FanHouse Alberto Contador

With the Tour de France over, Alberto Contador didn't hold back from commenting on Lance Armstrong and showing how he really felt about his Astana teammate. Contador maintained three weeks of near silence about his tense relationship with Armstrong, but it was only a matter of time before he spoke out.

He never struck me as a man who could win by losing, not after conquering cycling and cancer and becoming one of the world's most inspirational souls. But in finishing third at the Tour de France, an event he once shaped into his personal Tour de Lance every summer, Lance Armstrong did his image more favors than he ever did during seven years of domination. He used to be an arrogant, combative and bitter cuss, an enemy of the French and a target of local doping sleuths/media poised to catch him in the steroids act.

But you'll never guess the headline Sunday in the sports daily L'Equipe, one of the news outlets that have portrayed him as a scandalous figure through the years. "Chapeau, Le Texan," it said. Or, hats off to the Texan.

PARIS (AP) -- Lance Armstrong's kids were dressed in yellow. He was not.

When the seven-time Tour de France champion returned to the Tour podium Sunday, his family was there. His fans were there. And so was rival and teammate Alberto Contador - wearing the coveted and hard-won yellow jersey.

Four years after his seventh Tour win, Armstrong capped his return with an impressive third-place finish. He had his clan on hand - son Luke, twin girls Grace and Isabelle, his mom, Linda, ex-wife, Kristin, and his girlfriend Anna Hansen, with their baby Max, sporting bright yellow shoes.

MONT VENTOUX, France (AP) -- Alberto Contador all but sealed his second Tour de France title Saturday, keeping the yellow jersey after a punishing mountain ride in the next to last stage. And almost certain to join him on the podium is Lance Armstrong.

Armstrong, a seven-time champion in his first Tour since 2005, held off attacks from his closest challengers in the dreaded climb up Mont Ventoux to hold third place. The 37-year-old Texan arrived in a small group that included Contador, his Astana teammate, and second-place Andy Schleck of Luxembourg.

AUBENAS, France (AP) - Alberto Contador stayed in command at the Tour de France with two days of racing left while teammate Lance Armstrong remained in third place as a daunting mountain climb awaits.

Mark Cavendish of Britain captured Friday's 19th stage in a sprint finish. He became the first racer to win five stages in a single Tour since Armstrong in 2004.

"This is a high point in my career," Cavendish told French TV.

ANNECY, France (AP) - Alberto Contador won the final time trial in the Tour de France on Thursday, and Lance Armstrong moved up one spot to third place overall.

Contador now looks all but assured of his second Tour victory after increasing his overall lead in the 18th stage, in which riders embarked one-by-one down the start ramp for the 40.5-kilometer (25.2-mile) stage in and around Annecy.

The 2007 champion finished the stage in 48 minutes, 31 seconds - beating Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland by 3 seconds. Russia's Mikhail Ignatiev was third, 15 seconds back.

LE-GRAND-BORNAND, France (AP) - Alberto Contador closed in on victory at the Tour de France Wednesday after finishing second behind Frank Schleck in the 17th stage as the race left the Alps.

Lance Armstrong trailed by more than 2 minutes and fell from second to fourth place overall in the 105-mile ride from Bourg-Saint-Maurice to Le Grand-Bornand - seen by many as the toughest stage this year.

The stage likely ended any realistic chance Armstrong had of overtaking his Astana teammate Contador, and the seven-time Tour champion will now have to fight for a place on the podium instead.

BOURG-SAINT-MAURICE, France (AP) - Lance Armstrong mustered one of his strongest showings yet at this Tour de France on Tuesday, a dazzling burst of acceleration from yesteryear that allowed him to keep second place.

The seven-time champion was so buoyed by the performance that he suggested to The Associated Press he could still contend for the yellow jersey if teammate and race leader Alberto Contador has a "bad day."

Armstrong, speaking after the 16th stage in the Alps, stressed he doesn't expect that to happen and only a "big shake-up" would allow for such a scenario.

When historians try to pinpoint the most heartbreaking day of the year, they need look only at Sunday and listen to this phrase.

"As far as I'm concerned, I'm happy to be his domestique."

That's what Lance Armstrong said after the famed Pontarlier-to-Verbier leg of the Tour de France. And as far as I'm concerned, the second-greatest story of the year just had its tires punctured with 500 miles to go.

The greatest would have been Tom Watson winning the British Open at age 89, or whatever he is. Right behind would have been a 37-year-old coming out of retirement to win the world's greatest bicycle race.

SION, Switzerland (AP) -- The tension with Lance Armstrong is all but gone in the crisp mountain air and the line of authority is clear. Now, Alberto Contador wants to concentrate on those teams intent on seizing his Tour de France lead.

The Spaniard used Monday's rest day to lay out his plan of attack to keep the yellow jersey he won by capturing the first stage in the Alps a day earlier.

Contador, the 2007 Tour champion, said his lead over other contenders "looks good" so far, but cautioned: "It's not done yet, we still have a hard week left to go."

Armstrong, the seven-time champion who returned to the race after 3 1/2 years of retirement, is in second overall - 1 minute, 37 seconds behind his Astana teammate.

The 37-year-old Texan has conceded that his chances of victory on the Champs-Elysees in Paris on Sunday are slim. He pledged to be a faithful support rider for Contador.