In a day filled with crashes caused by dumb luck, dumb people and bad weather, the end of the race thankfully ended up being about people riding bikes well, as Spaniard Luis Leon Sanchez out-sprinted Thomas Voeckler at the end of Stage 9 to take the win on the day. Though he will be happy with the stage victory, the big winner of the day is Voeckler, who captured yellow by finishing second in the breakaway, well ahead of the peloton.
Tour de France 2011 Live, Stage 9 Results: Luis Leon Sanchez Wins, Thomas Voeckler Takes Yellow
The breakaway included five men for most of the race, but a bizarre crash in which a French TV car hit Juan Antonio Flecha and Johnny Hoogerland, injuring both. They both continued after the crash, but both fell well off the back of the peloton. Earlier in the day, a crash on a descent forced all of Alexander Vinokourov, David Zabriskie, and Jurgen van den Broeck to withdraw from the race. David Millar and Andreas Kloden were also involved, but were able to continue.
Philippe Gilbert won the sprint among the members of the peloton, finishing in fourth place and expanding his lead in the green jersey competition. Though, despite that, the crashes, and Sanchez’s win, the story on Sunday night and Monday’s rest day will be Frenchman Thomas Voeckler, who once again has captured a yellow jersey with some aggressive riding.
If you’re looking for live coverage and updates online, be sure to stay with our 2011 Tour de France StoryStream. Also be sure to check out the full route and schedule for this year’s race.
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