Tour de France Daily Blog - Stage 18

The tour starts today in Albi, a charming southern French village with a lively market and nestled on the shores of the Tarn River. The Toulouse-Lautrec Museum is here, as is the stunning Cathedral Ste-Cecile. The route ends in Mende, an atmospheric city nestled in the middle of the countryside. Mende is the capital of the least populated department in all of France. The centerpiece of the village is its remarkable gothic cathedral, with a market held in its shadows. The surrounding area features endless outdoor recreation on water, in the mountains and in the countryside.
Results and standings
Lance Armstrong gained more time on some of his competitors, and continues to wear the yellow jersey. The general classification top 10 after Stage Eighteen:

• 1. Lance Armstrong (USA) DSC - 3,254.5km in 77h44’44" (41.664km/h)
• 2. Ivan Basso (Italy) CSC - at 2’46"
• 3. Mickael Rasmussen (Denmark) RAB - at 3’46"
• 4. Jan Ullrich (Germany) TMO - at 5’58"
• 5. Francisco Mancebo (Spain) IBA - at 7’08"
• 6. Levi Leipheimer (USA) GST - at 8’12"
• 7. Cadel Evans (Australia) DVL - at 9’49"
• 8. Alexandre Vinokourov (Kazakstahn) TMO at 10’11"
• 9. Floyd Landis (USA) PHO - at 10’42"
• 10. Christophe Moreau (France) C.A - at 13’15"

The results for Stage Eighteen:

• 1. SERRANO Marcos (Team LSW, Country ESP)
• 2. VASSEUR Cédric (COF, FRA) 00' 27"
• 3. MERCKX Axel (DVL, BEL) 00' 27"
• 4. ZANDIO Xabier (IBA, ESP) 01' 08"
• 5. PELLIZOTTI Franco (LIQ, ITA) 01' 08"
• 6. VOECKLER Thomas (BTL, FRA) 01' 28"
• 7. ROBERTS Luke (CSC, AUS) 01' 28"
• 8. KESSLER Matthias (TMO, GER) 01' 44"
• 9. MARTINEZ Egoi (EUS, ESP) 02' 03"
• 10. DA CRUZ Carlos (FDJ, FRA) 02' 38"

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