Flecha Wins Stage 11 of Tour

By Gerald Churchill
Jul 17, 2003, 13:07

Flecha takes the win. Photo copyright Fotoreporter Sirotti.

Juan Antonio Flecha (iBanesto.com) has won Stage 11 of the Tour de France. The Spaniard soloed home to win the 153.5-km ride from Narbonne to Toulouse in 3:29:33. Bram De Groot (Rabobank) outsprinted Isidro Nozal (ONCE) for second at 0:04. Lance Armstrong (U.S. Postal Service) remains the maillot jaune.

From the start, the racing was aggressive. After a number of abortive sallies, Flecha, De Groot, Stuart O'Grady (Credit Agricole), Carlos Da Cruz (La Francaise des Jeux.com), Michael Rogers (Quick Step), Nicolas Portal (Ag2r), Nozal, and Inigo Cuesta (Cofidis) attacked at 59 km. The break forged a 4:20 lead before Lotto and Vini Caldirola began to chase.

The bunch could not reel in the break. With 20 km left, Flecha attacked his companions. He was brought back, but a counterattack six km later succeeded. Flecha, whose surname means "arrow" in Spanish, shot an imaginary arrow as he reached the finish.

Armstrong and Schwarzenegger on the podium. Will Armstrong be as tough as Schwarzenegger in tomorrow's time trial? Stay tuned to Roadcycling.com to find out! Photo copyright Fotoreporter Sirotti.

In the overall, Armstrong leads Alexander Vinokourov (Telekom) by 0:21 and Iban Mayo (Euskaltel) by 1:02. Stage 12 might change this state of affairs. The rolling, somewhat technical, 47-km time trial from Gaillac to Cap'Decouverte should see Lance Armstrong, Jan Ullrich (Bianchi), David Millar (Cofidis), and possibly Tyler Hamilton (CSC) excel. Which of them will win? Check in at http://www.roadcycling.com/ and find out!

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