TOUR: Rolland wins Stage 11; Wiggins extends lead
LA TOUSSUIRE, France — Pierre Rolland of France won the hardest Alpine stage in the Tour de France on Thursday, and Bradley Wiggins dusted defending champion Cadel Evans in the final climb to extend his overall lead.
Rolland gave the Europcar team its second straight stage win after the 92-mile ride in the Alps from Albertville ended with a grueling ascent to the ski resort of La Toussuire.
Rolland won by 55 seconds, ahead of Thibaut Pinot of France and Christopher Froome of Britain. Wiggins and two rivals for the title — Jurgen Van Den Broeck of Belgium and Vincenzo Nibali of Italy — were another two seconds slower.
“I’d been dreaming about this stage for six months … I got all sorts of messages this morning saying ‘it’s your turn, it’s your turn,'” Rolland said. “My second victory in the Alps in two years — I don’t have the words to describe the feeling.”
He won despite skidding to the ground in a crash during the last big downhill.
“That’s not going to stop me,” he said.
Wiggins, along with Froome and other Sky teammates, repelled repeated attacks by his yellow jersey rivals over three huge ascents in the ride. Evans fell from second place overall — possibly seeing his repeat hopes vanish — after losing more than a minute to Wiggins.
Evans began the day 1:53 behind Wiggins.
Wiggins said he felt “relief” in the last few miles, especially knowing that Evans had been dropped — an outcome the Briton had not expected.
The race stays in the Alps on Friday with a 140-mile ride from Saint-Jean-De-Maurienne to Annonay Davezieux.
Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara withdrew from the Tour to join his wife, who is pregnant with their second child. He was not among the top riders after Stage 10.
2012 Tour de France:
Bobby Mote of Culver, Ore., scored an 82 in the bareback competition at the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo on Thursday, July 12, 2012. Photo by JERILEE BENNETT, THE GAZETTE
Pierre Rolland of France crosses the finish line to win the 11th stage of the Tour de France cycling race over 148 kilometers (92 miles) with start in Albertville and finish in La Toussuire, French Alps, on Thursday, July 12, 2012. Photo by AP Photo/Laurent Rebours
