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12:18:42 - Welcome To The Live Coverage Of Stage 10

After a day of rest, the riders are just about to start rolling in the Tour de France again. The 10th stage, from Limoges to Issoudun (194.5km) is scheduled to begin at 12.30pm with a brief neutral zone. The official start is expected to be at around 12.40pm.

There were a few showers in Limoges yesterday but the conditions on Bastille are dry, so far, although there could be some rain during the stage.

Live coverage of the stage will begin shortly.

12:20:48 - No Two-Way Radios In Today's Stage

There is a special ruling in place for the 10th stage from Limoges to Issoudun. There will be no radio communication with the riders.

12:33:41 - Peloton In Neutral Zone

The peloton is on its way to the site of the official start of stage 10. In the following newsflashes, we will post a review of who wears what prize jersey after nine stages of the 2009 Tour de France.

12:34:40 - Prize Classification Review: Part 01 – Yellow Jersey

Today is Rinaldo Nocentini’s third day in the lead of the general classification. He moved up the rankings from 32nd overall to first after being part of an escape group during stage seven, to Arcalis, Andorra. He has a lead of six seconds on 2007 champion Alberto Contador and eight seconds on seven-time winner Lance Armstrong. Another Astana rider is ranked in the top four: Levi Leipheimer is fourth, 39” behind the Italian from AG2R La Mondiale. Rounding out the top five is two-time individual pursuit Olympic champion, Bradley Wiggins of the Garmin-Slipstream team. The British rider is just 46” behind Nocentini.

12:35:15 - Prize Classification Review: Part 02 – Green Jersey

After nine stages, the points classification is a two-man race. Thor Hushovd (CTT) is in the green jersey for the second day this year. He has 117pts in the “sprinters competition”, 11 more than former leader Mark Cavendish (THR). Third place is held by the consistent Spanish sprinter Jose Joaquim Rojas (GCE), who has 75pts. Gerald Ciolek (MRM) is ranked fourth with 66pts. Last year’s green jersey winner Oscar Freire (RAB) led the peloton home behind the two escapees in stage nine and earned 15pts to take his total to 62pts.

12:36:48 - Prize Classification Review: Part 03 – Polka-Dot Jersey

Egoi Martinez (EUS) is the fifth leader of the climbers’ category in five days. The recent Kings of the Mountains have been Jussi Veikkanen (from stages two to five), Stephane Auge (stage six), Brice Feillu (stage seven), Christophe Kern (stage eight) and now Martinez. The Spaniard has 78points, while his predecessor on the throne, Kern (COF) has 59pts. In third is the runner-up in Tarbes, Franco Pellizotti (LIQ) – who led over the col du Tourmalet in stage nine – is now third with 55pts.

12:37:50 - Racing In Stage 10

The 10th stage of the 2009 Tour de France began at 12.37pm. There are 171 riders in the race with no one retiring on the rest day.

12:38:42 - 1.5km Raced: No Attacks

There have been no successful escapes so far in the 10th stage. The FDJ team is at the front of the bunch which is now at the 1.5km mark.

12:40:21 - 2.5km Raced

There have been a few moves by riders from the Skil-Shimano team but they have been chased down early today. The peloton is all together at the 2.5km mark.

12:42:29 - Skil-Shimano Insisting

The main aggressors early today are Skil-Shimano riders. Hupont is currently in the lead by a small margin.

12:43:27 - Hupont Leads By 5"

Vaugrenard (FDJ) and Ignatiev (KAT) are 5" behind Hupond at the 5km mark. The peloton is at 15".

12:44:47 - Three Leaders

At the 5.5km mark Hupond (SKS), Vaugrenard (FDJ) and Ignatiev (KAT) are together with a lead of 30" on the peloton. Dumoulin (COF) is chasing the three escapees. He is 15" behind.

12:46:07 - Prize Classification Review: Part 04 – White Jersey

Tony Martin (THR) continues to lead the youth classification from Andy Schleck (SAX), Vicenzo Nibali (LIQ) and the only other rider to have worn the white jersey this year, Roman Kreuziger (LIQ). The winner of this category last year (ie. the younger of the Schleck brothers) did puncture in the final five kilometers of stage nine but rejoined the peloton before the finish thanks to some great team support from Jens Voigt which meant that the Luxembourger didn’t lose any time in the general classification.

12:46:26 - Prize Classification Review: Part 05 – Team Rankings

Rinaldo Nocentini and his colleagues at AG2R La Mondiale will ride the 10th stage with the yellow ‘dossards’ representing their status as leader of the team classification. The French squad has an advantage of just three seconds on the team time trial winners, Astana. In third place in this category is Columbia-HTC which is 4’45” behind.

12:47:20 - Peloton At 45"

The Agritubel team is currently leading the peloton that is 45" behind Hupond, Ignatiev and Vaugrenard.

12:47:59 - Dumoulin At 25"

Dumoulin is still trying to bridge the gap to the three leaders. He is at 25", the bunch is at 50".

12:48:32 - Three Climbs: Three Sprints

There are three hills at the start of the stage, each ranked cat-four. They are the cote de Salvanet (12.5km) cote de Saint-Laurent-les-Eglise (27.5km) and the cote de Benevent-L’Abbaye (58.5km). The three intermediate sprints are dispersed evenly throughout the stage. Points for the green jersey will be awarded in Lauriere (44km), Aigurande (122.5km) and Saint-Aout (167.5km)

12:49:04 - Lead Up To One Minute

Vaugrenard, Ignatiev and Hupond are now 1'00" ahead of the peloton.

12:52:55 - Four In The Lead

Dumoulin (COF) has caught the leading trio. There are now four riders in the lead and not even a small delay at a level crossing (where they had to wait momentarily) hindered their advantage by very much.

The peloton didn't have to stop for the train but it is currently 1'00" behind Dumoulin, Ignatiev (KAT), Vaugrenard (FDJ) and Hupond (SKS).

12:55:17 - Peloton 1'35" Behind At 11.5km

With the peloton at the 11.5km mark, the four leaders have an advantage of 1'35".

12:56:01 - Results Of The First Climb

The points for the cote de Salvanet (12.5km) were won by:

1. Ignatiev (KAT) 3pts

2. Hupond (SKS) 2pts

3. Vaugrenard (FDJ) 1pt

12:57:23 - Peloton At Top Of Climb

At the 12.5km mark, the peloton is 2'10" behind the four escapees.

12:58:39 - 40 Tours de France For John Wilcockson

There was a ceremony in Limoges at 10.30 this morning to celebrate the 40th participation in the Tour de France for British journalist John Wilcockson.

13:00:22 - Lead Will Grow Now

There are a number of riders in the peloton now taking the opportunity to answer the call of nature. The advantage of the four escapees is 2'45".

13:01:57 - 14.5km Raced: 3'10" Advantage

As the peloton passes the 14.5km mark, it is 3'10" behind Vaugrenard, Hupond, Ignatiev and Dumoulin.

13:03:48 - No Threat To Yellow Jersey

The four in the lead of stage 10 are no threat to Nocentini's overall lead. The best of the four escapees on GC after nine stages is Thierry Hupond (SKS) who began the stage in 104th place 52'21" behind the Italian in the yellow jersey.

13:06:19 - Two Columbia Riders Leading Peloton

At the 16km mark, two riders from the Columbia team have moved to the front of the bunch to set the tempo. They bunch is 3'40" behind Dumoulin's quartet.

13:07:42 - Wildcard Stage Winners

So far this year riders from two wildcard teams have won stages of the Tour de France. Thor Hushovd of the Cervelo TestTeam won in Barcelona and Brice Feillu from Agritubel won in Arcalis. Last year no rider from a wildcard team won a stage but Brice’s brother Roman wore the yellow jersey for a day as a member of the Agritubel team after being part of a four-man escape the day before the team time trial.

In 2007, two wildcard riders won stages: Mauricio Soler (Barloworld) in Briancon

Robert Hunter (Barloworld) in Montpellier.

13:08:55 - Wildcard Aggressor In Lead

Of the four men in the lead, one is from a wildcard squad. Thierry Hupond of the Skil-Shimano team was the first to escape the peloton in stage 10. He began his move in the second kilometer and was joined by Ignatiev (KAT) and Vaugrenard (FDJ) followed a few kilometers later by Dumoulin (COF).

13:10:14 - Two Former 'Combative' In Escape

Of the four riders in the lead, two have already been voted "Most Aggressive" in a stage of this year's Tour. Dumoulin (COF) and Ignatiev (KAT) have both worn the red 'dossard' that represents their status as the main aggressors of the previous stage.

13:11:55 - Most Aggressive Riders So Far

There is another prize category in the Tour de France, one that’s voted on by a panel of eight judges, which relates to the Most Aggressive Rider in each stage. The panel is: Jean-Francois Pescheux (the sport director of the race organizers, ASO), Bernard Hinault (five-time Tour winner), Thierry Adam (France Television), Laurent Jalabert (France Television), Philippe Bouvet (L’Equipe), Jean Montois (AFP), Christian Olliver (RTL) and Jacky Durand (Eurosport).

This classification does not include time trials.

The rider who earns the most votes for a stage wears a red “dossard” with white numbers the following day.

The winners so far this year are: Stef Clement (RAB) stage two; Samuel Dumoulin (COF) stage three; Mikhail Ignatiev (KAT) stage five; David Millar (GRM) stage six; Christophe Riblon (ALM) stage seven; Sandy Casar (FDJ) stage eight; and Franco Pellizotti (LIQ) stage nine.

13:12:21 - How The Escape Formed...

The first attack came from Hupond (SKS) who broke free at 2km. He was chased down by Ignatiev (KAT) and Vaugrenard (FDJ) and caught at 3.5km. At 5km, Dumoulin (COF) was in a counter-attack. He was at 25” and the peloton at 45”. The escapees had to wait briefly at a level crossing but they maintained a lead of the bunch: 1’35” at 11.5km; 3’45” at 16km. Then Columbia put two riders on the front of the peloton. At 20km, the four lead by 3’25”.

13:14:14 - The Nations Represented...

So far nine riders have abandoned the Tour de France. There are 171 riders still in the race and the breakdown is as follows:

39 – France: originally 41 but Sebastien Joly (FDJ) quit during stage seven and David Le Lay (AGR) abandoned during stage eight.

25 – Spain: originally 28 but Oscar Pereiro (GCE) and Eduardo Gonzalo Ramirez (AGR) both abandoned during stage eight and Koldo Fernandez (EUS) finished outside the time limit in stage eight.

15 – Germany

14 – Italy: originally 15 but Daniel Napolitano (KAT) finished outside the time limit in stage eight.

10 – Belgium: originally 11, but Jurgen van de Waelle (QSI) abandoned after breaking a collarbone in a crash in stage two.

9 – Netherlands: originally 11 but Piet Rooijakkers abandoned after a crash in stage four and Robert Gesink fractured a bone in his left arm in a fall in stage five.

8 – Russia

7 – USA

6 – Australia

4 – Great Britain

3 – Denmark, Luxembourg and Switzerland

2 – Austria, Belorussia, Colombia, Japan, Norway, New Zealand, Portugal and Ukraine

1 – Canada, Finland, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Sweden

13:18:46 - Peloton 3'35" Behind

At the 25km mark, the peloton is 3'35" behind the four escapees: Hupond (SKS), Ignatiev (KAT), Dumouin (COF) and Vaugrenard (FDJ).

13:21:10 - Results Of Second Climb

At the 27.5km mark, the points for the climb were won by:

1. Ignatiev (KAT) 3pts

2. Hupond (SKS) 2pts

3. Dumoulin (COF) 1pt

13:21:53 - Peloton At 3'50"

At the top of the second climb, the peloton is 3'50" behind Dumoulin, Hupond, Ignatiev and Vaugrenard.

13:25:10 - Three French Riders In Lead Group

Of the four riders in the lead of the 10th stage, three are French. It is the public holiday for Bastille Day.

13:26:31 - Ignatiev Not Contributing To Pace...

The Russian in the escape group, Mikhail Ignatiev (KAT) has stopped taking turns of pace at the front.

13:27:33 - Rabobank, Quickstep & AG2R Lead Peloton

At the moment riders from the Rabobank, AG2R and Quickstep teams are at the front of the peloton that is 3'40" behind Dumoulin, Hupond, Ignatiev and Vaugrenard.

13:29:51 - LeTour.fr's Survey For Today...

Each day there is a poll on the official site of the Tour de France. Today's question relates to the new rule that has banned radio communication with riders during the stage. Make sure you visit LeTour.fr to offer your take on the rule.

The question for today is:

The 10th stage will be raced without radio contact between directeurs sportif and the riders. Will this make the race more open?

What do you think?

13:37:01 - Peloton Closing In On Leaders

At the 35km mark, the peloton is 3'00" behind. The maximum gain for Dumoulin, Ignatiev, Vaugrenard and Hupond was 3'50" at the 27.5km mark.

13:38:34 - Average Speed For First Hour

The leaders have raced 38.6km in the first hour of stage 10.

13:41:25 - Arashiro: Third In 2008 Tour du Limousin

The 10th stage is being raced in Limousin. This region hosts a stage race each August. Last year, the winner was Sebastien Hinault (FRA) who finished one second ahead of Allan Davis (AUS) while third place went to one of the two Japanese riders in this year's Tour de France Yukiya Arashiro.

13:45:08 - Dumoulin A Stage Winner Of Tour du Limousin...

In 2005, one of the riders in the escape group today (Samuel Dumoulin) won a stage of the Tour du Limousin. He was second overall, 1'48" behind Sebastien Joly that year.

13:47:26 - Roche A Stage Winner In Limousin

The first stage of the 2008 Tour du Limousin was won by Nicolas Roche. It was a 166km race from Limoges to Gueret.

13:48:47 - Results Of First Sprint In Stage 10

The points for the intermediate sprint in Lauriere (44km) were won by:

1. Samuel Dumoulin (COF) 6pts

2. Thierry Dupond (SKS) 4pts

3. Benoit Vaugrenard (FDJ) 2pts

13:49:33 - Peloton At 44km

The peloton has just passed the site of the first intermediate sprint with a deficit of 2'50".

13:50:35 - Peloton At 3'10"

At the 45km mark, the peloton is 3'10" behind the four escapees.

13:54:15 - Prize Money Earned In Nine Stages

After nine stages of the 2009 Tour de France, the Bbox Bouygues Telecom team has won more prize money than any other squad. With two stage victories (for Voeckler and Fedrigo), it has earned a total of 31,650 euros. The other team with two stage wins – Columbia-HTC (Cavendish) is the next best earner with 28,460 euros.

Then comes: Astana (23,200 euro), Liquigas (22,000 euros) and Caisse d’Epargne (20,360 euros).

13:56:43 - Milram & AG2R Leading Peloton

The peloton is near the 50km mark of the 10th stage. It is being led by riders from the Milram and AG2R teams and is 3'10" behind the four escapees.

13:58:17 - Armstrong Consults Team Car

Around the 53km mark, Armstrong called for the Astana team car. The rider in third overall is part of the peloton that's now being led by two Rabobank riders and is 2'50" behind the four escapees.

14:04:29 - Nocentini Leads Contador By 66 Meters

After 1,377km of racing in the 96th edition of the Tour de France only six seconds separates first overall from second. Nocentini has ridden the first nine stages in 34h24’21” – resulting in an average speed of 40.022km/h. Some basic maths tells us that the distance between first and second in the general classification is approximately 66.7 meters.

14:05:45 - Leaders On Third Climb

The escapees are about to contest the sprint at the top of the Benevent-l'Abbaye climb. The line is at the 58.5km mark. They are currently 2'30" ahead of the peloton.

14:08:11 - Andy Schleck Punctures

The champion of Luxembourg has a flat rear tire. He is now receiving a new wheel from his Saxo Bank team mechanic.

14:09:05 - Ignatiev Sitting In...

Of the four leaders, only the French representatives - Dumoulin, Vaugrenard and Hupond - are doing turns in the wind. The Russian, Mikhail Ignatiev is refusing to come through to do a turn of pace.

14:11:00 - Schleck Returns To Peloton

After his puncture, a leader of the Saxo Bank team (Andy Schleck) has returned to the peloton.

14:11:43 - Results Of 2nd Climb

The points for the third hill of the 10th stage - the cote de Benevent-de-l'Abbaye, 58.5km - were won by:

1. Thierry Hupond (SKS) 3pts

2. Benoit Vaugrenard (FDJ) 2pts

3. Samuel Dumoulin (COF) 1pt

14:13:04 - Peloton At 2'25"

The peloton is not allowing the four escapees to gain much time. At the 58.5km mark, the bunch was 2'25" behind.

14:15:04 - Quickstep & Lampre Leading Peloton

Carlos Barredo and Marzio Bruseghin are the two riders currently at the front of the peloton. The Spaniard is consulting his stage summary and having a chat to the Italian at the front of the group that is currently 2'35" behind four escapees.

14:18:26 - Lead Grows Beyond Three Minutes

Dumoulin, Vaugrenard, Hupond and Ignatiev are now 3'05" ahead of the peloton which is led by an array of teams today. Currently AG2R and Liquigas are on the front.

14:24:46 - French Winners On Bastille Day

In the history of the Tour, there have been 22 French winners on the 14th of July. Here is a summary of those victories on the French national holiday for Bastille Day.

- Georges Passerieu in Marseille in 1906

- Marcel Cadolle in Lyon in 1907

- Charles Crupelandt in Marseille in 1911

- Henri Pelissier in Geneve in 1923, in Montpellier in 1930 and in Cannes in 1931

- Antonin Magne in Dieppe in 1928

- Alphonse Antoine in Nimes in 1937

- Amedee Foumier in Nantes in 1939

- Emile Idée in 1949 in Nîmes

- Jean Robic in 1953 in Luchon

- Jacques Vivier in 1954 in Vannes

- Jean Bourles in 1957 in Ax-les-Thermes

- Jacques Anquetil in 1961 in Périgueux and in a time trial in Paris in 1964

- Roger Pingeon in 1968 in Albi

- Raymond Delisle in 1969 in Luchon

- Bernard Thévenet in 1970 in La Mongie and again in 1975 in Serre-Chevalier

- Bernard Labourdette in 1971 in Gourette

- Mariano Martinez in 1980 in Morzine

- Vincent Barteau in 1989 in Marseille

- Laurent Jalabert in 1995 in Mende and again in 2001 in Colmar

- Laurent Brochard in 1997 in Loudenvielle

- Richard Virenque in 2004 in Saint-Flour

- David Moncoutie in 2005 in Digne-les-Bain

14:28:04 - AG2R Doing Most Work

In the last 10 minutes, the team that's spent the most time on the front of the peloton is AG2R. It has led for 62 per cent of the time. Currently, the deficit for the main pack is 3'15".

14:32:42 - Vaugrenard A Winner In Limoges Before

One of the riders in the lead of stage 10, Benoit Vaugrenard (FDJ) won the fourth stage of the Tour du Limousin last August. He beat the winner of stage nine in this year's Tour de France, Pierrick Fedrigo (BBO).

14:36:37 - Peloton At 73km

At the 73km mark, the peloton is 2'45" behind the four escapees.

14:40:15 - Average Speed For Second Hour

The average speed for the four escapees in the second hour was 36.2km/h. The average speed for the first two hours today: 37.4km/h.

14:40:51 - Redant – “It’s a little bit busier in the convoy…”

“It’s pretty quiet for us today. We’ve got much less to do,” said Hendrik Redant of the Silence-Lotto team when contacted recently by LeTour.fr. “It does seem a little different in the convoy because of the radio ruling. We aren’t talking as much because we can only rely on a rider dropping back to the team car and then, because the others from the team are in the first 40 riders, it takes 10 minutes before the messenger can relay any message.

“Also, it does seem a little bit busier in the convoy because all the managers are a little more anxious to move forward so they can see their riders and talk to them if necessary. Normally we could do that from anywhere in the convoy.”

Until this year, Redant had made a habit of not taking radios to the first race of the season, the Tour Down Under in Australia, as he thought that it was a good way for the riders to get to know each other and how they raced. But the Belgian did take radios to Australia this year because "it's modern cycling and that's now part of racing..."

14:49:09 - Gueret Due Soon...

The leaders are 2'25" ahead of the peloton. The next town on the itinerary is Gueret which hosted a stage finish of the Tour de France in 2004. The winner was Robbie McEwen but the bunch only just caught two escapees before setting up the bunch sprint. Filippo Simeoni and Inigo Landaluze were reeled in during the final kilometer before McEwen hit the turbo button and claimed the victory.

14:53:19 - Lead Down To 1'30"

The four escapees are now in Gueret and have a lead of just 1'30" on a peloton that's being led by an eclectic array of teams including Caisse d'Epargne, Columbia and Quickstep.

14:55:44 - Eisel Appears Discontent...

Bernhard Eisel of the Columbia team is now shaking his head at the front of the peloton. The chase was reeling in the four escapees relatively quickly but he seems to be hinting that the various teams at the front of the pack - mainly Quickstep of late - could ease the pace a little. The last time check had the four 1'45" ahead of the peloton.

14:59:50 - Arvesen Crashes

There has been a fall in the peloton involving Danny Pate (GRM) and Kurt Asle Arvesen (SAX).

15:02:10 - Falling Cyclists Riding Again...

Both Pate and Arvesen are riding again but Arvesen is grimacing and it doesn't look too good for the winner of stage 11 last year.

15:02:48 - Arvesen Not Consulting Doctor

The race doctor is beside Arvesen but the Norwegian didn't even look at him. He appears to be in pain after his crash but he is pedaling, albeit at a very tranquil pace.

15:03:53 - Advantage Grows Quickly

At the 90km mark, the peloton is 2'35" behind the four escapees.

15:05:05 - Leaders In Feedzone

Hupond (SKS), Dumoulin (COF), Vaugrenard (FDJ) and Ignatiev (KAT) are now in the feedzone at the 93km mark.

15:07:25 - Efimkin Punctures

Vladimir Efimkin (ALM) has puctured and he has already received a new wheel from his team mechanic. Christophe Riblon waited for the Russian to help him back to the peloton.

15:09:52 - Arvesen Now Consulting Doctor

Arvesen did rejoin the peloton but as it rolled through the feedzone, the Norwegian signaled for a consultation with the race doctor who has now come up alongside the rider who fell around the 88km mark.

15:11:21 - Cancellara Gives Arvesen A Feed...

Arvesen didn't take a feedbag in Glenic but now his colleague Fabian Cancellara is emptying the contents of his 'musette' and handing it to Arvesen.

15:12:53 - Peloton At 2'00"

Now there are riders from Lampre and Liquigas at the front of the peloton that's now 2'00" behind the four escapees.

15:17:57 - Vasseur A Winner In La Chatre

At the 146km mark of today's stage, the cyclists will pass through La Chatre. This is where the fifth stage of the 1997 Tour de France concluded. The winner was Cedric Vasseur who was 2'32" ahead of his team-mate at the time, Stuart O'Grady who was making his debut in the Tour de France that year.

15:28:55 - Ignatiev Never Leads...

The Russian in the escape is refusing to do any work. He bridged the gap to Hupond along with Vaugrenard. They have been at the front of the stage since the 3km mark but the Katusha rider has been following the wheels of his fellow fugitives since around the 12km mark.

15:33:36 - Average Speed For Third Hour

The average speed for the third hour is 38.2km/h; and the average for the first three hours combined is 37.7km/h.

15:40:34 - Various Teams Lead

Riders from Milram, Quickstep, Liquigas, Lampre, Columbia, Rabobank and Caisse d'Epargne have been at the front of the peloton during the stage. Currently the deficit of the bunch to the four leaders is down to 1'30".

15:41:44 - Ignatiev On The Attack For 347km So Far This Year

Ignatiev has not been contributing to the pace today but he surely has his reasons. Consider this: he attacked the peloton in the final 10km of the second stage, was on the attack in stage five for 177km and finished second (to Voeckler) after holding off the sprint of the peloton in Perpignan. He bridged the gap to the early escapees along with Luis Leon Sanchez in stage eight... and has spent a total of 227km on the attack before today.

Already he's been at the front of this stage for 120km and clearly he's keep to save his energy should, for some reason, his group be able to hold off the peloton.

15:55:52 - Results Of Second Intermediate Sprint

The points for the sprint in Aigurande (122.5km) were won by:

1. Benoit Vaugrenard (FDJ) 6pts

2. Thierry Hupond (SKS) 4pts

3. Samuel Dumoulin (COF) 2pts

15:57:04 - Peloton Teasing Escapees...

A rider from the Columbia team has come forward each time the advantage of the four escapees drops to around 1'30". They are clearly trying to allow the fugitives to remain at the front until as close to the finish as possible.

The peloton did get as far behind as 3'50" (at the 27.5km mark) but for most of the day the deficit has been between 1'30" and 2'30" and the bunch seems to be at ease on this first day of racing without earpieces for the cyclists.

16:03:47 - Astana Send Rast Forward

The leaders are now 1'25" ahead. Gregory Rast of the Astana team is now at the head of the bunch and the fugitives are in the same straight as the peloton...

16:08:06 - Leipheimer Calls Team Car...

Levi Leipheimer has dropped behind the peloton to consult the team car.

16:17:59 - Cavendish's First Stage Victory In Chateauroux...

Last year's fifth stage of the Tour de France finished in Chateauroux which is just west of where the race currently is. The winner of that stage was Mark Cavendish who would go on to win another three times before abandoning his second Tour before the Alps.

The Columbia rider beat four green jersey winners that day: Oscar Freire (2nd), Erik Zabel (3rd), Thor Hushovd (4th) and Baden Cooke (5th).

16:23:47 - 50km To Go

The leader have 50km to go in the 10th stage. They are 1'30" ahead of the peloton which is now at the 142km mark.

16:25:51 - When Will Ignatiev Attack...?

Ignatiev has been in the lead since the third kilometer but he's hardly done a turn of pace in the escape. He has just removed his arm warmers and must be considering an attack at some moment today... on the velodrome he is irrepressible: line him up, watch him go...! He must be growing bored with the way that today's stage is panning out. If anyone can begin to animate the stage, it's the Russian Tour debutant...

16:28:31 - La Chatre: Site Of Vassuer's Victory

The peloton has arrived in La Chatre. It was here, at the end of the 262km fifth stage in 1997 that Cedric Vasseur beat the peloton to the line after being in a long escape. He won by 2'32" and took over the lead of the general classification.

16:30:20 - Vaugrenard Working The Most

Of the four leaders, the one who has spent the most time at the front of the bunch in the last 10 minutes is Benoit Vaugrenard of the Francaise des Jeux team. The percentage breakdown is:

Vaugrenard (FDJ) 41%

Dumoulin (COF) 32%

Hupond (SKA) 27%

Ignatiev (KAT) 0%

16:38:16 - Average Speed For Fourth Hour...

The leaders covered 41.1km in the fourth hour of stage 10. The average for the first four hours today is 38.5km/h.

16:39:40 - Comments From Garmin

LeTour.fr recently contacted Matt White of the Garmin team to get his thoughts on the stage so far and find out what the plans are for the finish. "Clearly," he said, "they're just going to keep the escape honest and chase it down to set up a bunch sprint in the final few kilometers."

The question was posed: when will the Garmin boys go to the front of the bunch to start working for Tyler Farrar? "Ah, with about 700 meters to go. That's about when we'll start working... the other teams are prepared to do the work so we'll play it cool and see how things go."

16:51:52 - Lead Down To 1'00"

As the peloton passes the 32km to go mark, it is 1'00" behind Dumoulin (COF), Vaugrenard (FDJ), Hupond (SKS) and Ignatiev (KAT).

16:52:59 - 30km To Go

The leaders are less than 30km from the finish and finally Ignatiev has decided to do some work. He's rolled through for a 30 second turn of pace... it's his first moment in the wind all day long.

16:54:12 - Leaders Near Final Intermediate Sprint

The four escapees are about to contest the sprint in Saint-Aout (167.5km).

16:56:15 - Result Of Final Intermediate Sprint

The points for the sprint in Saint-Aout (167.5km) were won by:

1. Thierry Hupond (SKS) 6pts

2. Benoit Vaugrenard (FDJ) 4pts

3. Dumoulin (COF) 2pts

16:58:10 - Peloton At 1'00"

At the site of the intermediate sprint, the peloton was 1'00" behind.

16:58:29 - 25km To Go

The leaders have less than 25km to ride before reaching the finish in Issoudun which is hosting a stage of the Tour de France for the first time today.

16:59:10 - Four Lead By 50"

As the peloton arrived at the 25km to go banner, it was 50" behind Dumoulin's quartet.

17:00:52 - Preparing To Set Up Sprint

Riders from Quickstep, Columbia, Liquigas, Lampre, Milram, Rabobank and Caisse d'Epargne have all been leading the peloton but no team has sent riders up in numbers. Now that the advantage of the four escapees has dropped to just 40" we can see a group of Columbia riders moving forward... just as the team manager Bob Stapleton arrives at the finish with team consultant Erik Zabel by his side.

17:03:01 - Escape Almost Over

The pace of the race has picked up. There are less than 20km to go and the bunch is now 28" behind Hupond (SKS), Dumoulin (COF), Vaugrenard (FDJ) and Ignatiev (KAT).

17:05:21 - Arvesen In Pain Today...

Last year, in the 11th stage Kurt Asle Arvesen was the winner. He beat Martin Elmiger in a tight sprint after being in an escape for much of the day. The Norwegian champion claimed his only stage victory in the Tour in Foix 12 months ago. Today, he crashed around the 88km mark and has been at the rear of the peloton almost ever since. He appears to be in considerable pain but has not spent much time with the race doctor since his accident.

17:08:42 - Leaders Build Their Advantage

Hupond (SKS), Dumoulin (COF), Vaugrenard (FDJ) and Ignatiev (KAT) have been able to increase their advantage as they pass under the 15km to go sign. They are 42" ahead of the peloton.

17:09:21 - Milram, Liquigas & Quickstep Not Getting Closer...

The Milram, Liquigas and Quickstep teams are leading the peloton but they are failing to reel in the escapees who are still 40" ahead despite the efforts of the teams of Ciolek, Bennati and Boonen...

17:12:56 - 10km To Go

The escapees have just passed under the 10km to go mark. Now Eisel (THR) has come to the front of the peloton. The deficit is down to 33".

17:14:49 - No More Discussions From Team Cars

With the peloton inside the last 10km of the stage, the team cars are no longer allowed to go up to the riders.

17:16:01 - Ignatiev Accelerates

With the peloton 30" behind, Ignatiev has lifted the tempo at the front. He is matched by Dumoulin, Hupond and Vaugrenard.

17:16:46 - Columbia Into The Lead

There are now riders from Columbia and Quickstep on the front. The advantage of the four escapees has dropped to 25" with 6km to go.

17:18:48 - Ignatiev Now Doing The Most Work...

After sitting on for most of the day, the Russian rider in the escape has just spent 32 percent of the last 10 minutes on the front of the quartet that's 22" ahead of the bunch.

17:19:44 - 4km To Go

The green jersey can be side near the head of the peloton. Hushovd is currently riding beside the world champion, Alessandro Ballan, with the Belgian champion, Tom Boonen, just ahead of him. The bunch is just 12" behind the lead group with less than 4km to go.

17:21:49 - Ignatiev Not Conceding

The peloton is just 11" behind the four leaders and Ignatiev - a pursuit specialist - launched a strong acceleration. He was chased down by Hupond, Dumoulin and Vaugrenard.

17:22:36 - 2km To Go

Capture of the four is imminent. Hupond is the last to give him but the peloton has caught the other escapees.

17:23:19 - All Together 1,400m from finish

There has been a crash on a right turn with 1,400m to go. It's just as the last of the escapees was reeled in.

17:23:55 - Columbia In Control

With 1km to go, there are now four Columbia riders at the front of the bunch. Hushovd is on the wheel of Cavendish...

17:24:21 - Cavendish Again!

Cavendish has delivered as expected. He received the perfect lead-out from Mark Renshaw and now the Columbia captain has claimed his third victory this year.

17:25:38 - Cavendish Holds Off Hushovd

Cavendish has held off Hushovd in the sprint. The green jersey never seemed capable of coming off the wheel of the British sprinter who now has a total of seven stage victories in the Tour de France.