Tour de France : Ghirotto Wins 14th Stage; Delgado Extends Lead

Massimo Ghirotto of Italy took advantage of a wrong turn by Philippe Bouvatier of France in the closing seconds of Sunday’s mountainous run through the Pyrenees to win the 14th stage of the Tour de France.

Pedro Delgado of Spain put on a burst of speed in the final 1 miles to outdistance his chief competitors for the overall lead, stretching his margin over runner-up Steven Rooks of Holland to 3 minutes 28 seconds. Delgado’s overall time is 52:44.54.

Delgado later declared that “it is certain that I will win” the Tour if he still leads after today’s stage.

Bouvatier was leading the 101-mile stage from Blagnac to Guzet-Neige until the final 250 yards, when he turned the wrong way and missed the chute leading to the finish line. Bouvatier said that his mistake was caused by a policeman who pointed the cyclist in the wrong direction.

By the time Bouvatier recovered, Ghirotto had crossed the line in 4 hours 30 minutes 34 seconds, two seconds ahead of runner-up Robert Millar of Britain.

Cecile Odin of France, riding alone the last 19 miles, won the sixth stage of the women’s Tour de France by more than two minutes. Odin’s winning time was 2:33.43.

Jeannie Longo of France, winner of the race last year, maintained her overall lead by 40 seconds over Maria Canins of Italy, the champion in 1985 and 1986. Longo’s overall time is 10:45.05.