FanHouse Tour De France

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.

Stage 16 of the Tour de France brought us one of the most cringe-worthy crashes yet. Jens Voigt lost control of his bike at high speed on the long descent of the Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard and fell heavily on his right side, his body sliding along the pavement. According to the report, Saxo Bank team spokesman Brian Nygaard said Voigt was airlifted to a hospital in Grenoble. (Video after the jump.)

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.

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.

VERBIER, Switzerland (AP) -- Lance Armstrong all but conceded the Tour de France on Sunday to his teammate and rival Alberto Contador after the Spaniard blew away the pack and seized the yellow jersey as the race entered the Alps.

"As far as I'm concerned, I'm happy to be a domestique," Armstrong said, using French cycling jargon for a backup rider. "I'm proud of him."

The seven-time Tour champion moved up from fourth to second in the standings but lost time to his Astana teammate, whom he now trails by 1 minute, 37 seconds.

Contador, the 2007 Tour champ, basked in the support from the Texan.

The 14th stage of the Tour de France was marred by a fatal accident Saturday, as a 61-year-old woman crossing the road was struck and killed by a police motorcycle escorting riders. Two other spectators -- identified as ages 36 and 61 -- were injured after the motorcycle skidded into them, but thankfully are not in serious condition.

BESANCON, France (AP) -- Lance Armstrong was unfazed about slipping to fourth place at the Tour de France. Instead, he was riled that his former lieutenant, George Hincapie, was deprived of the yellow jersey - allegedly by a rival U.S. team.

Hincapie, the only man to be a teammate of Armstrong on all seven of his Tour victories, came within 5 seconds of the race lead in the 14th stage won Saturday by Russia's Serguei Ivanov.

The ride was marred by the death of a 61-year-old woman spectator after she was hit by an escorting police motorcycle while she crossed the course route. Two other fans were injured.

Columbia rider Hincapie finished the 124-mile stage from Colmar to Besancon in an 8-man group just 16 seconds after the Russian, who was 5 minutes, 36 seconds ahead of the main race contenders.

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COLMAR, France (AP) -- Lance Armstrong stayed in third place after a wet and chilly ride Friday and lost a crucial ally for the rest of the Tour de France when teammate Levi Leipheimer withdrew because of a broken wrist.

Germany's Heinrich Haussler won the 13th stage by outclassing the pack with a solo breakaway, and Italy's Rinaldo Nocentini kept the yellow jersey for a seventh straight day.

Armstrong, the seven-time champion, remained eight seconds behind Nocentini. Astana teammate Alberto Contador, the 2007 Tour champion, is second, six seconds back. Armstrong, Contador and other favorites were 6 minutes, 43 seconds behind Haussler.