This was Andy Schleck's (Saxo Bank) first ever stage win at the Tour Photo: © Fotoreporter Sirotti
Stage 8 of this year’s Tour de France promised to be an exciting event. With the GC contenders taking it easy in Stage 7, the steeper slopes of Stage 8 and a rest day on Monday guaranteed that the riders looking for yellow in Paris were going to bring out their climbing legs and start attacking. With everyone betting on an Alberto Contador and Lance Armstrong shootout, the day took a very different turn that resulted in a very confident Andy Schleck pulling out the stage win with a very different turn of events in the field.
The 189km stage from Station des Rousses to Marzine Avoriaz marks the first of the tough climbing stages. With climbing powerhouses like Andy Schleck, Alberto Contador and Lance Armstrong, this was the first time we are able to see who really has the legs to win this years Tour. With Frank Schleck out of the running for team Saxo Bank with a broken collar bone as he fell victim to the cobblestones, his brother Andy is now picking up the responsibility for Saxo Bank to deliver yellow in Paris and slow down the climbing genius of Alberto Contador. After is strong win in stage 8, Andy Schleck is looking to be the front runner for this years Tour.
Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank) attacks Alberto Contador (Astana) Photo: © Roberto Bettini
“I’m very happy to have won the stage, but we have a strategy and I wanted to stick with it. It’s not the time for experimenting,” said the Saxo Bank climbing specialist. “Maybe I would have taken the yellow jersey, but my aim is to have it when the race finishes in Paris. And to do that, we have to go step by step. It will come.”
“I was hoping it would be decisive, though I was quite nervous this morning,” he added. “I knew it would be a stage where whoever had the legs would be up front. It is in these types of stages that we see the real favorites, the contenders and the others who are struggling. I was right up there 100 percent, both physically and mentally. It’s a great victory for me, but now I’m taking aim at the yellow.”
Stage 8 Seals The Deal For Lance Armstrong
Teammates try to take care of Lance Armstrong (RadioShack) Photo: © Roberto Bettini
The 2010 Tour de France continues to unload back luck on Lance Armstrong’s last Tour appearance. What started off with a flat at a critical time in the cobblestones has turned into a time gap that can not be recovered after a crash in stage 8. Armstrong suffered from 3 crashes in stage 8 that spelled the end of his yellow jersey contention.
“I had a bad day,” Armstrong told French TV within seconds of crossing the line. “I came around one roundabout and my pedal touched [the curb], then my front tyre rolled off.
“It’s hard to recover from something like that,” he said. “They started the Ramaz pretty hard and I was already suffering. Then it went from bad to worse. It was a bad day. Now I’m going to hang in there and enjoy my last Tour.”
Schleck offered his sympathy to Armstrong. “Lance had a pretty bad crash – he crashed in front of me, and he could do nothing.
“I almost went down with him,” Schleck said. “He came back but he was pretty beaten up. On the [Ramaz], he lost contact with our group. I expected him to be up there in the front.
“To be really honest, I’m a little sorry for him because he really wanted to be good in this last Tour. I think his morale is a little down now.”
A dissappointing end to a fantastic career, Armstrong now has to sit back and give support to his teammate, Levi Leipheimer who sits 8th in the overall GC standings.
After Stage 8, Cadel Evans (BMC) is in yellow.
Next Stage: 204.5km – Morzine-Avoriaz to Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne
Stage 8 Final Results
| 1 | Andy Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank | 4:54:11 | |
| 2 | Samuel Sánchez Gonzalez (Spa) Euskaltel – Euskadi | ||
| 3 | Robert Gesink (Ned) Rabobank | 0:00:10 | |
| 4 | Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Liquigas-Doimo | ||
| 5 | Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana | ||
| 6 | Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team | ||
| 7 | Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto | ||
| 8 | Levi Leipheimer (USA) Team Radioshack | ||
| 9 | Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas-Doimo | ||
| 10 | Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank |
GC Standings After Stage 8
| 1 | Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team | 37:57:09 | |
| 2 | Andy Schleck (Lux) Team Saxo Bank | 0:00:20 | |
| 3 | Alberto Contador Velasco (Spa) Astana | 0:01:01 | |
| 4 | Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Omega Pharma-Lotto | 0:01:03 | |
| 5 | Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank | 0:01:10 | |
| 6 | Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin – Transitions | 0:01:11 | |
| 7 | Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Liquigas-Doimo | 0:01:45 | |
| 8 | Levi Leipheimer (USA) Team Radioshack | 0:02:14 | |
| 9 | Samuel Sánchez Gonzalez (Spa) Euskaltel – Euskadi | 0:02:15 | |
| 10 | Michael Rogers (Aus) Team HTC – Columbia | 0:02:31 |