Armstrong in 3rd at Tour de France

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Posted 7:06AM on Friday, July 12, 2002

ROUEN, FRANCE - With his strategy working just right, Lance Armstrong held third place in the Tour de France while awaiting his beloved mountains where he has punished so many rivals. Armstrong, bidding for a fourth consecutive title, took it easy on a day when Estonian sprinter Jaan Kirsipuu dashed to victory in the fifth stage across a swath of French farmland. Two riders crashed and were taken to the hospital Thursday, with one temporarily losing consciousness and dropping out of the race. The leaders of Armstrong's U.S. Postal Service team say the Texan is sticking to his plan of keeping close to the overall leader during the early, flatter stages, then going for the lead next week in the mountains. ``It was a good day for us, we didn't have anybody in the crash,'' team spokesman Jogi Muller. ``Our strategy is to stay out of such trouble and keep Lance out of the wind. It was windy out there today.'' Kirsipuu won the stage in 4 hours, 13 minutes, 33 seconds. He crossed the finish line just ahead of Denmark's Michael Sandstod and Belgium's Ludo Dierckxsens. ``My legs gave out on me, and at the end, it was no longer my abilities as a sprinter that gave me the win but pure courage,'' Kirsipuu said. Kirsipuu won a stage in the 1999 and 2001 tours. In '99, the year in which Armstrong won his first Tour de France, Kirsipuu was the only other cyclist to wear the leader's yellow jersey. The main pack of rivals, including overall leader Igor Gonzalez Galdeano of Spain and Armstrong, finished 33 seconds after the Estonian. Armstrong trails Gonzalez Galdeano by seven seconds. A crash near the 105th mile caused Italian rider Marco Pinotti to temporarily lose consciousness. He was left with a broken nose and severe facial bruises and had to leave the race. Belgium's Rik Verbrugghe was involved in the crash but finished the stage, more than 13 minutes after Kirsipuu. He injured his shoulder and also went to a hospital. Riders passed through wheat, potato and corn fields. Thousands of fans lined the route, some waving American flags and others holding signs in support of French rider Laurent Jalabert, in 15th place and 37 seconds off the pace set by Gonzalez Galdeano. Some fans built a huge statue of a cyclist out of straw. Thursday's stage marked the first withdrawals in the three-week race. Belgian champion Tom Steels, who won nine stages in the 1998, 1999 and 2000 tours, was the first to pull out after fewer than two hours of racing Thursday. The International Cycling Union carried out blood tests early Thursday on 34 riders, including Gonzalez Galdeano, from four teams. None was positive. Friday's sixth stage is a 124-mile stretch through Normandy from Forges-les-Eaux to Alencon.