Tour de France 2016: Flying Froome takes yellow after stage win

Risking it all on a daredevil descent of the Col de Peyresourde, Chris Froome took yellow in the Tour de France Saturday.

The defending champion made his surprise move after the final climb of the eighth stage, bursting clear over the top and then powering downhill to cross the line alone after 184-km from Pau to Bagneres-de-Luchon.

His main challengers for overall honors, including Colombian Nairo Quintana, could not keep pace, trailing him by 13 seconds at the finish.

Two-time champion Alberto Contador of Spain had already dropped back on the last climb as his challenge faded away.

Froome received a 10-second time bonus for his victory to take over as race leader from Belgium’s Greg Van Avarmaet, who had been in yellow for three days.

Fellow Briton Adam Yates finished in the 13-strong chasing group to take over in second overall behind the Team Sky rider.

British riders hold three of the four major jerseys, with Froome in yellow, Mark Cavendish in green after his three stage wins and Yates in white as best young rider.

It was a sixth Tour de France stage win for Froome, who is well-placed to add to his overall wins in 2013 and 2015.

Renowned as a climber, his daredevil descent came as a surprise to all.

“It wasn’t really planned. I thought I’d give it a try in the downhill as the few tries on the climb didn’t work out,” he told the official Tour de France website.

“So I decided to give it a go in the descent. It was cool.

“Tomorrow is a hard stage but I take every second I can. It’s just a really good feeling to win,” he added.

Sky team principal Dave Brailsford was delighted for his star rider. “He takes opportunities when he can. Everyone thinks about him going uphill, not down,” he told the Press Association..

“Everyone says we’re predictable so we said this year let’s be unpredictable and make people guess what we’re going to do.”

Sunday sees another big day in the Pyrenees, 184.5-km from Vielha Val d’Aran to Andorre Arcalis and the first mountain top finish, with Froome and Movistar’s Quintana, sixth at 23 seconds, set for another showdown.

Just the 3,500 kilometers to negotiate over the next three weeks for the riders competing in this year"s Tour de France ...

The favorite to win the 2016 race is Team Sky's Chris Froome, who is pictured at the back.

Froome is pictured powering to victory on stage 15 of the 2013 Tour de France on the climb to the Mont Ventoux summit. He is race favorite this year.

Colombia's Nairo Quintana and last year's yellow jersey winner Froome are expected to battle it out again for race honors in this year's Tour de France.

The rugged and unforgiving landscape on Mont Ventoux has seen it nicknamed the "Bald Mountain" with its slopes of just rock and scree.

Tour organizers are also promising to tackle motorized doping with thermal imaging techniques and other unspecified measures as they try to keep the race clean.

Mark Cavendish wins the stage on the Champs Elysees in 2012, his fourth straight in the French capital. He is hoping to wear yellow for the first time by taking the first stage in Normandy.

Andre Greipel (right) wins the second stage of the 2015 Tour ahead of Peter Sagan (center) and Fabian Cancellara (left). Greipel and Sagan will again be battling it out for the green jersey.

The powerful Marcel Kittel of Germany enjoyed a superb 2014 with victories in the Tour de France and here on the second stage of the Giro d'Italia. The German is another contender for green.

Alberto Contador will be bidding for his third victory in the Tour de France.

Mass pile ups in the peloton are an occupational hazard of a professional cyclist's life -- but it still hurts.

Amid the pain, there is beauty as well for the riders to appreciate as they battle it out over 21 stages in cycling's greatest race.

Over enthusiastic fans can pose a risk to riders and here a Colombian supporter is pulled aside by a gendarme during the 2015 race won by Froome.

A spectator takes a photo of the Tommy Simpson memorial on Mont Ventoux. British cyclist Simpson died on the mountain during the 1967 Tour de France.

Daniel Teklehaimanot of Eritrea and MTN-Qhubeka made history when he became the first African to hold the polka dot jersey for best climber during the 2015 Tour. He is targeting stage wins this year.

Tour organizers have stepped up security and the police presence ahead of this year's race with the promise to deploy over 23,000 officers, including members of the French Special Forces, on the route.

Tour de France race director, Christian Prudhomme, announces that next year's Tour will start in Dusseldorf in Germany. The 2016 edition largely stays in France with a brief visit to the principality of Andorra and also Spain and Switzerland.

Tour de France: Cycling's greatest race

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