Australia’s Cadel Evans over Alberto Contador on stage four of the Tour de France Tuesday morning, defeating the three-time Tour champion in what was, literally, . Stage four was mostly flat but featured an uphill finish, giving climbers like Evans and Contador an opportunity for an early stage win. Tour leader Thor Hushovd finshed in a chase back just back and successfully defended his yellow jersey. Hushovd鈥檚 team, Garmin-Cervelo, has controlled the early stages with a team victory on Sunday and a Tour win yesterday for Tyler Farrar, his ever and the first for an American on July 4. Until today, Contador had struggled in the early stages, losing over a minute in big crash on Saturday’s first stage. That crash ultimately forced Belgian Jurgen Van de Walle, of team Omega Pharma-Lotto, to this morning. Van de Walle is the first rider to withdraw from the 2011 tour, leaving the field with 197 riders.
Read more at