Tour de France

TODAY’S STAGE 11 Highlights from the 10th stage of the Tour de France:

* Wednesday’s stage: The race reached its midway point as it moved out of the Alps and back onto flat roads with a 142.6-mile run from Tallard to the seaport of Marseille.

* Winner: Cedric Vasseur became the first French rider to win at this year’s Tour -- his first stage victory since 1997. Vasseur beat countryman Sandy Casar by inches, and Swiss rider Michael Albasini was third. All three finished in 5 hours 20 minutes 24 seconds.

* Yellow jersey: Michael Rasmussen of Denmark kept the overall lead by finishing safely in 30th place. He is 2:35 ahead of second-place Alejandro Valverde and 2:39 in front of third-place Iban Mayo.

* Quote of the day: “I think the possibility to dope is getting smaller and smaller. It’s a good sign that the system is starting to work.”

-- Linus Gerdemann reacts to T-Mobile teammate Patrik Sinkewitz’s

positive doping test

* Next stage: The 11th stage, today, again favors sprinters such as Tom Boonen of Belgium, who is in the green jersey. Boonen will look to consolidate his lead on a 113.4-mile ride from Marseille to Montpellier.

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STAGE 8 RESULTS

*--* 1. Cedric Vasseur, France 5:20:24 2. Sandy Casar, France Same time 3. Michael Albasini, Switzerland Same time 4. Patrice Halgand, France Same time 5. Jens Voigt, Germany Same time

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OVERALL LEADERS

*--* 1. Michael Rasmussen, Denmark 49:23:48 2. Alejandro Valverde, Spain 2:35 behind 3. I ban Mayo, Spain 2:39 behind 4. Cadel Evans, Australia 2:41 behind 5. Alberto Contador, Spain 3:08 behind

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