Sport - Cycling

Cavendish wins 12th stage

NARBONNE (FRANCE): Mark Cavendish of Britain won the 12th stage of the Tour de France on Thursday, hours after cycling’s showcase race was thrown into chaos with a third doping bust this year and netting the biggest name yet.

Cavendish earned his third stage win this year by leading a group sprint after the trek through rolling hills and plains for the 168.5-kilometre ride from Lavelanet to Narbonne.

Cadel Evans of Australia retained the overall leader’s yellow jersey, trailing in the main pack. He has a one-second lead over Frank Schleck of Luxembourg and a 38-second lead over American rider Christian Vande Velde.

Cavendish, a Team Columbia rider who had never won a Tour stage before this year, outpaced Sylvain Chavanel of France in second and Gert Steegmans of Belgium in third.

But the race was badly overshadowed by the latest doping case. Italian rider Riccardo Ricco was detained by police and booed by spectators before the stage began, becoming the third person this year to test positive for performance enhancer EPO.

Ricco’s Saunier-Duval team withdrew from the Tour and suspended all its activities after news of the rider’s test. For the third straight year, the race has been marred by doping.

Ricco, a 24-year-old Italian who won two Tour stages this year, tested positive for the performance enhancer after the fourth stage, a time trial in the western town of Cholet. — AP

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