Defending champion Tadej Pogacar produced a devastating solo attack to take the yellow jersey on a rain-soaked stage eight of the Tour de France.
Pogacar 22, animated the race, riding clear of his rivals on the penultimate climb of the Tour’s first day in the Alps which ended in Le Grand-Bornand.
It saw him land a major blow in the general classification with fellow pre-race favourites Geraint Thomas and Primoz Roglic both distanced early on.
Belgium’s Dylan Teuns won the stage.
Ion Izagirre was second, 44 seconds behind Teuns, with Michael Woods three seconds further back in third.
Pogacar, who eased off late on, content with the damage he had inflicted on his rivals for the overall victory, finished a couple of seconds after Woods.
The Slovenian now leads Belgium’s Wout van Aert, who is not a climbing specialist and expected to lose more time in the mountains, by one minute and 48 seconds in the…
