Overall leader Alberto Contador took a giant step towards his second Tour de France victory when he humbled the time trial specialists over 40.5-km to take the 18th stage around the lake of Annecy on Thursday.
The Spaniard, who outshone Olympic champion Fabian Cancellara by three seconds, now leads his nearest rival for final victory, Luxembourg’s Andy Schleck, by four minutes and 11 seconds, a comfortable gap three days before the finish in Paris.
Lance Armstrong, who announced he will be riding for a new American team, backed by RadioShack in 2010 is in third place and may podium.
Stage 18 Results
1 Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana - 0:48:31
2 Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Team Saxo Bank - 0:00:03
3 Mikhail Ignatiev (Rus) Team Katusha - 0:00:15
4 Gustav Erik Larsson (Swe) Team Saxo Bank - 0:00:32
5 David Millar (GBr) Garmin - Slipstream - 0:00:40
6 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Garmin - Slipstream - 0:00:42
7 Luis León Sánchez Gil (Spa) Caisse d’Epargne - 0:00:43
8 Christophe Moreau (Fra) Agritubel - 0:00:45
9 Andreas Klöden (Ger) Astana - 0:00:53
10 David Zabriskie (USA) Garmin - Slipstream - 0:01:01
