Tour de France Capsules: Rivals relieved to reach mountains

CHATEAUROUX, France (AP) — Finally, the mountains.

After seven days of narrow, sinewy roads and sometimes fierce rain, Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck await a change of scenery. They made it through the crash-marred first week of the Tour de France relatively unscathed. Although the hills in Saturday's eighth stage are far less daunting than the climbs to come in the Pyrenees and Alps, they will be a welcome sight.

"It will be a relief after several nervous and dangerous stages," Schleck said.

British sprinter Mark Cavendish won Friday's seventh stage. He did so in the same town — Chateauroux — where he won the first of his 17 Tour de France stages in 2008. Norway's Thor Hushovd kept the yellow jersey.

Another British rider, Sky team leader Bradley Wiggins, was knocked out of the race after breaking his left collarbone in a crash that took down several riders.

Cadel Evans remained in second place, one second behind Hushovd. Schleck is 12 seconds behind in seventh and Contador is 1:42 off the lead in 24th.

Bigger gaps may start to appear by Saturday evening after the first of two straight medium mountain stages — although Contador and Schleck might not attack each other just yet.

"Whether any of the favorites will be dropped depends on whether the race is hard from the gun," Contador said. "Hopefully, tomorrow when I wake up I'll be in perfect condition."

Saturday's ride up to the Super-Besse ski resort gives Contador, Schleck and Evans a chance to distance themselves from lesser climbers.

"The time gaps will be small but large enough to shift the overall classification," Schleck said.

The stage ends with a short but sharp climb up to Super-Besse.

"It cannot be underestimated," Schleck said.

Contador was left with cuts and bruises when he came off his saddle two days ago. Wiggins, who finished fourth overall in 2009, was not so lucky Friday.

The same crash also claimed RadioShack veteran Chris Horner. He fractured his nose and rode for almost 24 miles on sheer grit. He was later diagnosed with a concussion and a bruised calf, and his team will decide Saturday morning if he can keep racing.

Cavendish, who rides for HTC-Highroad, sprinted out of the pack in the last few hundred yards, beating Alessandro Petacchi and Andre Greipel to the finish.

Cavendish celebrated the same way as in 2008, clasping his head in both hands at the finish line.

"It was a tribute to winning here three years ago," he said. "I wanted to do the same gesture as 2008."

When a dazed Horner crossed the line, the American hardly knew what town he was in.

"Another day, another crash," RadioShack rider Yaroslav Popovych sang as he reached the sanctuary of his team bus. Another rider, Astana's Roman Kreuziger, also went to the hospital for a scan on his left wrist.

"Sorry for those injured today," Evans said. "Especially 'old mate' Chris Horner. Hope you're healing well."

Outside Sky's team bus the mood was downcast. Dave Brailsford, the team's manager, took in the news that his riders had lost their leader.

"Really bad day for the team because I was really looking forward to riding for (Wiggins) in the mountains," Sky teammate Geraint Thomas said. "We were lucky until now."

After Thursday's treacherous rainfall, described by Evans as the worst he had seen on seven Tours, riders again set off under a heavy shower Friday on the 135-mile trip from Le Mans to Chateauroux.

The rain was brief, soon turning to sunshine, and it appeared the stage would be a pleasant stroll through the French countryside as the pack let an early four-man breakaway go.

Riders casually picked up their lunch bags just after rolling across the Loire River at Chaumont-sur-Loire, traversing the former hunting grounds of Francois I and other French kings.

But there was no roast pheasant or wild boar, only bland energy bars as riders passed the former French monarchy's most elaborate chateaux, including Chambord, Amboise and Chenonceaux — the former residence of Catherine de Medici, perched on the River Cher with its sprawling gardens stretching into thick forests.

Then two crashes came out of nowhere, the second taking down Wiggins and Horner, and shattering the already battered pack again.

Wiggins of Britain out of Tour de France

CHATEAUROUX, France (AP) — British rider Bradley Wiggins has pulled out of the Tour de France after breaking his collarbone in a crash that took down several riders late in the seventh stage of the Tour de France.

CHATEAUROUX, France (AP) — RadioShack riders Chris Horner lost consciousness after a bad crash and American teammate Levi Leipheimer lost more than three minutes during the seventh stage at the Tour de France.

Team manager Johan Bruyneel says Horner will go to a hospital for tests and is unlikely to start the stage Friday.

Both riders are out of contention for the overall win. Mark Cavendish won the crash-marred seventh stage, while Thor Hushovd retained the yellow jersey.

Leipheimer also fell and said it was "chaos" on the road. He said he will work for teammate Andreas Kloeden, who is fifth in the overall standings, 10 seconds behind Hushovd.

-- Samuel Petrequin

Boone of Belgium pulls out of Tour de France

CHATEAUROUX, France (AP) — Former world champion Tom Boonen of Belgium has pulled out from the Tour de France after he failed to recover from injuries he suffered in a crash this week. Boonen quit 55 miles into the seventh stage Friday between Le Mans and Chateauroux.

Boonen won the best sprinter’s green jersey in 2007. He crashed Wednesday and finished more than 13 minutes behind the main pack.