Peters gives France surprise stage win

LOUDENVIELLE (France) • There was joy and disappointment for the hosts as Nans Peters won the eighth stage of the Tour de France after a long breakaway in the Pyrenees yesterday, while fellow Frenchman Thibaut Pinot as good as lost all hope of winning the race.

Peters took his first career Tour de France stage win - the 141km mountainous trek from Cazeres-sur-Garonne - after proving to be the strongest in a 13-rider breakaway.

It was the first Tour stage win for his team AG2R La Mondiale in three years.

Trek-Segafredo's Toms Skujins finished second and Movistar's Carlos Verona was third. The duo were 47 seconds behind.

"I told myself, believe, believe, believe," Peters said after soloing to the finish in Loudenvielle in just over four hours.

A French stage win was the tonic home fans needed on a day their best hope to end the country's 35-year title drought - Groupama-FDJ's 30-year-old Pinot - was dropped on the Port de Bales 41km from the finish as injuries from an opening-day crash took their toll.

Dutchman Tom Dumoulin also cracked, while defending champion Egan Bernal struggled on the second ascent.

Briton Adam Yates hung on to the overall leader's yellow jersey, managing to cross the line with the main contenders despite being dropped several times on the ascent of the Col de Peyresourde.

He leads pre-race favourite Primoz Roglic, who looked in control throughout, by three seconds and France's Guillaume Martin by nine.

Roglic's fellow Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, who had lost time on a stage fraught with crosswinds on Friday, was the most successful attacker. He regained 40 seconds to move up to ninth place overall, 48 seconds off the pace.

REUTERS