German cyclist Jens Voigt has won the sixteenth stage of the Tour de France, a 229.5 kilometre run from Castelsarrasin to Sarran, but defending champion Lance Armstrong maintains his massive advantage in the yellow jersey. Voigt had a tough battle with Australian Brad McGee for first position over the final 25 kilometres and McGee was so exhausted from the tussle, he had to be led away from the finish line after almost collapsing. Russian Alexandre Botcharov finished third, almost two minutes behind the winner, beating home Denmark's Nicki Sorensen.
"After the finish line everything went black," said McGee afterwards. "I feel better now but I was scared. Two kilometres from the finish I almost fell because I was so tired. I did everything I could to stay on my bike."
At the finish, Voigt finished five seconds ahead of the Australian for his first-ever stage victory. "This victory is the peak of my career but I knew I would win. It is great because so often I have been in the vanguard of the escaping group but done so much work that I have had no energy for the final run-in. This is a real bonus for the team," he said afterwards.
However, overall leader Armstrong enjoyed an easy day in the saddle, coming home alongside rival Jan Ullrich in the main pack 25 minutes and 45 seconds behind the winner, thus protecting his lead of five minutes five seconds over Ullrich. Although there are still four days to go before the finishing stage in Paris, only a massive disaster, such as the fall which affected almost 20 riders in the peloton shortly before the end of today's stage, could ruin the Texan's chances of capturing his third consecutive Tour de France title.
Meanwhile, in the race for the green jersey, Voigt's team-mate Stuart O'Grady remains slightly ahead of Erik Zabel, the winner of the prize for the past five years.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
