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Ag2rChristophe Moreau (F)Cyril Dessel (F)(DNF - Stage 15)John Gadret (F)José Luis Arrieta (Sp)Stéphane Goubert (F)Martin Elmiger (Swi)Ludovic Turpin (F)Sylvain Calzati (F)(DNF - Stage 11)Simon Gerrans (Aus) AgritubelFreddy Bichot (F)Moise Dueñas (Sp)Romain Feillu (F) (Withdrawal Stage 8)Eduardo Gonzálo (Sp)(Crash - Stage 1)Cedric Hervé (F) (Time Cut - Stage 8)Nicolas Jalabert (F)Juan Miguel Mercado (Sp)Benoit Salmon (F)Nicolas Vogondy (F) Astana-(The entire team withdrew from the Tour following news of Vinokourov's positve doping test)Antonio Colom (Sp)Maxim Iglinskiy (Kz)Serguei Ivanov

Weather: Warm, highs in low 90s, moderate tail, crosswinds Stage winner: Daniele Bennati (Lampre-Fondital) marked late attacks from Jens Voigt to win a four-up sprint ahead of Markus Fothen (Gerolsteiner). Bennati overcame pain from a stage 2 crash to sneak into the day’s eight-man break. It’s his first career Tour stage and the second by an Italian in this year’s Tour. Race leader: Alberto Contador (Discovery Channel) took the yellow jersey following the controversial ejection of overnight leader Michael Rasmussen by his Rabobank team. Contador didn’t wear the maillot jaune during the

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Discovery on the hunt

Steegmans cools off with a bottle.

COURSE: The rolling terrain of the Armagnac region is perfect for breakaways, especially when a weary peloton is reluctant to chase. There are six climbs on this medium-length stage, but none of them is particularly steep or long. The final 60km is mainly flat. HISTORY: No stage has finished in Castelsarrasin, though it has hosted a start. Stage finishes have taken place in the neighboring towns of Montauban (1998) and Valence d’Agen (1978). Frenchman Jacky Durand headed a six-man break that arrived in Montauban 7:45 ahead of the pack in 1998, while the Valence d’Agen stage in '78 was

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Caisse d'Epargne takes over

In the break. Who else? Jens Voight, bandages and all.

The Tour de France set out here on Thursday for the 17th stage rocked by the doping scandal that has ousted yet another rider: yellow jersey leader Michael Rasmussen. Rasmussen was kicked out of the race by his Dutch team Rabobank late on Wednesday for lying about where he was last month - he had said he was in Mexico when in fact he was in Italy. There had also been revelations that he had missed four random, out-of-competition dope tests over the past 18 months. Despite the devastation, Rabobank informed Tour organizers before the start of Thursday's stage that it planned to let its

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Elmiger and Bennati

Discovery is suddenly in the lead.

“The Tour is dead,” commented the French daily Liberation and the German paper Bild on Thursday after the dramatic dropping of yellow jersey Michael Rasmussen from the Tour de France late on Wednesday. For much of the European press, Rasmussen's withdrawal by his Rabobank team – followed by his sacking Thursday - was the death knell for the world's greatest cycling race and posed enormous questions about the future of the sport itself. The only bright spot for the organizers was that while television audiences sharply declined in Germany — the two public broadcasters took it off the

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Bennati gets it

And the team's new leader.

Michael Rasmussen has reacted angrily to being kicked out of the Tour de France and sacked by his team after allegedly lying about his whereabouts during a missed random dope test. Rabobank dramatically split with Rasmussen after the Danish rider had consolidated his race lead with victory in Wednesday's 16th stage. The Dutch team justified its action by saying Rasmussen had lied when he said he'd been in Mexico rather than Italy for one of the four dope tests he failed to show up for in the past 18 months. But, in an interview with Danish newspaper B.T. Rasmussen questioned his

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

And there's a new man in yellow

Contador, on his way to his first yellow jersey, and his firt press conference as Tour leader.

Rabobank has issued a statement regarding the withdrawal and sacking of Michael Rasmussen, and has announced that it has conducted an additional doping control on its remaining team members. The text of the statement appears in its entirety below. — Editor Rabobank is shocked and disappointed of the fact that Michael Rasmussen gave false information in regards to his whereabouts. Apparently he did not stay at the address that he reported to the UCI and he did not send the report in a timely manner. UCI has issued a rightful warning to Rasmussen for this delayed provision of information. As

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Blick keeps the Z-man looking sharp

Results - Stage 17 (Pau - Castelsarrasin)1. Daniele Bennati (I), LAMPRE-FONDITAL, 4:14:042. Markus Fothen (G), GEROLSTEINER, 4:14:043. Martin Elmiger (Swi), AG2R PREVOYANCE, 4:14:044. Jens Voigt (G), TEAM CSC, 4:14:045. David Millar (GB), SAUNIER DUVAL - PRODIR, at 02:41 6. Matteo Tosatto (I), QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC, at 02:43 7. Manuel Quinziato (I), LIQUIGAS, at 03:20 8. Daniele Righi (I), LAMPRE-FONDITAL, at 03:20 9. Tom Boonen (B), QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC, at 09:37 10. Sébastien Chavanel (F), FRANCAISE DES JEUX, at 09:37 11. Robert Hunter (RSA), BARLOWORLD, at 09:37 12. Robert FÖrster

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Big George and his splatter-specs

Australia's Cadel Evans suggested Thursday he has always harbored doubts over the sporadic performances of Denmark's Michael Rasmussen, who was thrown out of the Tour de France by his Rabobank team on Wednesday. After a week of suspicion over four missed random doping controls, his Dutch outfit finally cracked after learning that Rasmussen had been in Italy in June, and not in Mexico as he had claimed. Rabobank first threw the Dane out of the race, then sacked him on Thursday. In the wake of Rasmussen's exit, Discovery Channel's 24-year-old Spanish climber Alberto Contador,

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Stage 17 - Pau to Castelsarrasin (188.5km)

Got to win a stage to score a set of these

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on Thursday upped the stakes in the Tour de France's battle to save its damaged credibility by calling for a high-level summit to discuss the doping crisis. WADA president Dick Pound admitted he was concerned by developments in the Tour this week, which have seen yellow jersey Michael Rasmussen axed from the race and long-time favorite Alexander Vinokourov fail a test for blood doping. Now, WADA has offered to convene a high-level summit of all parties involved in cycling to have an in-depth discussion on how to deal with the problem of doping in the

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Stage 17 - Pau to Castelsarrasin (188.5km)

McEwen's special look

Disgraced Cofidis rider Cristian Moreni of Italy was released from police custody on Thursday after being detained since Wednesday, the Pau county prosecutor announced on Thursday. Moreni was arrested in the southwestern French town of Pau for questioning after the Italian failed a doping control on July 19, which subsequently led to the rider and his team withdrawing from the Tour de France. His team sacked him on Thursday. "Moreni has been released as from 1530 local time," said Erick Maurel, "The first wave of hearings is over." The Italian rider, who declined a second analysis after

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Shark feed! Nothing like a good doping scandal to get journalists away from the buffet.

British sport bosses want to bring the Tour de France back to London despite the doping scandals that have tarnished the event. The Tour has been plunged into chaos this week as race leader Michael Rasmussen was fired by his Rabobank team and thrown out of the race. The Danish rider's exit came hot on the heels of positive drug tests for Alexander Vinokourov and Cristian Moreni. But UK Sport, the government agency which spent 500,000 pounds to stage the opening stage in the English capital this month, are still keen to host the Tour again. The Grand Depart was watched by four million

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

Bennati takes the stage

Boonen answers questions ad nauseum at the stage.

Germany's Jens Voigt led the criticism of the drug-laden cheats who have plunged this year's Tour de France into new depths of the on-going doping crisis. CSC’s Voigt, who claimed his first-ever stage win here in 2001, finished last of a four-man breakaway after a long, hard 188.5km race from Pau to Castelsarrasin on Thursday as the peloton finally waved goodbye to the Pyrenees. The doping issues that have clouded this year's race, and led to the exclusion of former race leader Michael Rasmussen, as well as two entire teams, have hit the image of the Tour and the sport

Tour 2007: Updated Teams and Riders

A spectator holds a French newspaper headlined 'The Tour's death' before the start of the 17th stage between Pau and Castelsarrasin

Checking out the news in the village this morning.

After 10 days in the yellow jersey, Michael Rasmussen appeared to have beaten back all challengers in his pursuit of the top spot on the Tour de France’s final podium in Paris this coming Sunday. On Wednesday, he handily dispatched his nearest challenger – Discovery Channel’s Alberto Contador – winning the Tour’s most difficult stage and adding to his already-formidable lead as the race made its final trip into the mountains.

One of Switzerland's largest daily newspapers, Tages-Anzeiger, is stopping race coverage from the Tour de France immediately and will only report doping-related stories, an editor said on Wednesday. "We won't have reports of the race anymore. It doesn't seem to make sense to have a report on the day's stage because the doping issue overshadows everything," day editor Andres Buechi told AFP. Buechi said the Zurich newspaper's editors had decided just to give the stage and overall standings on the sports pages, alongside stories from their reporter following the Tour on

Cofidis confirmed Wednesday that its entire team will leave the Tour de France after rider Cristian Moreni tested positive for testosterone after last week's 11th stage. Moreni was officially thrown out of the race following the 16th stage after being told he had tested positive for testosterone. Cofidis officials, announced they will forgo their right to ask for analysis of a 'B' sample, also accepted the Tour's "invitation" to withdraw from the race, becoming the second team in 24 hours to exit France's national tour. The Kazakh-backed Astana team exited the race

Moreni leaves the Tour in the company of the gendarmes

Rasmussen extends his lead with a stage win

Leipheimer and Contador took second and third on what the former said may have been the hardest Tour stage he's ever seen

The race leader with four days to go

The first break

Rinero and the boys at work

The Sastre quartet

. . . which became a trio

Contador attacks . . .

. . . and attacks again, to no avail

And there's your winner

Riders from eight teams staged a sit-down protest against doping before the start of the 16th stage of the Tour de France here Wednesday. The protest, organized by six French and two German teams, was triggered by the news 24 hours earlier that pre-Tour favourite Alexandre Vinokourov had tested positive for blood doping. When the stage got underway the riders carrying out the demonstration waited for the rest of the peloton to move off before getting on their own bikes to tackle the last of three days climbing in the Pyrenees. AG2R's French cyclist Christophe Moreau described the

Stage 16- Orthez to Gourette (218.5km)

These little fans don't care about the doping

No respect: Rasmussen is not getting the cheers he had hoped for.

This is not the way Moreni - or his teammates - expected his day to end.

Fleeting glory? Rasmussen celebrates a win just hours before the illusion vanished.

Contador fought hard, but knows he will not overhaul Rasmussen

Rabobank's Bergsma meets the press

The young Spaniard had plenty of fans on the climb today

The Tour of California is rapidly becoming an early season favorite.

When you're really tired, even an asphalt mattress will do

COURSE: Only four days from the Tour finish, this final stage with a summit finish could see a spectacular showdown. It includes the extremely steep climb over the Col de Larrau (14km at 8 percent) into Spain, the return to France over the Pierre St.Martin (14km at 5.2 percent) and the short, sharp Marie-Blanque (9km at 8 percent) before heading up the longest, steepest side of the mythic Col d’Aubisque (16km at 7 percent). Only the strongest will be left to contest the stage — and the Tour. HISTORY: Although a stage has never finished on this (longer) western side of the Col d’Aubisque, a