Cycling Tour de France: If Lance Armstrong manages to win his fifth Tour de France he will owe much to the quick reflexes which enabled him to avoid a horrendous crash four miles from the finish here.
Victory is, however, by no means assured, as yesterday the Kazakh Alexander Vinokourov threw down the gauntlet with an assured, aggressive stage win.
Ironically, Vinokourov has an infinitely more aggressive approach to racing than Joseba Beloki, who departed the race yesterday in such dramatic style. This was the third day in succession that the stocky 29-year-old from Petropavlovsk took the fight to Armstrong.
His first attack, on the Col de la Ramaz on Saturday, failed. Then at l'Alpe d'Huez on Sunday Vinokourov finished 27 seconds in front of the Texan, which was not exactly a major concern.
Yesterday he zipped out of the lead group on the Cote de la Rochette, five miles from the finish. The gap in Gap was 36 seconds, helped by the confusion that followed Beloki's crash.
Because 20 seconds is deducted from the stage winner's time as a bonus, he is now only 21 seconds behind Armstrong.
Even though the Texan claimed he was feeling better than he had at l'Alpe d'Huez, this kind of effort and the strain of dealing with several challengers can eventually tell on a maillot jaune.
To notch up the pressure a little more, Armstrong's nemesis at l'Alpe d'Huez, lban Mayo, gleaned an eight-second bonus for finishing third yesterday and is now only one minute and two seconds adrift.
Vinokourov is nominally Santiago Botero's first lieutenant at Telekom but, after Botero passed through the Alps with all the ease of one of Hannibal's elephants, the Kazakh is now team leader.
He says he is aiming for a place in the first three overall, "but more may be possible".
If he continues to take the initiative in this way and does not weaken, much more may be possible.
Unlike the unfortunate Beloki, a follower by instinct, Vinokourov is a cyclist who is used to attacking and winning. He is enjoying his best ever season, with victories already in two stage races a rung or two behind the Tour in importance, Paris-Nice and the Tour of Switzerland, and the Amstel Gold Race World Cup event in April.
His Paris-Nice win came after the death of his close friend Andrei Kivilev, who suffered massive head injuries in a crash. It is impossible now to refer to Vino' without mentioning Kivi' - "I owe this victory to him; he gives me strength just like in Paris-Nice," he said yesterday.
Armstrong was also put under pressure early in the stage as the peloton plodded back up the Col du Lautaret after flying down it en route to l'Alpe d'Huez on Sunday.
David Millar is looking for a stage win and attacked repeatedly, each time brought to order by Armstrong's team-mates, who were not willing to give him too much leeway.
Eventually the Scot flew away in the closing stages to pursue the four survivors of an escape which had high-tailed it south among the towering rock pinnacles of the Col de l'Izoard.
Until Vinokourov made his charge a repeat of Millar's stage victory of last year in Beziers looked possible, but it was not to be.
"There was a stronger headwind in the valley than I had expected, so it turned out harder than I thought," said the Scot. "I was attacking all day, though. I really wanted this stage and I'll try again."
Bastille Day is rarely this mouvementé and the drama disguised the fact that, as so often is the case, the French were unable to warm the patriotic cockles of the nation by winning the stage.
The day's main escape featured a Colombian, several Spaniards and a German, but not a single Frenchman. Seven previous French Bastille Day winners were paraded on the podium after the stage, but yesterday the best-placed was the national champion, Didier Rous, in 12th.
Today it is downhill all the way to the Mediterranean, and Marseille's symbolic importance makes a long-distance try for the stage by a lowly Frenchman virtually inevitable.
Guardian Service
184.5 km from Bourg d'Oisans to Gap: 1 A Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom five hours and two minutes; 2 P Bettini (Ita) Quick Step 36 seconds behind; 3 I Mayo (Spa) Euskaltel; 4 L Armstrong (USA) US Postal; 5 J Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi; 6 I Basso (Ita) Fassa Bortolo; 7 G Totschnig (Aus) Gerolsteiner; 8 F Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com; 9 H Zubeldia (Spa) Euskaltel; 10 T Hamilton (USA) Team CSC; 11 R Laiseka (Spa) Euskaltel all same time; 12 D Rous (Fra) Brioches 52; 13 D Menchov (Rus) iBanesto.com same time; 14 C Moreau (Fra) Credit Agricole 1:06; 15 R Heras (Spa) US Postal; 16 D Plaza (Spa) Team Bianchi; 17 C Sastre (Spa) Team CSC; 18 I Parra (Col) Kelme all same time
Overall (Yellow Jersey): 1 L Armstrong (USA) US Postal 40:15.26; 2 A Vinokourov (Kaz) Team Telekom 21 seconds behind; 3 I Mayo (Spa) Euskatel 1:02; 4 F Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com 1:37; 5 T Hamilton (USA) Team CSC 1:52; 6 J Ullrich (Ger) Team Bianchi 2:10; 7 I Basso (Ita) Fassa Bortolo 2:25; 8 R Heras (Spa) US Postal 2:28; 9 H Zubeldia (Spa) Euskatel 3:25; 10 D Menchov (Russia) iBanesto.com 3:45
Points standings (Green Jersey): 1 B Cooke (Aus) FDJeux.com 120 points; 2 R McEwen (Aus) Lotto 110; 3 T Hushovd (Norway) Credit Agricole 104; 4 Erik Zabel (Ger) Team Telekom 98; 5 J-P Nazon (France) Jean Delatour 88; 6 L Paolini (Italy) Quick Step 87; 7 S O'Grady (Aus) Credit Agricole 86; 8 O Freire (Spa) Rabobank 83; 9 R Vainstains (Lat) Caldirola 81; 10 P Bettini (Ita) Quick Step 72
King of the Mountains (Polka-dot Jersey): 1 R Virenque (Fra) Quick Step 135; 2 J Jaksche (Ger) ONCE 75; 3 L Armstrong (USA) US Postal 74; 4 I Parra (Col) Kelme 71; 5 A Garmendia (Spa) Team Bianchi 62; 6 F Mancebo (Spa) iBanesto.com 61; 7 R Aldag (Ger) Team Telekom 61; 8 D Di Luca (Ita) Saeco 56; 9 C Moreau (Fra) 54; 10 I Mayo (Spa) Euskatel 53
Team points: 1 Euskatel 118:11:19; 2 US Postal 4:11 behind; 3 iBanesto.com 8:34; 4 Team CSC 10:14; 5 Team Bianchi 16:26
