Paris, France (Sports Network) - Lance Armstrong won his fifth consecutive Tour de France title on Sunday.
Armstrong led since Stage 8 of the race and did not relinquish the yellow jersey thereafter. Armstrong finished with a 61-second edge and is just the second rider to win five straight Tour titles, joining Miguel Indurain of Spain. Indurain turned the trick between 1991 and 1995.
The 31-year-old native of Texas also became the fifth rider to win the Tour de France five times.
German Jan Ullrich ended second, while Alexandre Vinokourov was third overall at the end of Sunday's grueling 152-km final stage from Ville d'Avray to Paris.
Frenchman Jean-Patrick Nazon won Sunday's 20th and final stage in 3 hours, 38 minutes and 49 seconds, edging Baden Cooke and Robbie McEwen of Australia. Ullrich finished with the same time in 59th place, while Armstrong finished in 112th place -- 15 seconds behind.
Ullrich was the 1997 Tour winner and has now finished second in the Tour five times. Vinokourov was 4:29 behind.
Richard Virenque of France earned a sixth King of the Mountains jersey and equaled the record held jointly by Spain's Federic Bahamontes and Belgian Lucien van Impe.
Cooke edged fellow countryman and last year's winner McEwen to win the points standings green jersey.
Denis Menchov of Russia was 11th overall and won the under-25 classification.
Belgium's Eddy Merckx, and Frenchmen Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault are the other riders who have won the Tour five times.
07/27 12:09:41 ET
http://sportsnetwork.com/default.asp?c=sportsnetwork&page=other/news/AON2711491.htm
Armstrong led since Stage 8 of the race and did not relinquish the yellow jersey thereafter. Armstrong finished with a 61-second edge and is just the second rider to win five straight Tour titles, joining Miguel Indurain of Spain. Indurain turned the trick between 1991 and 1995.
The 31-year-old native of Texas also became the fifth rider to win the Tour de France five times.
German Jan Ullrich ended second, while Alexandre Vinokourov was third overall at the end of Sunday's grueling 152-km final stage from Ville d'Avray to Paris.
Frenchman Jean-Patrick Nazon won Sunday's 20th and final stage in 3 hours, 38 minutes and 49 seconds, edging Baden Cooke and Robbie McEwen of Australia. Ullrich finished with the same time in 59th place, while Armstrong finished in 112th place -- 15 seconds behind.
Ullrich was the 1997 Tour winner and has now finished second in the Tour five times. Vinokourov was 4:29 behind.
Richard Virenque of France earned a sixth King of the Mountains jersey and equaled the record held jointly by Spain's Federic Bahamontes and Belgian Lucien van Impe.
Cooke edged fellow countryman and last year's winner McEwen to win the points standings green jersey.
Denis Menchov of Russia was 11th overall and won the under-25 classification.
Belgium's Eddy Merckx, and Frenchmen Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault are the other riders who have won the Tour five times.
07/27 12:09:41 ET
http://sportsnetwork.com/default.asp?c=sportsnetwork&page=other/news/AON2711491.htm
