of relief at the finish.  “Last week wasn’t a great week for us I’m really happy and it’s a big relief that we can finally show our strength together with our lead-out train and it was a perfect job from the team,” he added and while every rider made it safely through several tight corners inside the last 3km stretched lead-out trains to the limit Alpecin-Deceuninck were the only squad with numbers left ahead of the sprint and they took charge with just over 1,000m to go “We knew that with the corners it was quite tricky but everyone has been growing during this Tour,” Philipsen said “Maybe we didn’t start in our very best shape but we all feel healthy and we all feel good I’m really happy that we can start the second week with a win and there are still some nice stages to come It’s already stage 10 and we’ve had five sprints without a win So finally today we’ve done what we’ve come for The team kept on believing and we have our deserved win.” There were no early breaks or action to speak of but with 141km to go two riders jumped out from the pack as Harm Vanhoucke (Lotto Dstny) and Kobe Goossens (Intermarché-Wanty) moved clear. Valentin Madouas and Kevin Geniets (both Groupama FDJ) and Max Van Gils and (Lotto Dstny) followed them soon after.  Goossens and Vanhoucke would go through the intermediate sprint that was just up the road before Philipsen began his fightback in the green jersey classification by taking third from the peloton.  The bunch was soon back together though and it wasn’t until the final 65km that any level of intensity returned The threat of cross-winds had the GC riders and sprinters back on red alert but the conditions weren’t strong enough and after two changes in wind direction the pace eased once more.  A strong headwind battered the peloton inside the final 20km but the pace jumped dramatically once a final unclassified climb was breached and the race dived down the other side and towards the finish.  and Jayco-AlUla were all present and accounted for but it was Alpecin who had the numbers the organisation and the finishing skills from van der Poel and Philipsen to take the win Biniam Girmay (Etr) Intermarché-Wanty Pascal Ackermann (Ger) Israel-Premier Tech Sam Bennett (Ire) Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team John Degenkolb (Ger) Team dsm-firmenich PostNL Tadej Pogačar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates Primož Roglič (Slo) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe João Almeida (Por) UAE Team Emirates Carlos Rodríguez (Esp) Ineos Grenadiers Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1 *Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1 Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon The best of Time Out straight to your inbox We help you navigate a myriad of possibilities Sign up for our newsletter for the best of the city By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news Sign up for our email to enjoy your city without spending a thing (as well as some options when you’re feeling flush) By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. Worldwide There can’t be many of us who’d turn down the opportunity to live in a quaint little house in a quaint little town somewhere in the European countryside that chance has just arisen – and it might be a little more affordable than you think.  The French town of Saint-Amand-Montrond, down the road from Bourges in central France has announced it is selling a two-bedroom house for just €1 and it’s looking for prospective buyers.  for just €1 (that’s a measly 85p) you could acquire an entire property While the asking price of €1 is probably kicking around in your pocket somewhere what you’ll be buying is a bit of a fixer-upper The house hasn’t been lived in for 12 years and the town hall estimates the cost of renovating to be a whopping €127,800 (£109,000).  But don’t let that burst your très chic bubble – much like the homes that have gone up for sale in Sicily and Sant’Elia a Pianisi over the last couple of years you won’t have to cover the costs of all those works yourself.  François Blondieau, the town’s deputy in charge of urban planning, told Ouest France that the town would offer the new owner ‘significant subsidies’ towards the renovations.  Applications to buy the house opened on April 1 and will close on June 15 Prospective buyers can pay the place a visit between May 15 and the closing date with the successful applicant expected to sign the deeds in January 2025 and have the work completed by July 2028.  There is just one other catch – this offering is a bid to attract more permanent residents so a select committee will be stipulating and rejecting any applications from people looking for a second home The expectation is that you’ll live in the house permanently Though it’s small (with a population of just over 9,000) Saint-Amand-Montrond has a lot to offer It’s home to an eleventh-century church as well as a Cite de l’Or - Pyramide des Métiers d’Art So, if you like the sound of living in this little French town for the next ten years, you can add your application into the mix right here.  Here’s our list of the very best things to do in France.  Did you see that Greece is offering 25,000 free trips to those affected by wildfires Plus: This European city has been named the world’s most walkable.  Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out Travel newsletter for all the latest travel news Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! tiktokfacebooktwitteryoutubeAbout us Contact us If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement Uncomplicated day with some teasing of cross-winds if it happens it happens but I’m not betting any money on it this is going to be a complicated week for predictors Everything is a potential sprint but also a lot of things point to breakaways having a chance Alpecin-Deceuninck break duck as World Champion hits his lines and delivers powerful lead-out Alpecin-Deceuninck have made a habit of winning early at the Grand Tours, and in that light, their fruitless opening week to this Tour de France had the feel of a drought The harvest was saved on Tuesday in Saint-Amand-Montrond where Mathieu van der Poel piloted Jasper Philipsen to victory on stage 10 that harmonious combination proved nigh-on unbeatable at the Tour Van der Poel would power to the front and shift the piano into place then Philipsen would emerge from his wheel in the closing metres to play it This year, the Alpecin-Deceuninck duo seemed to be hitting discordant notes in the opening week. Van der Poel found himself riding down blind allies on occasion while Philipsen seemed a touch short of the sparkle that carried him to four stage wins and the green jersey “I’ve said a few times that last year almost every sprint was a success and went perfectly but that’s not always the case,” Van der Poel said when he wheeled to a halt beyond the finish line.  “Today we were all incredibly motivated There are only a few more chances for us as a team I’m glad we took our chance now.” his James Brown-esque collapses immediately after tough Classics aside but his body language told its own tale here he took a tow from Sports Director Christoph Roodhooft’s car chatting amiably as they negotiated the finish area The world always looks a bit different after a victory but Van der Poel reckoned that Alpecin-Deceuninck had already hit most of their lines in Dijon on stage 6 when Philipsen was later disqualified from second place for a deviation in the sprint That demotion – and its impact on his green jersey hopes – only heightened the pressure on the team as the race entered the second week today it was even better,” Van der Poel said of a finale where everybody knew the importance of being in pole position at the sharp right-hand turn with 700m to go there was a certain inevitability about what followed so it was a good decision to let Jonas [Rickaert] and Robbe [Ghys] take their turn a bit earlier It worked perfectly,” said Van der Poel It is mainly Jasper who puts that pressure on himself but it just doesn't always work like that.” One wonders if Van der Poel had inadvertently added to the pressure Philipsen heaped upon himself Having the world champion as a deluxe lead-out man is a privilege in victory but it must feel more like an admonishment in defeat "I didn't talk much with Jasper,” Van der Poel said when asked if he had tried to coax his teammate through that difficult opening phase “But he shouldn't doubt himself and he should just go for his sprint when he felt he could.” The sentiment was echoed by Roodhooft as he reflected on Philipsen’s troubled Tour “Panic is a bad advisor; only calmness can teach you anything,” he said “Today Jasper started his sprint on time that Van der Poel hit his own mark so resoundingly The Dutchman is the only rider on Alpecin-Deceuninck’s squad with the freedom to chase his own opportunities beyond teeing up Philipsen’s sprint but he had not made a notable impression on this Tour before his lead-out here The tough opening stages in Italy proved beyond his reach while he endured frustration on Sunday’s gravel stage to boot to be in France with another objective firmly in mind when Van der Poel used the Tour as an extended training camp for the Glasgow World Championships he is labouring through July with a view to the Olympic Games road race.  where he took won three Classics from just seven race days confirms that he can hit top speed from a standing start but his cameo in Saint-Amand-Montrond offered evidence that he is firmly on track for August 3 Van der Poel insists that he has no qualms about devoting the bulk of his Tour to lead-out duties.  “I am very happy that I was able to contribute my bit,” he said Get unlimited access to all of our coverage of the Tour de France - including breaking news and analysis reported by our journalists on the ground from every stage of the race as it happens and more. Find out more Tuesday's flat 187.3km route seems suited to a sprint finish Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar wears the leader's yellow jersey The race concludes in Nice on Sunday 21 July You can read our report on stage 10 here. We will be back at around 10:30 BST on Wednesday for six categorised climbs and potentially more GC action involving Tadej Pogacar 53Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing'It is a big relief'published at 17:22 British Summer Time 9 July 202417:22 BST 9 July 2024Jasper Philipsen was 96 points behind Biniam Girmay in the points classification this morning He has managed to cut that down to 74 this evening The Belgian has had a few near misses this Tour Here is what he thinks of being back on the podium at the end of stage: with our lead-out train and did finally what we came for "We know the corner was quite tricky but everyone is growing in this Tour But we all feel good and healthy and there’s still some nice stages to come "It was a tough week and it was already Stage 10 I think we just concentrate on the stages.” 88Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 17:07 British Summer Time 9 July 202417:07 BST 9 July 2024Image source ASOThere'll be a couple more days of potential sprint finishes coming up this week but Wednesday is definitely not one of them 281Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingGeneral classification after stage 10published at 16:57 British Summer Time 9 July 202416:57 BST 9 July 20241 Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 40hrs 02mins 48secs Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal-Quick Step) +33secs Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +1min 15secs Primoz Roglic (Slo/Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) +1mins 36secs Juan Ayuso (Spa/UAE Team Emirates) +2mins 16secs Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +2mins 17secs Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +2mins 31secs Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +3mins 35secs Derek Gee (Can/Israel-Premier Tech) +4mins 02secs Matteo Jorgenson (US/Visma-Lease a Bike) 4mins 03secs 379Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingCavendish finishes 18thpublished at 16:57 British Summer Time 9 July 202416:57 BST 9 July 2024Mark Cavendish rolled over the line 18th there He just got caught too far back coming into the final turn and could not work himself back into contention 3690Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingStage 10 resultspublished at 16:55 British Summer Time 9 July 202416:55 BST 9 July 20241 Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) 4hrs 20mins 06secs Biniam Girmay (Eri/Intermarche-Wanty) Same time Pascal Ackermann (Ger/Israel-Premier Tech) " Wout van Aert (Bel/Visma-Lease a Bike) " Sam Bennett (Ire/Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) " John Degenkolb (Ger/DSM-firmenich PostNL) " 8.Phil Bauhaus (Ger/Bahrain Victorious) " Dylan Groenewegen (Ned/Team Jayco-AlUla) " 2516Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 16:50 British Summer Time 9 July 202416:50 BST 9 July 2024That was some sprint from Jasper Philipsen although it has to be said Mathieu van der Poel's assistance completely made that possible 3619Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPhilipsen wins stage 10published at 16:47 British Summer Time 9 July 202416:47 BST 9 July 2024Jasper Philipsen takes victory on stage 10 72152Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 200m to go200m to goJasper Philipsen is flying up the right side of the road...Biniam Girmay gives chase 4857Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 500m to go500m to goMathieu van der Poel powers to the front...Jasper Philipsen is waiting to launch 3964Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 1km to go1km to goIs Mark Cavendish too far back 56144Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 2km to go2km to goMichael Morkov spins out right to look for Mark Cavendish.. 9815Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 3km to go3km to goNeilson Powless is taking it up for EF Education-EasyPost 3317Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingCavendish well positionedpublished at 4km to go4km to goMark Cavendish is well placed with three team-mates in front of him 26915Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 5km to go5km to goAlpecin-Deceuninck hit the front They are not leaving anything to chance today 2316Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 7km to go7km to goRight here we go The pace ratchets up above 50 and then 60km/h for the first time today 406Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 8km to go8km to goThe peloton is hardly hurtling along They are riding at just over 40km/h but there is a long sweeping descent coming up towards the finishing line.. 142Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 10km to go10km to goThe last slight ramp in the road coming up now Alberto Bettiol edges up towards the front 243Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 12km to go12km to goAstana Qazaqstan are keeping themselves right in the thick of things up on the right side of the road alongside a train of Lidl-Trek riders Visma-Lease a Bike are holding a line down the left 244Shareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingPostpublished at 15km to go15km to goThe incoming sprint could be frantic given nobody has had to extend themselves at all today Every team in theory should have a full squad of riders at their disposal The underground rapid transit lines have been under construction for almost two decades due to various project delays The cross pinnacle on the Tower of Jesus Christ will be ready to receive visitors in 2026 on the centennial of Gaudi’s death Now you can get your wine in Talence by paying directly in Bitcoin That’s because the state has to spend money on updating the railway infrastructure rather than subsidizing the cost of the popular pass Steffen Romstöck said that he would respect the residents’ choice and would take over the helm of the municipality which will come into force from 1 January 2025 Rethinking renewable energy sources for the urban landscape But operating them is still illegal under the country’s legislation can inform and inspire communities and entrepreneurs that still feel trepidation at the prospect of energy transition it has a unique modular design that allows it to be shortened and lengthened like a train that’s the promise made by the mayor of Paris the district has long been known as the hangout spot for the artsy crowds Hostal de Pinós is located in the geographical centre of the autonomous region the ranking considers several distinct but essential factors these quiet areas will now be available on all main routes in the country The academic institution shows a deeper understanding of the well-being of its students Following in the footsteps of several Italian communities this French town is now offering an entire house for the remarkably attractive price of 1 euro is on a mission to revitalize its territory and improve its attractiveness A 90-square metres house in the historical centre for just 1 euro it will soon become a reality for one lucky person or a family As part of its Territory Revitalization Operation the Saint-Amand-Montrond has put a 90.94 square metres house for sale and asks for just 1 euro in return The property’s value is estimated at 27,000 euros Set up by other French cities among which Roubaix this system allows households to become property owners at a symbolic cost they undertake to carry out rehabilitation work according to specifications and refrain from reselling it for a certain period modest-income households are eligible for a subsidy The offer is open to first-time buyers only who intend to reside permanently in the house the future owner should clearly demonstrate his intention to renovate it by starting the works within 6 months of closing the deal and finishing them for 2 years in total The renovated home should also be energy-efficient and the thermal renovation should preferably be performed by local businesses the town authorities expect high demand and have drafted a selection procedure for the case Prospective homeowners should apply by providing a motivation letter justification that they own no other property and have not owned any within the last two years a renovation plan and how they intend to finance it The project proposed could bring a maximum of 20 points; likewise for the quality of the rehabilitation The financial capacity of the application could bring up to 15 more points The maximum score is 55 points + 5 bonus points Said bonus is given only to employees working in the Communauté de communes Cœur de France (a federal grouping of municipalities) Those who are interested in applying can dial 02 48 63 83 15 – 02 48 63 83 05 or get acquainted with the house here The 10th European Conference on Sustainable Cities and Towns (ESCT) sets the stage for stronger cooperation between the EU national and local level to fast track Europe's transition to climate neutrality Urban dwellers across the EU are having a say in making their surroundings friendlier to people and the environment Forests in the EU can help green the European construction industry and bolster a continent-wide push for architectural improvements Apply by 10 November and do your part for the transformation of European public spaces An interview with the Mayor of a Polish city that seeks to reinvent itself An interview with the newly elected ICLEI President and Mayor of Malmö A conversation with the Mayor of Lisbon about the spirit and dimensions of innovation present in the Portuguese capital A French town is selling a two-bedroomed house for €1 and has put out a call for prospective buyers to come and view the property.  at the low price to attract new residents and encourage renovations.  have made headlines in recent years for selling off vacant homes for €1 often in a bid to attract new residents after suffering from population loss.  The buyer of the French property, located on a row of houses on a quiet street,  will have to agree to several conditions including spending considerably more than small change to complete the renovations The 77 square metre house is spread over two floors and includes a kitchen living room and toilet on the ground floor and two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs there is a courtyard and 13 metre square garage.  Any prospective buyer will have to roll up their sleeves – the house has been empty for 12 years and the estimated cost of fixing it up is €127,800 which has provided a breakdown of expected renovation costs.  The town will offer “significant subsidies” to the future owner There are several conditions for anyone considering coughing up a euro.  Buyers must agree to live in the property “permanently for a minimum period of 10 years” according to the town hall which stipulates that any applications from people hoping to make the property their second home “will be refused”.  The buyer will be expected to sign the deeds in January 2025 start work by May 2025 and finish the work no later than July 2028.  Applications to apply to buy the house opened on April 1 and will close on June 15 Some 67 people have already expressed interest Prospective buyers can visit the house between May 15 and June 15 The buyer will be chosen by a selection committee in July and will be approved in September by the town council.  The sale is the second €1 house to be offered by the town of just over 9,000 people which has seen its population decrease in recent years.  In 2022, a similar offer attracted 68 bids and was bought by a family of four.  The town of Saint-Amand-Montrond is located 26 miles south of Bourges and is known for its jewellers and goldsmiths Sights include the Church of Saint Amandus which dates back to the 11th century.  The town’s population fell from just under 11,000 people in 2009 to around 9,500 in 2020 Anyone wanting to apply to buy the house can fill out the application form here French succession laws can qffect inheritance of property from a step-parent Couple may sue French council over drainage issues in their bargain property Stricter regulations and rising costs are challenging landlords prompting a reclassification as 'touristic accommodation' The Belgian sprinter delivered after a near-perfect lead-out to deny green-jersey holder Biniam Girmay 1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 40:02:48 2. Remco Evenepoel (BEL) Soudal - Quick-Step +33 3. Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) Team Visma - Lease a Bike +1:15 4. Primoz Roglic (SLO) Red Bull - BORA - +1:36 5. Juan Ayuso (ESP) UAE Team Emirates +2:16 6. João Almeida (POR) UAE Team Emirates +2:17 7. Carlos Rodríguez (ESP) INEOS Grenadiers +2:31 8. Mikel Landa (ESP) Soudal - Quick-Step +3:35 9. Derek Gee (CAN) Israel - Premier Tech +4:02 10. Matteo Jorgenson (USA) Team Visma - Lease a Bike +4:03 1. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin - Deceuninck 4:20:06 2. Biniam Girmay (ERI) Intermarché - Wanty 3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Israel - Premier Tech 4. Wout van Aert (BEL) Team Visma - Lease a Bike 6. Sam Bennett (IRL) Decathlon - AG2R - La Mondiale Team 7. John Degenkolb (GER) Team dsm-firmenich PostNL 9. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Team Jayco - AlUla 9 Jul 202417.49 CESTEmotions from Philipsen after so many near-misses and being demoted earlier in the Tour. Last year’s green jersey held off this years. Gaviria, the former track cycling world champion, was in there, while Girmay took second and even more points to add to his total. Such a big win for Alpecin after those previous disappointments. Updated at 18.07 CEST9 Jul 202417.46 CESTJasper Philipsen wins the 10th stage!Gaviria hits the front 9 Jul 202417.44 CEST2km to go: A gap is in the back of the field, with Van der Poel among those caught. De Lie is up there. Astana riders in the pack, as they approach that final turn. 9 Jul 202417.42 CEST3km to go: Philipsen loses his place and had to fight his way back. Through they go, and over a roundabout. The pace is high. Updated at 17.43 CEST9 Jul 202417.41 CEST5km to go: It’s all about the sprinters now. GC contenders look to the safety of the final four clicks. 9 Jul 202417.40 CEST6km to go: Astana well to the fore, with Cavendish covered up. The pace is up and down, as the road widens. They turn the bend to begin a massed descent. 9 Jul 202417.37 CEST8km to go: The teams are grouped together as this final climb approaches. All the major players in reach. The GC teams are eying safety, the sprinters are looking to their lieutenants rivals along that narrow road. 9 Jul 202417.35 CEST10km to go: Some grim faces as they near that final, slight incline of a climb. But they are not flying along as they whip into the town. 9 Jul 202417.32 CEST12km to go: Michael Morkov is told by Mark Renshaw to push up the pack for that Cavendish lead-out from the Astana team. Meanwhile, there’s a group of Louis XVI-era-dressed locals, and a violinist. The Sun King not really doing his job, and neither did the wind come. 9 Jul 202417.24 CEST18km to go: Probably some nerves in the pack in guarding the GC contenders and then leading out the sprinters Will the Prix de Combativité be awarded today? @LeTour 9 Jul 202417.17 CEST22km to go: They’ve whipped through Chavannes, the last town on the route to Saint-Amand-Montrond. Back into that open country, where there’s wind but not nearly enough wind to split the pack up. 9 Jul 202417.08 CEST30km to go: There’s been tears. France’s Sandy Dujardin is feeling his wrist, having broken it on Sunday. He’s in a splint but carrying on. That’s gotta hurt. 9 Jul 202417.01 CEST35km to go: It’s been the quietest stage of Le Tour so far but the wind is whipping up across the grassy terrain. The big GC teams have control of the pack, at 48km/h, helped by a tailwind, when it’s a crosswind we need for a proper race. 9 Jul 202416.55 CEST40km to go: There’s some gravel on the road, to bring back memories from Sunday, and that has potential to cause problems. Still, all remains quiet at the front. Phil is now 80, and still going strong. Bebington’s very finest. 9 Jul 202416.45 CEST47km to go: That lack of wind has rather slowed things down and more fluids are being taken on – and excreted too and that presents problems in such a packed peloton Here’s an English version from Scott Walker. 9 Jul 202416.35 CEST55 km to go: The echelon alarm sounds as they come away from the town. Into open country, and the wind isn’t too high. There’s relief that the wind isn’t strong enough wind – yet – to split the pack. They’re sitting up, while smashing through the countryside at one hell of a lick. 9 Jul 202416.11 CEST75km to go: Biniam Girmay off the back of the field perhaps a word with the team car but he’s being paced back to the front by a teammate ready for the battle to commence in the next few 20 clicks 9 Jul 202416.06 CEST80km to go: There’s a wind up It’s 58km to go when the crosswinds kick in 🏁 88 km 🚴🏻‍♂️💨 The pace has increased in the peloton Le peloton a accéléré 🚴🏻‍♂️💨#TDF2024 pic.twitter.com/CX9PIbdqqv 9 Jul 202415.52 CEST90km to go: They’re whipping through the Loire region at pace now, across the bridges of Vierzon, a town mentioned by Jacques Brel in the song Vesoul. GCN seemed a good product, some fine documentaries I hope could get shown elsewhere. Meanwhile, out on the road as the woodland is negotiated, the fear is that the wind will be coming in. There’s a concern over humidity, and the wind will come with 58km to go. Everyone’s staying hydrated in the pack as the 100km-to-go mark is upon us. 9 Jul 202415.28 CEST105km to go: Tony Russell gets in touch: “On the subject of tv coverage I really miss Paul Sherwen and Phil Liggett with the Laurel and Hardy duo of Ned and Chris for light relief.’ Chris Boardman is actually a very droll man Paul Sherwen’s loss is still felt by those of us of the 1980s even if the Lance years – a turn-off for many including me – might have been better served by more questioning there may still be eyebrows raised against certain performances these days that are not picked up in rights-holding coverage from the public that it has never been possible to win fully unaided by something or other Two quotes by Jacques Anquetil come to mind: “You can’t ride the Tour de France on mineral water” and: “You’d have to be an imbecile or hypocrite to imagine that a professional cyclist who rides 235 days a year can hold himself together without stimulants.” Those are from the 1960s and time has moved on but perhaps those same rules apply. 9 Jul 202415.15 CEST115km to go: The peloton travels through what look like soggy roads in bright conditions. Ben Turner of Ineos has had a bike change, some kind of gearing problem for him. But not much doing, the breakaway soloist having been eaten up by the pack. 9 Jul 202415.08 CEST120km to go: Just one man in front now, and Goosens stays a minute ahead of the peloton. It will not be for long. Some TV suggestions, from an NKJ Bad: “The reader asking about ITV coverage could stick a VPN on and get RTVE player for full coverage. Also get to listen to background Spanish and broaden horizons. And free. Suzy: “Loving the coverage so far. I’m enjoying TG4’s coverage to even though I don’t actually speak Irish. But the guys are very enthusiastic ‘Chapeau Ben’ (Healy) and the ‘geansaí buí’ gets plenty of mention too. It’s all to play for still. Allez Ben agus Sam!!” Bill Preston (perhaps not that one): “Regarding viewing preferences: on the TV it’s the Discovery+ option, because I subscribed to it to watch the thrilling heroics of Paris Roubaix and then forgot to unsubscribe. Otherwise, it’s ITV on the laptop because the book with the password for Discovery+ is rarely in the same room. “Anyway: Are there more flat, windy, stages than there used to be, or am I/we more aware of the effect the weather has? Having simulated the effects on the rigours testbed that is the board game Flame Rouge, the weather does have a big effect, losing me a world championship to a nefarious Doctor after they got a stomp on.l at a key juncture. Meteo!!! “Looking forward, as surely the main contenders are, to amble through the countryside, and hoping the low key snide comments will pick up bit between the top riders. We need a bit of spice, like how some previous champions really didn’t like many of his rivals on a personal level. Have a lovely day.” My memory of Tours in the olden days was of lot of very flat stages for the likes of Mario Cippolini and Djamolidine Abdoujaparov to take home. Then such riders – particularly Cippolini – abandoning before the hills crucified the legs. 9 Jul 202414.57 CEST130 km: The peloton catches the second breakaway group and there’s very nearly a prang in pack as Girmay almost comes to grief on the barriers and maybe moved across Girmay to take the available points Girmay looked strong until he was caught out by the barriers Geniets and Madoua drop back into the pack Goosens beat Vanhoucke in that sprint at the front 9 Jul 202414.44 CEST140km to go: Breakaway shocker – two Lotto riders and an Intermarché go off the front Kobe Goossens (Intermarche-Wanty) and the Lotto pair of Van Hoeke and Maxim van Gils are those who kick it off Stat from the official website here: “By reaching the finish line today, Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X) will have equaled a record that dates back to 1984 by leading the Mountain classification for the first 10 stages of the Tour de France. Previously to him, only the Belgian Ludo Peeters managed it in 1984.” King of the Mountains at the end of the race was Robert Millar, now known as Pippa Yorke. Updated at 14.46 CEST9 Jul 202414.36 CEST145km to go: There’s an intermediate sprint to come his Intermarché team will be working for him 🚲 Stage 10 / Étape 10 🚲🚩 @VilledOrleans🏁 @SAM18200📏 187,3 km⏰ 13:05 CEST > 17:35 CEST💚 km 57,1#TDF2024 pic.twitter.com/AnI4u3A2me the major news is the retirement at the end of the season of lead-out king Michael Morkov Updated at 14.37 CEST9 Jul 202414.25 CEST150km to go: All very jokey-jokey out there. Perhaps ITV had the right idea with Terry McCann. 9 Jul 202414.10 CEST160km to go: “Am I just being thick or has the ITV coverage not actually started for the day? It seems like it only comes onto ITVx at 2? Is my only option for actual full coverage throwing money at Discovery (which I’m loathe to do!) Was hoping for some pleasant background noise and viewing whilst working from home today!” Yes, seems ITV has to get its episodes of Minder and The Sweeney out of the way before it starts on Le Tour. The Discovery option is good, and free with a couple of TV packages. 9 Jul 202414.02 CEST165km to go: It’s still slow-going The race awaits the winds predicted to come says that once these woodland conditions become more exposed Astana are up the front, and Mark Cavendish will be protected for the next 179km to go. Good to have Jonathan Harris-Bass - chef, teacher and broadcaster extraordinaire – on the Discovery/Eurosport coverage, guiding us through the Loire scenery. He’s on with Rob Hatch, the loquacious Lancastrian and the legendary Sean Kelly. Both they and the ITV team of Gary Imlach, David Millar and Ned Boulting really spoil the UK viewers. How about when Seán Kelly spoke to the great, much-missed Paul Doyle? Whatever happened to drugs in cycling? 9 Jul 202413.23 CESTWe are just a kilometre from the départ réel in Orleans, made famous by Joan of Arc, herself made famous by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, who did two songs about her. 9 Jul 202413.18 CESTThere’s beef in the peloton, with Remco Evenpoel and Tadej Pogacar suggesting Jonas Vingegaard rode defensively in Sunday’s gravel stage. Vingo, 1’ 15” back on Pogacar, has hit back: “I feel very good. I feel that I am growing. I am getting better and better. I am at a high level, much higher than I ever expected with only one and a half months of preparation. I can’t put a figure on that. Last year I took seven minutes in two days. Now we don’t know how I will react in the third week. We’ll see day by day. Of course, the closer I am, the better. But I trusted our plan last year. That worked. I trust the plan this year too.” 9 Jul 202412.45 CESTBig blow to Primoz Roglic Unfortunately, Aleks Vlasov will leave the Tour de France due to an ankle fracture. Heal up soon, Aleks 🙏🏻 #tdf2024 pic.twitter.com/yhzf8nGFAR I’m sorry but that’s shocking. Vlasov’s bike. #TDF2024 📸 Vlasov’s Insta pic.twitter.com/t4UotoOnDY 9 Jul 202412.30 CESTSome interesting insight here on Big Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos-Grenadiers team. The Welshman is ostensibly ­racing in a support role to the designated Ineos Grenadiers team leader, ­Carlos Rodríguez. The team have yet to win a Grand Tour since their former team principal, Dave Brailsford, was appointed as director of sport to Ineos in December 2021. Asked if he was comfortable with a series of further changes to the team’s management structure, Thomas paused and said: “It’s challenging.” The Cadillac doesn’t have fins, but it does have an iPad, a TV, several phones, a hand towel, multiple short-wave radio channels in multiple languages, packets of mints, spare wheels, a cool box, a bumper load of Bounty bars that the mechanics picked up on special offer and, handily for Southam’s stress levels, an in-built back massager. there was no doubt who was going to win the small bunch sprint With not even a categorised climb on the day there will be teams and riders planning and plotting a breakaway Prepare for crosswinds and echelons making it a day of anxiety for the road captains and GC contenders but when the wind blew here in 2013 the race split to bits with Alberto Contador putting Alejandro Valverde on the rack With three changes of direction on the exposed roads in the final 30km A chance for the hulking Norwegians of Uno-X to engineer a stage win for the seasoned Alexander Kristoff but the winner here on that windswept day in 2013 was none other than Cavendish Ackermann third as Van Aert one spot off podium in Saint-Amand-Montrond bunch finish Finally the win came for the best sprinter from last year’s Tour with him hitting the wind in the final few hundred metres and the difference in power was so obvious with a clear gap to second-placed Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) at the line who continued a great run of form ahead of Pascal Ackermann (Israel-Premier Tech) in third Alpecin led through the final few important corners albeit with some infiltration from Christophe Laporte (Visma-Lease a Bike) who was guiding Wout van Aert but after not getting it quite right on the four sprint opportunities last week they guided Philipsen perfectly to his seventh Tour de France stage victory We can finally show our strength together with the lead-out train It was a perfect job from the team,” said a relieved Philipsen post-race “We know with the corner was quite tricky Maybe we didn't start in our very best shape I'm really happy we can start the second week with a win and still some nice stages to come.” it is making a repeat green jersey win for the Belgian look less likely with every flat finish but he’ll only be focused on getting more wins and adding to the seven he already has “[Girmay] is doing a really strong Tour so far so I think we just try to focus on a stage win which we just succeeded,” said Philipsen “Now we’re just looking forward for the next stages Behind Philipsen and the sprinters was a bunch that almost enjoyed a second rest day for 95% of the 187.3km on stage 10 Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) arrived safely to hold onto the yellow jersey alongside second-placed Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) and the rest of the GC favourites Their time will come on tomorrow’s stage 11 as the race heads into the Massif Central for a brutally tough mountain day and the first of the second week with 211km concluding with a backloaded climbing finish to Le Lioran after taking on over 4,000 metres of elevation gain As racing resumed for the second week at the Tour de France the effects from an exhilarating but grueling first nine stages were perhaps taking their toll with no takers for the early breakaway upon race director Christian Prudhomme waving the flag at kilometre zero It was all smiles and chatting in the peloton for much of the opening phase heading south from Orléans with the host broadcaster even tagging swans swimming away from the roads as Pogačar and Vingegaard while they waited for action The intermediate sprint in Romorantin-Lanthenay offered up a chance to accelerate with Kobe Goossens (Intermarché-Wanty) getting up the road with Harm Vanhoucke (Lotto Dstny) The pair were chased momentarily by another trio of Kevin Geniets Valentin Madouas (Groupama-FDJ) and Brent Van Moer (Lotto Dstny) but the Alpecin-Deceuninck-led peloton reeled them in before the sprint at 130km to go Goossens and Vanhoucke mopped up the maximum points as the former’s teammate Girmay looked to defend his lead of the green jersey in the sprint The double stage winner tried to kick out of Philipsen’s wheel and up his inside but was squeezed and forced to brake due to the barriers narrowing With the Belgian looking ominously quick and that stress point over calmness returned to the 172 riders still at the Tour where they rode at a pace much slower than the projected fastest for almost the next 70 kilometres Crosswind action was possible on exposed roads throughout the Centre-Val de Loire region but didn’t come into the minds of the teams until the 59km to go mark where a key left-hand turn through Issoudun got everyone nervous GC teams and those with sprinters got towards the front in anticipation of the change of direction Visma and Astana all among the most active teams on the front The pace was upped near to 70 kph and the bunch was strung out but flags on the roadside showed the wind wasn’t nearly strong enough for echelons When the turn was made and everyone realised it wasn’t possible Again calmness was restored with all eyes on the final run towards Saint-Amand-Montrond and the final few kilometres of stage 10 where key corners would decide the winner of the day’s action Six kilometres from the line brought a small uncategorised climb into play where no one was dropped but such was the speed off the descent that the peloton was lining out and riders started to struggle Philipsen lost position momentarily but found his way back onto the part of Alpecin’s train where Van der Poel was the washing machine effect was well in play at the front of the peloton with the likes of EF Education-EasyPost and Israel-Premier Tech occupying the top spots as the race reached Saint-Amand-Montrond But as the crucial trio of corners arrived in the final 2km the grey double-denim and rainbow bands of Alpecin-Deceuninck’s lead-out train appeared doing what they did so well in 2023 and moving up to pole position ahead of the final sprint Philipsen in prime position proved that the speed was definitely not lost as when he launched his final kick he moved away from those in his slipstream and powered to the line to open the second week at the 2024 Tour de France with a bang Results powered by FirstCycling during which time he also wrote for Eurosport Prior to joining the team he reported on races such as Paris-Roubaix and the Giro d’Italia Donne for Eurosport and has interviewed some of the sport’s top riders in Chloé Dygert he spends the majority of his time watching other sports – rugby Become a member here We use cookies to improve your browsing experience The last 60km of stage 10 are exposed – could crosswinds be a factor 2024Distance: 187kmStart location: OrléansFinish location: Saint-Amand-MontrondStart time: 13:05 CETFinish time (approx): 17:24 CET the city of Orléans had been laid siege to by the English for half a year The city was seen as a crucial stronghold amid the 100 Years War and it was feared that losing it would lead to overall defeat in the war Hope came from an unlikely source — a peasant girl with the staunch belief that she had been blessed with vision of saints and angels assuring her that the French would succeed a decisive turning point in the war that ultimately led to victory for France That peasant girl was of course Joan of Arc who was hailed as an inspiration for her role at Orléans and later successful military campaigns and then as a martyr after being sentenced to burn at the stake by the English a couple of years later Her enduring appeal as a national hero lies in how she can mean something to so many different types of citizens from a spiritually enlightened devout Catholic a national defender of the crown of France and a proto-feminist for her defiance of gender norms Her appeal to the French is even mirrored in the kind of cyclists they revere — the underdogs who take on the superior forces through sheer resolve and bravery The biggest contemporary favourite among the French public continues to be Julian Alaphilippe and it's his hometown of Saint-Amand-Montrond that the first stage of the second week will finish at Even he in his prime wouldn’t be able to break clear from the peloton on a parcours as flat There isn’t a single categorised climb all day and the total elevation gain of under 1,000m is the lowest of any stage this whole edition This is therefore a day for the sprinters, as it was the last time Saint-Amand-Montrond hosted a Tour de France stage finish in 2013 triumphed for his 25th career Tour stage win Past experience and memory of the run-in to a sprint finish can sometimes be a great help when returning knowing where all the twists and turns are; but not this time as most of the hard work to win the stage had been done earlier when Cavendish’s Omega Pharma-QuickStep team and Alberto Contador’s Saxo-Tinkoff team split the race in crosswinds leaving Cavendish with only Peter Sagan and a number of non-sprinters to beat in the final sprint The roads certainly look exposed for the final 60km Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan) could be a strong contender for the stage victory And even though might have to contend with the other sprinters he's already proved he can outsprint them to the line which saw him make history as the rider with the most stage wins in the Tour de France so it wouldn't be a surprise to see him secure a 36th stage win Other riders who have already secured a stage win in the sprints are Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) and Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-Alula) has had some impressive performances this Tour taking two stages already and making history as the first black African to win a stage in this prestigious race Groenewegen has also been in good form so far will boost his confidence going into the sprint stages one sprinter disappointed so far is Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) but Philipsen has just lacked that winning kick that has seen him throw his arms up in celebration He'll be hoping to turn it around and finally take his first stage win of this year's Tour Arnaud De Lie (Lotto Dstny) and Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X Mobility) have both been in the mix for the bunch sprints De Lie has managed to secure two third-place podium spots in his Tour debut but the 22-year-old rider will only want one podium spot – the number one spot Kristoff's highest placing so far is also third place will want to better this in this next sprint opportunity While Fabio Jakobsen (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL) suffered during the stage which included more metres of elevation he looked to be a strong contender for the win taking seventh on stage three and fifth on stage five With this being the flattest stage of the race Other sprinters who will be contenders for the stage will be We are backing Jasper Philipsen for the stage win Rouleur takes a look at the contenders to win the Maglia Rosa in Italy this month Alexander Vinokourov's team are making the impossible rather quite possible All the essential information about the first Grand Tour of the year While the former Olympic and World champion is relishing new ventures in retirement she is keen to ensure more support is in place for those.. From SD Worx-Protime's continued success to Canyon-SRAM's disappointment Rouleur takes a look at how each squad performed at the Spring Classics Enjoy a digital subscription to Rouleur for just £4 per month and get access to our award-winning magazines Join today for exclusive content from independent journalists This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker The TimesBefore the start of the Tour they give us a tome they call the Roadbook This year’s is the 111th edition and like its predecessors it has profiles of each stage Graphs that show the length and severity of the climbs while making them look like cathedrals of pain You feel the weight of this book on the first day and wonder: “How are they ever going to get through it?” Eleven days have passed in the time it takes the peloton to whoosh past The first half of the Roadbook is now history the second part is history yet to be written Mark Cavendish wins eventful stage 13 of TourAPSAINT-AMAND-MONTROND France (AP) — Mark Cavendish won the 13th stage of the Tour de France in a sprint finish Friday and Chris Froome lost a sizeable chunk of his overall lead after being caught out by an attack from rival Alberto Contador Cavendish moved ahead with about 100 meters to go and rival Peter Sagan who leads the contest for the best sprinter's green jersey It was the British sprinter's second stage win of this year's Tour and 25th overall — moving him level in third place with Frenchman Andre Leducq on the all-time list "My team did an incredible job today," Cavendish said "We're going to have some Champagne tonight." His relief was clear to see as he rushed into the arms of teammate Sylvain Chavanel after the stage On Thursday his teammates had put him into a great position to attack but he was beaten to the line by Marcel Kittel of Germany "Yesterday they gave everything and I let them down," Cavendish said "The Tour de France is the most incredible race in the world Flat stages are normally relatively free of incident but the 173-kilometer (107.5-mile) trek from Tours to Saint-Amand-Montrond in central France was exciting and showed that even Froome's formidable Sky team can be vulnerable "There's no such thing as a calm stage on the Tour de France," Froome said that's always a bitter pill to swallow because we've worked really hard already to get the advantage we had." the main pack was split into three and Alejandro Valverde dropped way out of overall contention after stopping to repair a puncture that cost him a huge amount of time and put him outside the top 10 Valverde was second overnight but that spot was overtaken by Dutchman Bauke Mollema while the two-time former champion Contador improved to third That means Mollema is 2:28 behind and Contador is 2:45 adrift "It doesn't surprise me what happened today Just a reminder that I need to stay awake at all times in this race," Froome said "That's what's going to make it an exciting race Contador was the big winner of the stage after he was battered by Froome in the Pyrenees mountains and then lost more time to him in the time trial Friday's performance should be a big boost for the Spaniard going into a tough mountain stage on Sunday and then three grueling Alpine stages to follow after that Given that Froome finished all alone and without any Sky teammates on a flat stage it suggests he could be in serious trouble in the mountains if he's isolated by an attack from Contador The Sky team is down to seven riders after Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen had to pull out after fracturing his right shoulder in a crash involving about 20 riders near the end of Thursday's stage Geraint Thomas is riding with a fractured pelvis The peloton was split in three after an attack from Cavendish's Omega Pharma QuickStep team Froome made sure he stayed with the small group forming at the front as it pulled away from the two groups behind The reason for Omega's attack was to try and shake off Kittel — who has won three sprint stages so far — and it worked to perfection "They rode themselves into the ground," Cavendish said we just felt the wind wasn't in the right position so we decided to ride harder to make the peloton more tired and finally it broke." With so many riders pedaling hard behind them there was no way the early six-man breakaway would last and they were swallowed up with about 100 kilometers (60 miles) left No breakaway has gone all the way on this year's Tour because the peloton has ridden so aggressively Valverde had to leave the yellow jersey group to mend his bike That meant his Movistar teammates also had to drop off the main group to go back and help him with nearly 80 kilometers (50 miles) of grueling riding ahead profiting from his delay to push Mollema and countryman Laurens Ten Dam Belkin pushed so hard at the front that Richie Porte Froome was all alone and his team has reason for concern with the mountains approaching You can officially get your hands on an entire house in the French countryside for less than the cost of a Mr Whippy - but there's a slight catch As you might have noticed, here at Secret London, we’ve got a bit of a soft spot for our capital city And certainly nowhere else we could imagine ourselves living some gorgeous little town in the French countryside was selling off a house for €1 folks: tucked away in the depths of rural France is a tiny town called Saint-Amand-Montrond there’s a two-bedroom house up for sale for just €1 perhaps it is time for me to pack up my big city life It’s really putting my Zone 3 box room to shame the house isn’t exactly ready to move in to Nobody has lived in the house for 12 years and the cost of the renovation is estimated to be €127,800 (around £109,000) though – because François Blondieau (the town’s deputy for urban planning) has said that the town would offer “significant subsidies” towards the renovations too Unfortunately if you’ve spent the last few minutes dreaming of buying this property as a very chic holiday home; you’ll need to rethink your plans As the grand plan is to attract more permanent residents to the town the committee that will oversee the applications will be rejecting those applicants who plan to buy the spot as a second home The house will be sold to someone who plans to live in the house permanently for UK citizens with a British passport (and no visa) there would also be a rather large Brexit-shaped hoop to jump through to secure the pad Who knew starting a whole new life in a rustic French town for a euro would be so darn complicated Prospective buyers are able to visit the property from May 15 The successful applicant can expect to sign the deeds in January 2025 and the renovation is set to be completed by January Find out more and fill out your application here whose Omega Pharma – Quick-Step team ripped the race to shreds and were rewarded by their sprinter's second stage win of the race The critical moment came 31km from the finish on a particularly exposed stretch of road Froome and Contador were part of a reduced lead group and Contador's Saxo Bank team-mate Daniele Bennati could be seen looking back down the line What he saw was Froome leaving a gap in the line as he and the other members of Contador's team raised the pace; after a few seconds the yellow jersey swung out to the left in the hope that someone else would take up the chase none of Team Sky were able to close the few metres Team Sky's road captain last year – Roman Kreuziger Matteo Tosatto and Contador piled on the pressure the Belkin duo of Laurens Ten Dam and Bauke Mollema and the Danish climber Jakob Fuglsang sitting in their slipstream Sky tried to chase but had neither the strength nor the numbers – with the lead group travelling at 55km per hour they needed to be doing well over 60 – and one by one Kanstantsin Siutsou Froome was completely alone in a group of 43; it was a stage when the loss of Edvald Boasson Hagen who quit the race due to a broken shoulder The eventual time loss of 1min 8sec was not catastrophic but as Froome said: "It was a reminder that this race is 100% open and that I need to be awake at all times." Following the loss of Boasson Hagen had said his team would need to be resourceful; Contador looks to be the one who can improvise on the road He is now up to third in the all-time lists and his confidence has been restored Cavendish and his Omega Pharma team-mates forced the initial split in the field when they realised the wind might create chaos; after the initial split the triple stage winner Marcel Kittel was left a little way behind and they had a perfect opportunity to put him and his Argos-Shimano team-mates under pressure with Kittel and company chasing hard behind Froome could count himself lucky not to share the fate of Alejandro Valverde but punctured as the battle between Omega Pharma and Argos reached its height Five team-mates waited for him but they were unable to close a gap of 30sec and eventually waited for Kittel and company Realising they had an opportunity to ride for second place behind Froome Ten Dam and Mollema's Belkin team-mates piled on the pressure in their turn to keep Valverde at bay The Spaniard's eventual time loss was almost 10min; his chances of winning the Tour had been eliminated completely by a single stroke of ill luck in a stage run off at an average of more than 47kph It was a stage when racing instincts mattered as much as sheer strength and here Froome's relative inexperience played against him along with Sky's lack of bodies to shield him "When an echelon forms it's like falling through ice you've got five seconds or you are finished," said Cavendish who was the last rider to get on to the back of the split behind Contador and his team-mates and expended more energy doing so than he did in the finish sprint Friday's roads were flat but in their way they were as demanding as any mountain stage Tuesday’s tenth stage of the 111th Tour de France the first day back after the first rest day wasn’t the zippiest four-plus hours but it concluded with Jasper Philipsen finally winning a bunch sprint in Saint-Amand-Montrond Before Tuesday Philipesen had two runner-up spots and a relegation but now he has seven career stage victories 187 km long and containing no categorized climbs Stage 10 screamed out “Bunch sprint!” Watch those winds We start the second week of the #TDF2024 with a completely flat stage between Orleans and Saint-Amand-Montrond, but things might not be that straightforward, as crosswinds could make an appearance in the final 50 kilometers. pic.twitter.com/oJNCoF6rAb — Soudal Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team (@soudalquickstep) July 9, 2024 On the rest day, word came from the Red Bull camp that 11th place Aleksandr Vlasov had to withdraw with a broken ankle suffered in a dramatic crash on Sunday At least the broadcasters were having fun in the dull first hour pic.twitter.com/Fe3GRKnOnm — Cycling out of context (@OutOfCycling) July 9, 2024 The day’s intermediate sprint awaited at Kilometer 57 where Philipsen nabbed the third-most points The stage stubbornly refused to be interesting in its middle The pace finally picked up with 6 km to go Gaps opened up in the peloton inside 3 km remaining there was a sharp left turn and then a right hand curve into the finishing straight who stayed on the right hand barrier and warded off green jersey Biniam Girmay closed the gap to Girmay but is still 74 points behind Get the digital edition of Canadian Cycling Magazine Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Slovenian takes overall lead ahead of Gaudu on mountaintop finish riding away from his Tour de France rival Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) to win atop La Loge des Gardes Having already responded to an opening attack from Vingegaard the Slovenian bridged across to another attacker and remarkably cracked his main rival in the process Pogačar outsprinted Gaudu atop the 6.7% climb to claim his fifth victory of the season with Gino Mäder (Bahrain Victorious) placing third as Vingegaard was passed by various members of the GC group The rider who took Pogačar's Tour de France crown last year eventually dragged himself across the line in sixth place some 43 seconds down given the way Vingegaard had kicked off the attacking with 4.3km to go - drawing Pogačar into response but not into collaboration - and even more so given that Vingegaard looked to have shut down Pogačar's subsequent attack He was late to respond and started well on the back foot but slowly clawed his way back to within just a few metres from Pogačar's back wheel only for the Slovenian to accelerate through a bend and the gap to creep open again it yawned to a gaping hole that leaves Pogačar firmly in control of Paris-Nice and drawing first blood in their first direct confrontation of 2023 "I was a little bit [surprised]," Pogačar said of Vingegaard's demise "First he launched the attack and thought he was feeling super super great so I didn't counter - I was waiting for the rest it was really tough and I think he just missed a little bit to catch me then he couldn't close and cracked a little bit." Pogačar moved into the yellow jersey as the new overall leader his time gaps buffeted by yet more time bonuses Not only did he collect 10 seconds for the stage win he'd also grabbed one at the intermediate sprint to take his collection for Paris-Nice to 23 seconds - the exact amount of time he conceded to Vingegaard in Tuesday's team time trial Pogačar has a 10-second lead over second-placed Gaudu while Vingegaard is in third place but some 44 seconds down Simon Yates (Jayco-AlUla) at 56 seconds is the only other rider within a minute of Pogačar "It was not in my mind to take yellow today The 165km stage took the riders from Saint-Amand-Montrond to the first uphill finish at La Loge des Gardes with exposed country roads in the first half followed by some small hills to precede the category 1 summit finish The wind was up and there was a general tension at the start over the threat of crosswinds and echelons which made for a fast start to proceedings the conditions weren't quite right to cause the anticipated damage and then race soon settled into a familiar format Lilian Calmejane (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty) and Maurice Ballerstedt (Alpecin-Deceuninck) kicked it off and were joined in turn by Anders Skaarseth (Uno X-Pro) Larry Warbasse (AG2R-Citroën) and Hugo Houle (Israel-Premier Tech) The gap went out to four minutes and the race proceeded in relatively calm fashion until a section of cross-tailwind briefly split the bunch Groupama-FDJ were among the chief protagonists as the bunch splintered into five groups with 85km to go leaving Pogačar and Vingegaard in a small front echelon and the peloton was compact once more with 75km to go Pogačar's UAE Team Emirates men soon started to exert control on the stage upping the pace and reducing the gap to the breakaway on the way to first of the day's climbs the category 3 Côte du Vernet (2.1km at 5.8%) Gregaard led the break over the top to add three more mountains classification points as Ineos Grenadiers took over and led the bunch to the top 2:45 down Ballerstedt lost contact up front and Eenkhoorn went solo for a while on a downhill with the group coming back together to argue over workload as the second climb the category 3 Côte de Cheval Rigon (5.7km at 3.9%) began Once again it was Gregaard who helped himself to the points while in the bunch behind UAE Team Emirates moved through the gears but had to back off when Mikkel Bjerg punctured mid-pull they set him back to work on the uncategorised - but long and draggy - Col du Beaulouis and the gap to the break plummeted once more to the point that it was effectively wiped out by the top with 15km remaining and bonus seconds on offer at the top Michael Matthews (Jayco-AlUla) sprang clear and he was followed by none other than Pogačar They breezed past the breakaway remnants and Matthews bike-threw to pip Skaarseth and took the maximum bonus seconds while Pogačar came in third to take a single second Pogačar and Matthews - good friends off the bike - linked up and appeared to be pressing down the descent but it was soon reeled in by Jumbo-Visma's Tobias Foss Teams then got reorganised for the final climb of La Loge des Gardes (6.7km at 7.1%) Clément Champoussin (Arkéa-Samsic) was the first attacker but UAE's Felix Grossschartner soon set a pace that put him and many others in trouble Yellow jerks Magnus Cort (EF Education-EasyPost) dropped with 5.2km to go and he was soon followed by GC candidates in Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) Vingegaard launched his early move with 4.3km to go and the pair left everyone else behind - déjá-vu from last summer was not willing to press on and sat on Vingegaard's wheel as the easing in pace allowed the group to come back.  Gaudu immediately launched his intelligent attack He gained 15 seconds and it wasn't until a kilometre later that there was any concerted counter The first move came from Chris Harper (Jayco-AlUla) and once a couple of others had started to jump across moving clear of everyone and working his way back to Pogačar But disaster struck with 2km to go as Pogačar accelerated again to make contact with Gaudu and distance Vingegaard Gaudu looked to sit on Pogačar as he extended the gap with the intention of trying to win the sprint for the line The Frenchman responded well to a first vicious acceleration with 300 metres to go but then had to relent as the Slovenian found another kick to take him clear in the final 100 metres having suffered a significant blow not only in the context of this week but perhaps the psychological tussle of the entire season Results powered by FirstCycling French authorities said Friday they had seized a record 1.4 tons of cocaine and four people had been arrested in a "severe blow" to an international drug trafficking ring. The drugs arrived at the northern port of Le Havre on Tuesday in a cargo ship from Valparaiso in Chile, officials said. Lille prosecutor Frederic Fevre said the drugs, hidden inside a shipment of tires, were then moved to a truck bound for Spain that was followed by police who had been alerted to the delivery by Bulgarian authorities. The drugs were seized and two Spaniards arrested when the truck stopped by the side of the road in Saint-Amand-Montrond, a town in central France, Fevre said. Police had earlier said the drugs had been seized on Wednesday at the port. Two Bulgarians, believed to be organizers of the trafficking, were also arrested by local police in the eastern Varna province. More arrests were also expected in Spain. Police said the seized cocaine had a street value of about 270 million euros ($370 million). Interior Minister Manuel Valls hailed the international cooperation that led to the bust, which he said was "historic". The previous record cocaine haul in France was the seizure in September of 1.3 tons of the drug, hidden in 30 suitcases, from an Air France flight from Venezuela. More than 20 people, including an Air France employee in Caracas, were jailed in that case. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) showed his sprinting prowess to win Stage 10 of the Tour de France after a sleepy day for the peloton.SAINT-AMAND-MONTROND FRANCE - JULY 09: (L-R) Jasper Philipsen of Belgium and Team Alpecin - Deceuninck celebrates at finish line as stage winner ahead of Biniam Girmay of Eritrea and Team Intermarche - Wanty - Green Sprint Jersey during the 111th Tour de France 2024 Stage 10 a 187.3km stage from Orleans to Saint-Amand-Montrond / #UCIWT / on July 09 (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images) Source: Getty / Tim de Waele/Getty Images Mark Cavendish scored his second stage win of the 2013 Tour de France, outsprinting Peter Sagan, but the big news was the carnage caused by Omega Pharma in the crosswinds. Pan flat and warm, this 173km stage between Tours and St Amand Montrond had bunch sprint stamped on it in the route book. Ah, but this is the Tour and there are no easy days and little in the way of predictability. After a six man group went clear after only two kilometres, most imagined the usual scenario: a four minute lead for the six man break, reeled by sprinters teams with 10km to go and a bunch sprint contested by Cavendish and co. But not today. After around 55km, a rising 20kmph crosswind over the rider's left shoulder blew up, Omega went to the front and wound the pace up and - crack - the peloton split in three. Argos-Shimano sprinter Marcel Kittel was on the wrong end of the bunch, the speed at the front increased and the morning break was swept up, their three minute gap vanished inside five kilometres. It was a bold, pre-planned scenario - Omega DS Wilfried Peeters said the team was ready to ride all the way to the finish to keep Kittel out of contention. But there was more drama when second overall on general classification Alejandro Valverde punctured. Four Movistar team mates stopped with Valverde to try to pace him back to the leading echelon, led by a charging Omega Pharma-QuickStep - including Cavendish - with Belkin giving a hand. The fact that the Dutch team piled to the front when Valverde punctured raised eyebrows. Was it OK to attack a rider who has been dropped in these circumstances? Or just OK to attack Valverde? The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox! 30km from the line - after 100km of sidewind carnage - no fewer than five (out of eight left in the race!) Saxo Bank-Tinkoff decided to join the party, forcing another, smaller echelon of 14 riders and catching Froome off guard. An astonishing stage got even more bizarre. Contador's troops aided by the Omega trio of Sylvain Chavanel, Niki Terpstra and Cavendish, Cannondale duo Peter Sagan and Maciej Bodnar, Astana's Jakob Fuglsang with Belkin pair Bauke Mollema and Laurens Ten Dam, pinged off the front and went on a 30km team time trial. It was getting hard to keep up with the changes and splits on the flat roads, with the Tour spread over almost 13 minutes. The gap hovered around between 40 and 50 seconds until 8km to go, at which point Lotto decided that they wouldn't catch the Contador-Sagan-Cavendish group and stopped riding while the remaining Sky riders (Siutsou, Stannard and Kennaugh) were worn out. With no concerted chase, the gap at the line was 1-08, in spite of the curious assistance offered to Sky by Ag2r - defending the 10th spot on GC of Jean-Christophe Peraud, according to manager Vincent Lavenu... Chavanel started to lead the sprint out with Sagan on his wheel, but the Slovak was towing Cavendish up to speed and the British champion sped past the green jersey to take an easy win - his 25th in the Tour. Well, easy except for the fact that it had taken a 100km lead out! ResultsTour de France 2013, stage 13: Tours to St Amand Montrond, 173km 1. Mark Cavendish (GBr) Omega Pharma-QuickStep in 3-40-08 5. Niki Terpstra (Ned) Omega Pharma-QuickStep 8. Laurens Ten Dam (Ned) Belkin all same time 9. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Omega Pharma-QuickStep at 6 secs 10. Michael Rogers (Aus) Saxo-Tinkoff at 9 secs 19. Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp at 1-09 70. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar at 9-54 131. David Millar (GBr) Garmin-Sharp at 10-11 3. Alberto Contador (Spa) Saxo-Tinkoff at 2-45 4. Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Saxo-Tinkoff at 2-48 7. Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) Omega Pharma-QuickStep at 4-44 9. Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra) Ag2r at 5-39 10. Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Katusha at 5-48 11. Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp at 5-52 16. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar at 12-10 Mark Cavendish wins the stage after his team splintered the peloton Chris Froome maintains race lead, albeit with a reduced advantage Tour de France 2013: Cycling Weekly's coverage inde Cycling Weekly and its team of expert journalists brings cyclists in-depth reviews extensive coverage of both professional and domestic racing as well as fitness advice and 'brew a cuppa and put your feet up' features Cycling Weekly serves its audience across a range of platforms from good old-fashioned print to online journalism A TOWN in France is selling a house for just €1 (85p) for anyone looking for a move to the European country Located between Paris and Lyon, Saint-Amand-Montrond has become the latest European town to offer homes to people for an incredibly cheap price The French town is selling a two-bed property two bedrooms and an upstairs bathroom for just €1 The cheap house also comes with its own courtyard and a garage there's a pretty hefty catch to buying the home Because the French house hasn't been lived in for 12 years it will require a substantial renovation to the tune of €127,800 (£109,000) GROUNDED Travel warning for flood-hit Dubai with tourists told 'don't go to the airport'While this may sound like an eye-watering number who is the town's deputy for urban planning said that the town would offer "significant subsidies" towards the renovations Anyone thinking about snapping up the French house will need to apply to purchase the property by June 15 The successful applicant will be expected to sign the deeds in January 2025 Those Brits who are thinking about snapping up the small house as a holiday home may want to think again, because the town is only after permanent residents. Saint-Amand-Montrond is just a 40-minute drive away from Bourges - a French city known for its half-timbered buildings The French city is home to attractions like Bourges Cathedral which was built at the end of the 12th century Other attractions include Palais Jacques-Coeur - a large hotel that was once a palace Both easyJet and British Airways operate direct flights between the UK and Lyon with prices starting from £30 for a one-way ticket And Saint-Amand-Montrond isn't the only town in Europe that's selling properties for less an a quid Earlier this year, a tiny town in Croatia announced it was selling houses for just 11p Home to just 2,000 locals, Legrad launched the initiative to boost its dwindling population there are a few rules and restrictions in place for who can buy the properties Buyers also can't have any criminal record Legrad mayor Ivan Sabolić told local media: "A total of five houses ready for occupancy have been sold." Italy was one of the first to launch a cheap house scheme - here is everything you need to know about their €1 houses One Brit who bought a €1 house has raved about the scheme Another woman said her home could be worth as much as £500k after the renovations In Spain, a number of towns will pay you to move there, such as Ponga which will give up to €6,000 Maybe you're worried about an upcoming trip abroad or you want some advice on an affordable place to visit - if so The Sun's Head of Travel Lisa Minot is here to help Lisa will be taking part in a Live Q&A with readers at midday next Tuesday (April 23) Whatever the travel question - big or small - make sure to send over all your questions to Lisa in the form here, and she'll answer them in the live Q&A Meanwhile, here is everything you need to know about buying and renovating a €1 house in Italy And this is what it's really like to buy and own one of the cheap homes Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/ Mark Cavendish missed out on a record-extending 36th stage victory at the Tour de France on Tuesday afternoon.   The 10th stage of this year’s Grand Tour saw the riders tackle a 187.3-kilometre route from Orléans to Saint Amand Montrond, the latter the scene of one of Cav’s most memorable wins in 2013 when crosswinds splintered the peloton before the Manx Missile sprinted to victory in a reduced field.  This time though, the expected crosswinds failed to materialise and the full field contested the sprint finish.   Cav appeared to be well positioned going into the final 3km but his Astana Qazaqstan leadout appeared to fall apart in the closing kilometres and the Manxman had to settle for 18th place.   Speaking afterwards, Cav commented: ‘We went how we wanted to go for 3km, but the Dylan Groenewegen (of Jayco AlUla] was on Michael Mørkøv's front wheel through the left corner, he lost the wheel and he wasn't going to close it.  ‘I had to close it and I don't really know why the boys went, they weren't supposed to go until later. We'll have to speak about it and see what happened. It's just not like Mørkøv really. We haven't spoken about it, or analysed it.  ‘You have a plan, you try and go with the plan. Things aren't going to be exactly as you want them to go. Someone has to win, a lot of people have to not win. That's bike racing, so we'll try again.’  The next sprint opportunity is possibly today (Thursday) when Le Tour heads from Aurillac to Villeneuve-sur-Lot, before another sprint stage on Friday from Agen to Pau.  Comments Tel: 01624 695695[email protected]Follow us Further Links Owned or licensed to Tindle Newspapers Ltd | Independent Family-Owned Newspapers | Copyright & Trade Mark Notice & 2013 - 2025