| | Associated Press
LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Lance Armstrong's commanding hold
on the Tour de France remained unchallenged Wednesday on a day when
two of cycling's most prominent riders dropped out of the race.
Erik Dekker of the Netherlands won a furious sprint finish to
capture the 17th stage, a 96-mile run that ended in the
headquarters city of the International Olympic Committee.
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Lance Armstrong arrives without his yellow jersey on Wednesday. |
Armstrong stayed in the pack of his closest rivals, with only
four more days of racing before the finale in Paris. Jan Ullrich of
Germany's Deutsche Telekom remained in second place, still 5
minutes, 37 seconds behind the Texan.
Dekker of Rabobank edged Erik Zabel of Telekom and Fred
Rodriguez, an obscure American riding for the Italian Mapei team,
to take his third stage win of this year's Tour.
Missing from the pack were Marco Pantani of Italy because of
illness and Alex Zülle of Switzerland because of his distant place
in the standings.
Beneath blazing sunny skies, the riders went from the French
southern shore of Lake Geneva into the nearby foothills of the Alps
before a frantic race downhill to Lausanne.
Pantani, the diminutive, bald racer who won the Tour in 1998 but
withdrew from this year's race overnight while in 14th place. He
blamed mysterious intestinal pains for his decision.
Other riders suggested it might have more to do with his fading
performance Tuesday during the competition's final mountainous
stage -- the last real chance for the hill-climbing specialist to
eat into Armstrong's lead.
Armstrong exchanged harsh words with Pantani last week after
allowing the Italian to win a mountain stage. He pointedly referred
to Pantani as "the elephant," a nickname reference to Pantani's
jug ears that he's tried to shed in recent years.
"Elefantino is a different man. I don't think anybody fully
understands his motivations," Armstrong said when asked about
Pantani's withdrawal. "It's his problem. He's not my brother."
Armstrong and the race's eight other top riders on Wednesday
passed a surprise blood test taken in their hotel rooms. It marked
the latest step taken by International Cycling Union to restore
public confidence in the integrity of the competition following a
scandal-plagued Tour in 1998.
Massimiliano Lelli of Italy led the pack during Wednesday's
toughest challenge, a steep climb to the top of Col de Mosses east
of Lake Geneva. But a gaggle of pursuers eventually swallowed up
Lelli on the downhill side.
The Col de Mosses also claimed one of the competition's home
favorites. Zulle quit shortly before reaching the summit. The
32-year-old rider finished second behind Armstrong in 1999 but this
year had struggled, starting Wednesday in 47th place and 86 minutes
behind the leader.
Lelli's teammate on Cofidis, Chris Peers of Belgium, also quit
the race before reaching Lausanne.
In all, just 130 riders among the 180 who started the race July
1 remained at Wednesday's finish. The lone American-sponsored team,
Armstrong's U.S. Postal, is the only one with all nine members
still competing. | |
ALSO SEE
Stage Seventeen results
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Erik Dekker battles for his third stage victory.
avi: 1507 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Stage 17 course map
RealVideo: 28.8
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