TOUR DE FRANCE : LeMond Drops to 2nd American

When Greg LeMond was 17, he was a spectator at the Tour de France. He perched on the side of the Col de Joux Plane, a punishing six-mile mountain climb at a 10% grade in the French Alps.

The 18th stage of the Tour de France hardly brought back fond memories for the three-time winner while climbing the Col de Joux Plane in the rain Wednesday.

LeMond, suffering through his most frustrating Tour because of injuries and illness, lost 7 minutes 52 seconds to overall leader Miguel Indurain of Spain, dropping to eighth place overall. LeMond finished pale and appeared despondent as he rode away from reporters at the finish line.

Midway through the race, after LeMond had been left behind by the main field of riders, his trainer, Otto Jacome, said: “I am surprised Greg is not doing better. He said he was feeling better this morning (Wednesday), and the infection he had was gone.” LeMond had been said to have a viral infection that had affected him the past few days.

Indurain finished in 11th place with a group that included all the lead riders but LeMond, leaving the overall top 10 places virtually intact, albeit a little jumbled in fifth through 10th place. The main race is still between Indurain and Italian Gianni Bugno, who remains 3:09 behind the 27-year-old Spaniard. Wednesday’s stage took the 164 remaining cyclists from Bourg d’Oisans through the Alps via the 1992 Winter Olympic host city of Albertville, France, to the resort town of Morzine, near the Swiss border.

On a day that featured three climbs of more than 5,000 feet with perilous descents, continuous rain and an estimated 1 million spectators, France’s Thierry Claveyrolat, one of the world’s top climbers, won the 160-mile race in 7:26:47.

The big development for Americans was the finish of Andy Hampsten of Boulder, Colo., who moved into seventh in the overall standings with a strong effort Wednesday.

“At this point, all you try to do is hang on,” said Hampsten, who finished fourth in the 1986 Tour de France and was part of LeMond’s winning team. “The Alps always seemed tougher than the Pyrenees.

“I’ve ridden six Tours. I would have to say this is my most consistent Tour so far. This year I’m much stronger and I feel I can compete at a much higher level against guys like Indurain and Bugno and LeMond.”

LeMond’s level seems to be dropping with his ever-increasing fatigue.

“I did my maximum, but at the moment I am at a dead end,” LeMond told the Associated Press. “I have a dead battery.”