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Armstrong stays clear of trouble; Ullrich improves
Lance Armstrong stuck to the main pack and stayed out of danger on Sunday, finishing in 63rd place during the second stage of the Tour de France which was won by Belgium's Tom Boonen. Armstrong, going for a record seventh straight Tour victory before he retires, finished in the same time as Boonen and kept his grip on second place in the overall standings. American David Zabriskie retained the yellow jersey as the leader. Armstrong resumed his strong pace after delivering an early blow to his rivals on Saturday with a second-place finish in the opening time trial. "My legs were terrible," Armstrong joked. "Actually, I feel pretty good. I figure the faster I pedal, the faster I can retire." Although Armstrong wasn't looking to win the stage, he felt nervous about it. Flat stages favor sprinters, meaning there is often a mad rush to the finish in which riders can be involved in a crash. "Everybody's a bit nervous, everybody's cracking a little bit," Armstrong said. "These finishes still scare me. I won't miss them." Boonen won the 181.5-kilometer (113-mile) ride from Challans to Les Essarts in 3 hours, 51 minutes, 31 seconds, just ahead of Norway's Thor Hushovd, who posted the same time. Australians Robbie McEwen and Stuart O'Grady were third and fourth, also with the same time. "It was a sprint for the strong riders, so it was an advantage for me," Boonen said. "It was not a problem." Armstrong's main rival, Jan Ullrich, failed to gain any ground on Armstrong but his 19th-place finish was an improvement on Saturday's time trial. Although the German is still feeling the effects of crashing through the rear window of his team car during training on Friday, Armstrong believes Ullrich remains a serious threat. "I talked to him today," Armstrong said. "If you go into the back of the car and shatter the window with no helmet on that's got to affect you. So you can't take anything away from him after the way he rode yesterday. He'll be better in a few days' time." Ullrich said he woke up on Sunday feeling much better. "I felt pretty good," he said. "I felt fine and was able to stay with the leaders toward the end of the stage." With less than three kilometers (1.9 miles) remaining, French rider Samuel Dumoulin fell. According to Tour race rules, if a rider falls with less than three kilometers (1.9 miles) left, those in the main pack are awarded the same time as the winner. In Armstrong's case, this meant he did not finish five seconds behind Boonen but instead was accorded the same time. Dumoulin was one of 10 riders to crash during the stage. He has a deep gash to his left knee but is expected to continue. Early in the stage, four riders _ Thomas Voeckler, Laszlo Bodrogi, David Canada and Sylvain Calzati _ broke from the main pack. With nearly 16 kilometers (10 miles) left, Voeckler, Canada and Calzati dropped Bodrogi, and he was soon reeled in by the group of riders behind. With 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) to go, the trio held a 23-second lead over the chasing group, but they were caught six kilometers (3.7 miles) from the end. In the final few hundred meters (yards), McEwen surged ahead, forcing Boonen and Hushovd to follow. Boonen's exceptional sprinting meant he was able to pass McEwen close to the line and hold off Hushovd. Monday's third stage is a flat, 212.5-kilometer (131.8-mile) course from La Chataigneraie to Tours and again favors sprinters, meaning Armstrong again will try to avoid trouble.
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