Belgium’s Gert Steegmans won a bunch sprint on the Champs-Elysees as Spaniard Carlos Sastre won the Tour de France on Sunday. Steegmans benefited from an excellent lead-out by his Quick Step team-mates to beat Gerard Ciolek of Team Columbia by a comfortable margin on the cobblestones of central Paris. Germany’s Ciolek, a team-mate of quadruple stage winner Mark Cavendish, put in a late surge of pace but it was only enough to hold off green jersey Oscar Freire of Spain, who finished third.

Il belga Steegmans si aggiudica l’ultima tappa del Tour sui Campi Elisi. Lo spagnolo sale sul gradino più alto del podio, completato da Evans e Kohl. Italiani a secco pure nella frazione conclusiva.

Spaniard Carlos Sastre was poised to win the Tour de France after surprisingly resisting Australia’s Cadel Evans in the 53km time-trial. Spaniard Carlos Sastre was poised to win the Tour de France after surprisingly resisting Australia’s Cadel Evans in the 53km time-trial. Stage 20 from Cerilly to Saint Amand Montrond was won by German Stefan Schumacher. Gerolsteiner’s Schumacher, who also won the first time-trial of the race, clocked a best time of one hour three minutes and 50 seconds to beat Swiss Fabian Cancellara by 21 seconds, with Luxembourg’s Kim Kirchen coming home third.

Lo spagnolo della Csc Sastre difende senza problemi la maglia gialla nella penultima tappa, 53 chilometri a cronometro, e domani sfilerà a Parigi da leader. Sul podio al momento pure l’australiano Cadel Evans e l’austriaco Bernie Kohl. Al tedesco Schumacher il successo di giornata davanti a Cancellara.

National time trial champion Sylvain Chavanel claimed a third stage win for the host nation and his maiden Tour de France victory in the 165.5-km 19th stage from Roanne to Montlucon. The 29-year-old Cofidis rider, who recently signed a two-year deal to move to Belgian outfit Quick Step, beat out compatriot Jeremy Roy (Francaise des Jeux) after a 92 kilometre break-away. Columbia rider Gerald Ciolek finished third in front of German compatriots Erik Zabel and Heirich Haussler in the mass sprint that followed one minute and 13 seconds later.

Il francese Chavanel della Cofidis ottiene a Montluçon la prima vittoria in carriera al Tour battendo allo sprint il connazionale Roy, compagno di fuga per 83 km. Gruppo a 1′13″ regolato dal tedesco Ciolek. Classifica generale invariata: domani la cronometro decisiva. L’australiano Evans, favorito, deve recuperare 1′34″ sulla maglia gialla Sastre.

German Marcus Burghardt beat Carlos Barredo in a two-man sprint to claim his maiden Tour de France win in stage 18 after a 196.5-km ride from Bourg d’Oisans to St Etienne. The 25-year-old Burghardt (Columbia), who won Gent-Wevelgem in 2007 but gained more infamy for crashing into a dog on last year’s Tour, easily held off Quick Step’s Barredo in the finale after a 131-km break-away. Frenchman Romain Feillu took third place from Christophe Le Mevel and Mikel Astarloza in the first chase group, finishing at 3′33″ behind the two escapees.

Il tedesco Burghardt brucia allo sprint lo spagnolo Barredo, suo compagno di fuga per oltre 60 km. Il gruppo con la maglia gialla Sastre a quasi 7′. Il veronese, caduto al 30° km, prosegue fino al traguardo, dove arriva con oltre 20′ ma si ritira dal Tour.

Carlos Sastre climbed into the first yellow jersey of his career by winning stage 17 of the Tour de France atop the famous Alpe d’Huez. The Spaniard attacked at the beginning of the legendary climb and crossed the line more than two minutes ahead of his main rivals, including favourite Cadel Evans of Australia. Sastre takes over the Tour summit with a one minute, 24 second lead over his CSC team-mate Frank Schleck of Luxembourg. Germany’s Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner) is third at 1:33, while Silence-Lotto’s Evans sits perfectly poised in third place, at 1:34.

La 17ª tappa del Tour de France vede il successo solitario dello spagnolo della Csc Sastre che s’invola in salita e strappa al compagno Frank Schleck, quinto a 2′13″, la prima posizione in classifica generale. Cunego chiude 18° a 5′32″.

Frenchman Cyril Dessel won stage 16 of the Tour de France, while Denis Menchov lost crucial time from yellow jersey Frank Schleck on the descent from the highest mountain of the race. AG2R’S Dessel, who wore the yellow jersey for one day and finished sixth overall in 2006, was part of a four-man group that was able to attack on the final Cime de la Bonette-Restefond climb. The 33-year-old held off compatriot Sandy Casar in the final sprint to claim his maiden Tour victory in the 157-km ride from Cuneo to Jausiers, while fellow escapees David Arroyo and Yarloslav Popovych crossed in third and fourth respectively.

Il francese Cyril Dessel della Ag2r ha vinto la 16ª tappa del Tour de France, 157 km da Cuneo a Jausiers, precedendo in volata il connazionale Sandy Casar e lo spagnolo David Arroyo.

Credit Agricole’s Simon Gerrans took victory on a dramatic stage 15 of the Tour de France in Prato Nevoso that saw Frank Schleck (CSC) take the yellow jersey. While the Australian proved too strong for fellow breakaway riders Egoi Martinez (Euskaltel), Danny Pate (Garmin-Chipotle) and Jose Luis Arrieta (Ag2r) on the first-category mountain-top finish, drama unfolded further down the mountain as Schleck and Bernhard Kohl (Gerolsteiner) both moved away from race favourite Cadel Evans (Silence-Lotto) to take first and second places on the general classification respectively.

Frank Schleck della Csc sfila a Cadel Evans la maglia gialla all’arrivo della 15ª tappa, quella di Prato Nevoso, vinta da Simon Gerrans. Brutta caduta di Pereiro.

Green jersey holder Oscar Freire reasserted his position as the Tour de France’s top sprinter winning stage 14 from Nimes to Digne-les-Bains. The Spanish three-time world champion, who had not won a stage this year, prevailed in a sprint, beating Colombian Leonardo Duque of the Cofidis team. German veteran Erik Zabel came home third for Milram.

Lo spagnolo Oscar Freire firma la prima vittoria in questo Tour de France battendo allo sprint di Dignes il colombiano Duque e il tedesco Zabel. Ballan è sesto. Domani l’arrivo in Italia, a Prato Nevoso.

Briton Mark Cavendish easily held off Robbie McEwen to claim a fourth Tour de France sprint victory and a second straight win in stage 13. The 24-year-old Manxman, who broke Barry Hoban’s 35 year-old mark for number of stage wins by a Briton in a single Tour with victory in stage 12, comfortably added to his tally after the flat 182 kilometres from Narbonne to Nimes. Cavendish also became the first rider to win four stages at a single Tour de France since Italian Alessandro Petacchi did so five years ago.

Il Tour ciclistico celebra la quarta vittoria di Mark Cavendish. Quarta vittoria in quattro volate. Quando il gruppo piomba sul traguardo compatto, a 60 all’ora, questo inglese dell’Isola di Man è imbattibile. Stavolta ha dato un paio di metri all’australiano McEwen e al francese Feillu, dietro confusi tutti gli altri, da Steegmans a Freire, da Hushovd a Zabel.

Mark Cavendish became the first Briton to win three stages in one Tour de France after yet another dominant sprint performance in stage 12. The 23-year-old Manxman, who also eased to sprint victories in stages five and eight, again showed himself to be the fastest man in the peloton on a day that was marred by the news that double stage winner Riccardo Ricco had tested positive for EPO. Frenchman Sebastien Chavanel claimed second for Francaise Des Jeux in the mass sprint finale, while Belgian Gert Steegmans was third for Quick Step.

Mark Cavendish ha vinto la dodicesima tappa del Tour de France, la Lavelanet-Narbonne di 168,5 chilometri. L’inglese della Columbia ha battuto allo sprint il francese Sebastien Chavanel (Française des Jeux) e il belga Gert Steegmans (Quick Step). Quarto Zabel, quinto Freire, sesto Chicchi, primo degli italiani.