TOUR DE FRANCE - STAGE 13
A 'TOP 10' FOR CHRISTOPHE LAPORTE !

At the end of a long stage between Nîmes and Carcassonne, Christophe Laporte managed to finish 7th and the best Frenchman in the day's sprint. From now on, the whole team is looking forward to the next two stages. 

The song of the cicadas, the temperature rising above 25°C, the fields burnt by the sun and the constant need to stay hydrated... For the second day in a row, it was hot on the roads of the Tour, all along the 219,9 km between Nîmes and Carcassonne. While the breakaway was quickly within the reach of the peloton, the Cofidis riders did their best to protect Guillaume Martin in the peloton.

The stage however wasn't an easy one, with a crash that delayed Ruben Fernandez, even if the Spaniard was able to get back into the race. In the final, Christophe Laporte managed to get a good position and to cross the finish line in 7th place. He is the best Frenchman of the day.

Jesús Herrada and Guillaume Martin ready to make their move.

From tomorrow, the second weekend of competition in the Tour de France begins. For the Cofidis team, there will be plenty of opportunities to show itself. On Saturday, the 183.7km stage between Carcassonne and Quillan promises a steep course and a challenging scenario: five difficulties (2 of 3rd category, 3 of 2nd category) will be on the programme.

The next day, the road will sharply rise. The route between Céret and Andorra-La-Vieille promises to be tricky with one 2nd category pass and three 1st category passes before a final descent. The road conditions of this day, which have everything to make the leaders stand out, should allow Guillaume Martin to try his luck.

THEY SAID

Christophe LAPORTE: ""It was a long stage, very nervous in the final. We tried to ride in a group to protect Guillaume in the last 50km. Then, I tried to position myself for the sprint. Jelle did a very good job. After that, I got a little bit blocked in the last corner and I sprinted to get a place but I was too far to aim for the victory.

Guillaume MARTIN: "It was a long and exciting stage. The pattern was a bit unusual with the breakaway that took a long time to form and the race that was restarted with about 60km before the finish. A lot of teams were a bit afraid of the wind so there was a lot of tension all day long. That's what pushed everyone to be cautious and we were. It was a trouble-free day for us with a sprint finish and a place of honour for Christophe. I was feeling good, which is encouraging before the coming weekend. Tomorrow we have a stage that may suit my team-mates so they can aim for a stage win. And on Sunday, it will be my turn to compete!"

Bingen FERNANDEZ, sports director : "We were expecting a bit more explosive race at the beginning and that a bigger group would form for the breakaway. In the end, only three men got out with the sprinters' teams in control. The rest of the race was quite nervous, on the narrow roads where there is always the danger of crashes just like the one with 75 km to go. Ruben fell but fortunately he is fine. Up until the end, it was difficult for Guillaume and Christophe to keep a good position. Nevertheless, our sprinter was able to take part in the sprint and enter the 'top 10': being on his own, without any train, it's really a great performance!"”

STAGE 14
CARCASSONNE - QUILLAN (183,7 KM)