The previous stage lived up to expectations when Alberto Contador of Team Astana pulled away in the mountains and left everybody gasping, including seven-time champion Lance Armstrong. That may be just a teaser for more as Stage 16 is another lung breaker. Will Contador solidify his lead in the overall standings and thus lay claim to the title this early with an insurmountable lead? Or will the others catch up? I am actually counting out Lance Armstrong this early as the previous stage has unraveled his weakness. Besides, he will never match Contador’s youthful skill no matter how experienced he is. So who will
challenge Contador this time?

The peloton faces a stern test coming out of the second rest day yesterday. The Col du Grand-Saint-Bernard mountain pass is visited by the Tour for the first time in 43 years. It is a 30 kilometer long, steep climb to 2,473 meters in elevation. This will really test the riders and set the would-be winners apart from the rest. Later in the stage is the Col du Petit Saint-Bernard, which is only marginally less steep and shorter in elevation but equally difficult as it comes after an already grueling climb. Here’s more about this leg from Cycling Weekly:

Tour de France 2009 Stage 16 preview /profile
Stage 16 Tour de France 2009 descriptions and details

There’s not a kilometer of flat in this stage, with two high-mountain monsters awaiting the bunvh. The climbing begins from the stage start at Martigny and doesn’t relent for 40 kilometers to the top of the Hors-category Col du Grand-Saint-Bernard. After a long dash into the valley, it’s another long slog up the Col du Petit-Saint Bernard. The winner will be a strong climber – possibly a King of the Mountains contender – who can get away early in a big group, drop his companions and keep the gains on the 32-kilometer descent into Bourg-Saint Maurice. Though this could be a day for Tour favorites to gain a few seconds, the long downhill plays into the hands of any rider dropped on the climb.

The current stage is still ongoing. Rest assured that we will have the results posted as soon as the race finishes. You will find it below.

Tour de France 2009 Stage 16 results
Martigny (Switzerland) to Bourg-Saint-Maurice Stage 16 results

Rank Dossard Name Country Team Time Gap
1 061 Mikel ASTARLOZA ESP EUS 4h14′20” 00”
2 101 Sandy CASAR FRA FDJ 4h14′26” 06”
3 144 Pierrick FEDRIGO FRA BBO 4h14′26” 06”
4 089 Nicolas ROCHE IRL ALM 4h14′26” 06”
5 017 Jurgen VAN DEN BROECK BEL SIL 4h14′26” 06”
6 128 Amaël MOINARD FRA COF 4h14′26” 06”
7 091 Franco PELLIZOTTI ITA LIQ 4h14′31” 11”
8 085 Stephane GOUBERT FRA ALM 4h14′31” 11”
9 171 Christophe MOREAU FRA AGR 4h15′19” 59”
10 021 Alberto CONTADOR ESP AST 4h15′19” 59”
11 095 Vincenzo NIBALI ITA LIQ 4h15′19” 59”
12 022 Lance ARMSTRONG USA "11" /> AST 4h15′19” 59”
13 058 Bradley WIGGINS GBR GRM 4h15′19” 59”
14 023 Andréas KLÖDEN GER AST 4h15′19” 59”
15 119 Rigoberto URAN COL GCE 4h15′19” 59”
16 051 Christian VANDE VELDE USA GRM 4h15′19” 59”
17 106 Christophe LE MEVEL FRA FDJ 4h15′19” 59”
18 093 Roman KREUZIGER CZE LIQ 4h15′19” 59”
19 031 Andy SCHLECK LUX SAX 4h15′19” 59”
20 036 Frank SCHLECK LUX SAX 4h15′19” 59”
21 075 Kim KIRCHEN LUX THR 4h15′19” 59”
22 146 Laurent LEFEVRE FRA BBO 4h15′19” 59”
23 149 Yury TROFIMOV RUS BBO 4h15′19” 59”
24 001 Carlos SASTRE ESP CTT 4h15′19” 59”
25 161 Vladimir KARPETS RUS KAT 4h15′19” 59”
26 062 Igor ANTON ESP EUS 4h15′19” 59”
27 059 David ZABRISKIE USA GRM 4h15′34” 1′14”
28 049 Laurens TEN DAM NED RAB 4h17′36” 3′16”
29 003 Jose Angel GOMEZ MARCHANTE ESP CTT 4h17′36” 3′16”
30 129 Rémi PAURIOL FRA COF 4h18′15” 3′55”
31 185 Christian KNEES GER MRM 4h18′15” 3′55”
32 141 Thomas VOECKLER FRA BBO 4h18′15” 3′55”
33 127 Sébastien MINARD FRA COF 4h18′15” 3′55”
34 181 Linus GERDEMANN GER MRM 4h18′15” 3′55”
35 165 Serguei IVANOV RUS KAT 4h18′15” 3′55”
36 067 Ruben PEREZ MORENO ESP EUS 4h18′15” 3′55”
37 135 e="row">David LOOSLI SUI LAM 4h18′15” 3′55”
38 087 Rinaldo NOCENTINI ITA ALM 4h18′15” 3′55”
39 084 Hubert DUPONT FRA ALM 4h18′15” 3′55”
40 139 Simon SPILAK SLO LAM 4h18′15” 3′55”

Tour de France 2009 overall standings
Tour de France 2009 TV schedule / TV coverage
Tour de France 2009 route map, stages and schedule

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