ISSOIRE, France, July 10 (Reuters) - Hardy Tour de France leader Thor Hushovd has proved a better climber than he expected and another solid showing in Sunday’s 208-km ninth stage to St Flour could allow him to keep the yellow jersey until the Pyrenees.
“I rode above my limits but I feel very well at the moment. It’s a fantastic Tour for me,” said the Norwegian world champion after keeping the leader’s jersey by one second in Super- Besse on Saturday.
The long ride in the Massif Central is the one with most climbs in this Tour and even though the seven hills on the course cannot be compared to the Pyrenees or the Alps, the stage could again be damaging should the rain fall as forecast.
Yet Hushovd showed in the first hilly stage of this Tour on Saturday that he is no longer a pure sprinter and has the means to stay with the very best in such mid-mountain terrain.
“I live in Monaco and I train in the hills overlooking the principality with Philippe Gilbert, who pushes me in the climbs. All this work is paying off,” he said.
Belgian champion Gilbert, the first-stage winner, will be among the leading favourites once again after finishing second in Super-Besse behind Portugal’s Rui Costa.
Deprived of their injured leader Bradley Wiggins, Team Sky’s Geraint Thomas or Edvald Boasson-Hagen could play their own cards or join a winning breakaway.
While it remains unlikely that leading contenders Alberto Contador, Cadel Evans and Andy Schleck will launch hostilities just yet, many points will be at stake in the King of the Mountains classification and 22-year-old American Tejay Van Garderen will have to fight hard to retain his polka-dot jersey.
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