TOUR DE FRANCE
Stage 13: The peloton covered three lower- grade climbs during the 198.5- kilometer ( 123- mile) ride Friday from Muret to Rodez in rural southern France.
Winner: Greg Van Avermaet. During another sweltering day, the Belgian with the BMC team bested Peter Sagan in a twoman sprint — handing the Slovakian speedster his fourth second- place finish and depriving him of a highly sought first stage win in this Tour.
Yellow jersey: Chris Froome. The 2013 champion kept his title rivals at bay. How did the “Fab Four” perform? Nairo Quintana of Colombia, two- time Tour champion Alberto Contador of Spain, and 2014 winner Vincenzo Nibali all finished with the same time as Froome. American Tejay van Garderen remains second overall, 2 minutes 52 seconds behind. Quintana is third.
Quote of the day: “When it’s hot like that, you need a new bottle of water every 10- 15 minutes.” — Froome on temperatures in the
mid- 30s Celsius ( about 95 Fahrenheit).
Stat of the day: 22. That’s how many net points Sagan gained on Germany’s Andre Greipel in the race for the green jersey, awarded to the best sprinter, after the powerful German lagged over the last hills.
Next stage: The pack goes up two low- grade hills and two medium- grade climbs — including a steep but short uphill finish — in Saturday’s 178.5kilometer ( 111- mile) ride from Rodez to Mende.