Cadel digs deep in Alpine showdown
Cadel Evans was left to lead the chase of Andy Schleck after the Luxembourger's daring Alpine attack left the Australian without allies on the Tour de France's toughest climb.
Schleck took a giant stride towards a maiden Tour de France triumph as Spanish rival Alberto Contador suffered a dramatic collapse and Evans was forced to claw back Schleck's lead on an epic 18th stage over three hors categorie climbs.
Schleck, the runner-up the past two years to the Spaniard, took all his rivals by surprise with an attack on the second of two major climbs, the Izoard, over 60km from the finish of the 200km stage.
Building a lead of four minutes on race leader Thomas Voeckler, Evans and Contador, the Leopard-Trek rider then went on to finish solo on the legendary summit of the Galibier.
Older brother Frank Schleck finished second at 2min 07sec, with Evans at 2:15 and Voeckler a handful of seconds behind.
"It seems like the Schleck brothers had the best climbing team, in combination. They put it all on the line and they really had to do a long-range attack," 2009 world champion Evans said after the finish.
No team really took control of the chase of Schleck, thinking he would tire or hoping others would do the work.
That left Evans to tow yellow jersey Thomas Voeckler, Frank Schleck and Ivan Basso to the line at the top of the Galibier.
Schleck, helped by team-mate Maxime Monfort and two early escapees, doubled his lead between the top of the Izoard pass and the foot of the Galibier on flat terrain which should have favoured the chasers.
"Just on a numbers basis, with 20 to 30 kph block headwind up a valley, we are in a group of 40 with one to nine guys riding at the front, and they are in a group of four riding at the front. They really rode fast at the front, I don't quite understand how they made so much time," Evans said.
"Euskaltel had the most riders there at one point with four guys and they were riding with three or others, but still losing time," Evans said.
"I had to put it on the line, but it was my Tour to win and mine to lose.
"It's also a bit bizarre when (Tour leader Thomas) Voeckler's team stops riding and he has the yellow jersey. They've ridden a lot all week, but he still had a team-mate in the end and just sort of looked at me to do the work."
The Australian, Tour runner-up in 2007 and 2008, took the chase into his own hands in the finale, climbing most of the last ascent on his own with the other favourites on his heels.
He probably was the fastest man on the Galibier, a performance that earned him praise from three-times Tour champion Alberto Contador, whom he dropped in the final kilometre.
"He did an incredible job and really showed what he's made of," the Spaniard said.
While the Schlecks now look in control ahead of the final day in the Alps, a 109.5 km stage to Alpe d'Huez tonight, Evans remains very much in contention and will be even more so if he manages to limit the damage on Friday.
The penultimate stage on Saturday is a 42.5 km time trial in Grenoble and Evans is the strongest in the overall top ten in the discipline.
His team manager Jim Ochowiz said: "Cadel did a great job. This race is not over. Tomorrow's another day."
ABC/wires