Thomas Voeckler is well out of contention for the yellow jersey at the 2012 Tour de France. He proved on Stage 10 that he is still a rider to be reckoned with, however, winning the 194.5 km ride to Bellegarde-sur-Valserine for his third career stage win.
2012 Tour de France Results, Stage 10: Thomas Voeckler Wins Ride To Bellegarde-Sur-Valserine
A fivesome of Voeckler, Luis Leon Sanchez, Michele Scarponi, Dries Devenyns and Jens Voigt led a hard-charging escape from the Peloton. Voigt didn’t join the other four riders until just eight kilometers. He attempted an attack but was quickly consumed by the other four. Devenyns then took a stab at breaking away with three kilometers ago, but was quickly followed by Voigt, and eventually Voeckler before falling back.
With under 1.5 kilometers to go, Voeckler found himself in first place. He held off his rivals, finishing three seconds ahead of Scarponi, who also put on an impressive, albeit late show to the finish.
Voeckler took the podium three times after the race. He took over the polka dot jersey as the leader in the best overall climber classification after winning the grueling Col du Grand Colombier category H climb. Voeckler was also voted the stage’s most competitive rider.
Bradley Wiggins will hold onto the yellow jersey after finishing in a group of 16 riders at 3:16 back from Voeckler. You can check out the Top 10 in the overall classification below.
- Bradley Wiggins, Sky
- Cadel Evans, BMC, at 1.53
- Chris Froome, Sky, at 2.07
- Vincenzo Nibali, Liquigas, at 2.23
- Denis Menchov, Katusha, at 3.02
- Haimar Zubeldia, Radioshack-Nissan, at 3.19
- Maxime Monfort, Radioshack-Nissan, at 4.23
- Jurgen Van Den Broeck, Lotto-Belisol, at 4.48
- Nicolas Roche, AG2R, at 5.29
- Tejay Van Garderen, BMC, at 5.31
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