Today's eighth and 189 kilometer long stage from Station de Rousses to Morzine-Avoriaz was a treat for the overall favorites with two big mountain climbs with an uphill finish on the final climb..

A breakaway containing seven riders dominated the stage from the gun but the odds of making it all the way to the finish line were slim. And on the second last climb, Saxo Bank took the control of the pace with Matti Breschel and Jakob Fuglsang pulling the pace hard enough to drop big names like Lance Armstrong, Andreas Klöden (Radioshack), Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana) and Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step).

At the foot of the last climb over 13 kilometers with a 6% average gradient, three riders had a 1½ minute-lead to a group of favorites consisting of among other Ivan Basso, Roman Kreuziger, Andy Schleck, Jakob Fuglsang and Alberto Contador.

On the way to the top of the final climb, the break was caught while the front group was narrowed down to the overall favorites. And here, Team Saxo Bank's Andy Schleck demonstrated simple sovereignty by jumping away from his biggest rivals with Samuel Sanchez (Euskatel) and oversprinted the Spaniard on the finiah line taking his first Tour de France stage win in superb style.

Ivan finished in 9th place and is now in the overall ranking in place 13 with 2:41 minutes to Evans.

Ivan: “I've finished these two days in the Alps serenely. I knew it would be challenging and I was afraid to give something, especially today. I didn't falter in the finale, despite the forcing of Astana and the attacks, which is a very encouraging sign. I expected a battle and there was: Contador, Evans, Schleck and I were particularly impressive. Too bad for the final attack because Kreuziger deserved better luck.

For my part I had to play defensively, take a strong but steady pace, even in the case of an attack. This allowed me to manage the forces and keep me in leading position.Tomorrow is a day off, I'll have time to catch my breath but I feel that my condition is growing. The Tour will be decided on account of the Pyrenees and there I can be a major protagonist”.