Saint-Itienne, France: Thomas De Gendt won Saturday’s Tour de France eighth stage with a solo breakaway but home hero Julian Alaphilippe thrillingly won back the yellow jersey a day ahead of the Bastille Day national holiday.
In a breathtaking finish, defending champion Geraint Thomas survived a spectacular fall, but lost time to title rival Thibaut Pinot in the overall standings.
American Tejay Van Garderen, who crashed on seventh stage and broke a bone in his left hand, has dropped out of the race, his team, Education First, said. The fracture in the bone at the base of his thumb was diagnosed after the finish of Friday’s stage in Chalon-sur-Saone.
“I have no one to blame but myself, and I really hope that no one else got hurt because of me,” said Van Garderen in a statement released by the team on Friday night.
