Tour de France : Dutchman Is Winner of 14th Leg

Laurent Fignon and Greg LeMond reached the base of the Alps seven seconds apart Saturday with an important time trial looming in the Tour de France.

Jelle Nijdam of the Netherlands won the 14th leg as the cyclists prepared to head into the mountains.

Fignon, the French 1983 and 1984 winner, and LeMond, the only American champion in the race, stayed 1-2 on the eve of today’s 25-mile stage from Gap to Orcieres-Merlette. The route has two climbs rated first category in steepness and difficulty. The second ends the leg at 6,003 feet above sea level.

LeMond won the last time trial to Rennes July 6, putting him in the lead for five days. Fignon paced his Super U squad to victory in the team time trial July 2.

Fignon took the overall lead last Tuesday and still has a seven-second margin over LeMond.

Charly Mottet is third overall, 57 seconds back.

Defending champion Pedro Delgado of Spain is fourth, 3:03 out of the lead, with Andy Hampsten of the United States fifth, 5:18 behind.

Saturday, Nijdam won in a sprint over French rider Pascal Poisson in the 148-mile journey from Marseille to Gap.

It was Nijdam’s second individual stage win of the Tour. He won the fourth stage that re-entered France at Wasquehal July 4.

Poisson and Frans Maasen of the Netherlands made an attempt about six miles from the end,before Nijdam caught them and won in 6 hours 26 minutes 55 seconds.

The rest of the pack followed two seconds behind, with the overall standings relatively unchanged.

Kelly-Ann Way of Canada moved into the overall lead of the women’s Tour de France as American Katrin Tobin won the fourth stage.

Two-time champion Jeannie Longo of France dropped to second overall.

Tobin’s victory came in the 60-mile jaunt from Dignes-Les-Bains to Gap. She was timed in 2 hours 42 minutes 5 seconds, which put her 55 seconds ahead of Way, who took the overall lead by 23 seconds over Longo.