Stage 13 of the Tour de France didn't have any really difficult climbs, so it was viewed as another leg of the race for the sprinters -- and indeed, a sprinter did win the stage (Brit Mark Cavendish). But surprisingly, the biggest story of stage 13 was that the overall race leader, Brit Christopher Froome, lost nearly a minute of his lead. Two teams, Omega Pharma-Quick Step and Saxo-Tinkoff, decided to press the pace and were able to break the peloton into three groups. Froome was unable to stay in the lead group and lost time to those competitors in that group.This is the first time that Froome has shown any vulnerability in this year's race. Stage 14 will return to the mountains with some intermediate climbs, and stage 15 finishes with an incredibly difficult unrated climb. Can Froome hold on to the Yellow Jersey as the race moves back into the mountains, or will a competitor take it from him? This race just got a lot more interesting!
The stage also saw Alejandro Valverde, who was in second place, have an even worse day than Froome. He had a flat on his bike, and lost several minutes after being unable to get back to the lead group. He dropped all the way back to 16th place (12' 10" behind), destroying any chance he had at winning this year. Here are the stage 13 top finishers and the current standings:
STAGE 13 TOP FINISHERS
1. Mark Cavendish (Great Britain) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
2. Peter Sagan (Slovakia) Cannondale
3. Bauke Mollema (Netherlands) Belkin Pro Cycling
YELLOW JERSEY (Best Overall Time)
1. Christopher Froome (Great Britain) Sky Procycling
2. Bauke Mollema (Netherlands) Belkin Pro Cycling..........2' 28"
3. Alberto Contador (Spain) Saxo-Tinkoff..........2' 45"
4. Roman Kreuziger (Czech Republic) Saxo-Tinkoff..........2' 48"
5. Laurens Ten Dam (Netherlands) Belkin Pro Cycling..........3' 01"
6. Jakob Fuglsang (Denmark) Astana..........4' 39"
7. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step..........4' 44"
8. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Columbia) Movistar..........5' 18"
9. Jean-Christophe Peraud (France) AG2R La Mondiale..........5' 39"
10. Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver (Spain) Katusha..........5' 48"
11. Daniel Martin (Ireland) Garmin-Sharp..........5' 52"
17. Andrew Talansky (United States) Garmin-Sharp..........13' 11"
GREEN JERSEY (Best Sprinter)
1. Peter Sagan (Slovakia) Cannondale..........357 pts
2. Mark Cavendish (Great Britain) Omega Pharma-Quick Step..........273 pts
3. Andre Greipel (Germany) Lotto-Belisol..........217 pts
4. Marcel Kittel (Germany) Argos-Shimano..........177 pts
5. Alexander Kristoff (Norway) Katusha..........157 pts
6. Juan Antonio Flecha Giannoni (Spain) Vacansoleil-DCM..........110 pts
POLKA DOT JERSEY (Best Climber)
1. Pierre Rolland (France) Europcar..........50 pts
2. Christopher Froome (Great Britain) Sky Procycling..........33 pts
3. Richie Porte (Australia) Sky procycling..........28 pts
4. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Columbia) Movistar..........26 pts
5. Mikel Nieve Iturralde (Spain) Euskaltel-Euskadi..........21 pts
6. Alejandro Valverde (Spain) Movistar..........20 pts
WHITE JERSEY (Best Young Rider)
1. Michal Kwiatkowski (Poland) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
2. Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Columbia) Movistar..........0' 34"
3. Andrew Talansky (United States) Garmin-Sharp..........8' 27"
4. Romain Bardet (France) AG2R La Mondiale..........15' 51"
5. Tejay Van Garderen (United States) BMC Racing..........33' 24"
TEAM STANDINGS
1. Saxo-Tinkoff (Denmark)
2. Belkin Pro Cycling (Netherlands)..........2' 32"
3. AG2R La Mondiale (France)..........10' 37"
4. Radioshack Leopard (Luxembourg)..........14' 47"
5. Movistar (Spain)..........16' 14"
6. Katusha (Russia)..........22' 09"
7. BMC Racing (United States)..........31' 42"
8. Garmin-Sharp (United States)..........32' 17"
9. Omega Pharma-Quick Step (Belgium)..........39' 41"
10. Euskaltel-Euskadi (Spain)..........44' 24"
