• Tour de France, Stage 14

Riblon cruises to victory

Christophe Riblon secured AG2R La Mondiale's first stage victory on the Tour de France © Getty Images

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Christophe Riblon survived a lonely finish to the run-in into the ski resort of Ax-3 Domaines as he enjoyed a dominant victory on Stage 14 of the Tour de France.

The French rider gave his AG2R La Mondiale team its first stage victory as he battled solo to the finish, crossing the line nearly a minute ahead of Denis Menchov and Samuel Sanchez, who were battling for third place in the general classification.

Riblon was the sole survivor of an early breakaway after Team Sky's Geraint Thomas lead the escape just 25km into the stage. The group of nine were allowed to build up a gap of 10 minutes.

The battle between race leader Andy Schleck and defending champion Alberto Contador continued, as a cat-and-mouse game emerged and the pair finished together, a further 15 seconds behind. Schleck maintains his hold on the yellow jersey with a 31 second lead, while Sanchez took advantage of the tactical battle between the pair to close his deficit to 2:31.

Lance Armstrong's disappointing tour continued as he was dropped early on the climb to the summit of Port de Pailheres. The seven-time Tour champion trails the leaders by nearly 40 minutes. Britain's Bradley Wiggins also struggled on the final climb and slipped 18th in the general classification.

Stage 14: Revel- Ax 3 Domaines
1. Christophe Riblon - AG2R La Mondiale- 4:52:42
2. Denis Menchov - Rabobank - +0.54
3. Samuel Sanchez- Euskaltel
4. Andy Schleck - Saxobank - +1.08
5. Joaquin Rodriguez - Katusha
6. Robert Gesink - Rabobank
7. Alberto Contador - Astana
8. Jurgen Van Den Broeck - Omega Pharma-Lotto
9. Damiano Cunego - Lampre - Farnese - +1.49
10. Carlos Sastre - Cervelo

General Classification after Stage 14
1 Andy Schleck - Saxo Bank - 68:02:30
2 Alberto Contador - Astana - +0:00:31
3 Samuel Sanchez - Euskaltel - +0:02:31
4 Denis Menchov - Rabobank - 0:02:44
5 Jurgen Van Den Broeck - Omega Pharma-Lotto - 0:03:31
6 Robert Gesink - Rabobank - +0:04:27
7 Levi Leipheimer - Radioshack - +0:04:51
8 Joaquin Rodriguez - Katusha - +0:04:58
9 Luis León Sánchez - Caisse d'Epargne - +0:05:56
10 Ivan Basso - Liquigas Doimo- +0:06:52
14 Nicolas Roche - AG2R La Mondiale +08:03
18 Bradley Wiggins - Sky - +0:11:30
19 Cadel Evans - BMC - +0:12:39
38 Lance Armstrong - Radioshack - 0:39.44

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