Denmark's Jakob Piil won the 219.5-km 10th stage of the Tour de France, outsprinting Italy's Fabio Sacchi at the finish in Marseille.
Nine riders, none of them serious contenders in the overall standings, broke away after the first intermediate sprint of the day's stage and built up a lead of more than 20 minutes.
Piil and Sacchi, who had been in the lead group for 200 km, surged along the Marseille sea front and parted company with their seven companions.
The two shook hands before battling it out in the final sprint which Piil won by a bike length to secure his first Tour stage victory.
It was the first time in this year's Tour that an escape group had successfully stayed out in front - due mainly to the peloton deciding not to mount a challenge.
Race leader Lance Armstrong finished safely back in the main pack after a leisurely ride, his only moment of concern coming when demonstrators briefly blocked the road with 50 km to go.
Armstrong, looking for a record-equalling fifth Tour victory, was guided home by his US Postal Service team mates, 21 minutes behind Piil.
The American will keep a 21-second lead over Kazakh Alexander Vinokourov for the first rest day of the Tour in Narbonne tomorrow.