Garmin's David Millar won Stage 12 of the Tour De France this afternoon.
An early departure for the 166 riders on this 226km stage which saw the race leave the Alps and head for the Ardeche in a stage going westwards from St-Jean-de-Maurienne to Annonay Davezioux, the home of the Montgolfier Brothers.
With fifteen kilometres gone of the longest stage in this year's tour, eight riders including Garmin's David Millar, got away. They were soon joined to make a group of nineteen riders out front.
In this group were; Burghardt (BMC), Popovych (RNT), Guatier (EUC), Perez (EUS), Koren (LIQ), Millar (GRS), Peraud and Bouet (ALM), Edet (COF), Engoulvent (SAU), Marcarto (VCD), Paolini and Vorganov (KAT), Lund and N. Sorensen (STB), Grivko and Kiserlovski (AST), Grabsch (OPQ) and De Kort (ARG).
They were 1.30 ahead going into the first climb of the day - the Col du Grand Cucheron which is 12.5km long with a 6.5% average gradient. Robert Kiserlovski took the maximum points with David Millar picking up two points.
On the descent, David Moncoutie crashed and fell into a ditch. He was back on his feet but was unable to continue and was forced to abandon.
After 63kms, the escapers were down to eleven in number with Millar still amongst them.
Tom Veelers who was first man down the ramp in Liege to start this race abandoned before the remaining riders came to the Col de Granier. Kiserlovski (AST) took the points from that climb with four more for Millar who was now in a group of five riders (Gautier, Peraud, Millar, Martinez and Kiserlovski) at the front after the rest had struggled to keep up with their pace.
Four groups were now on the road as Millar attacked. They were ten minutes clear ahead of the peloton led by race leader Bradley Wiggins on a bike which had a bit more yellow on it, with 100kms to go.
The day's intermediate sprint came at Marcilloes on the D519 with 73kms to go. David Millar took the twenty points as the frront five rolled through.
Ten minutes later, Matt Goss took the ten points ahead of Greipel, Van Hummel and Sagan with Mark Cavendish not contesting this sprint.
With no-one posing any threat to the general classifcation, the gap went out to 12.26 as the race moved from the Drome Department into the Ardeche Department.
The race moved onto the category three climb on the Cote D'Ardoix. Watched by big crowds on a lovely sunny day, Kiserlovski took the points ahead of Peraud.
The peloton were nine kilometres behind the five escapers who were making their way towards the finish line on the rue de la Lombardiere in Annonay Davezieux at the end of a 400m long straight.
The cat and mouse games between the escapers started with 4kms to go.Kiserlovski and Piraud both tried to attack but David Millar, who had been impressive all day, followed them.
Millar and AG2R rider Jean Christophe Piraud got clear and it was Millar who won in a time of 5.42.48 to become the fourth British rider to win a stage in this year's tour on the 45th anniversary of Tom Simpson's death. Peraud was second with Martinez third.
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Seven minutes and fifty three seconds later, Matt Goss sprinted ahead of Peter Sagan to bring home the peloton but he was adjudged to have changed his line and Sagan was promoted to sixth above Goss.
Speaking to ITV4's Ned Boulting, David Millar said:"I won a stage of the tour in 2002 which was probably my proudest win and today was very similar to they way I did it. There is nothing like winning a road stage, it is more emotional than winning a time trial or prologue. "It has taken turmoil in our team to bring out the best in me, we needed it and I wanted to do it. "Our Olympic team is made up of Tour De France stage winners and we will be a force to be reckoned with. "
Wiggins stays ahead of Chris Froome by 2.05 in the yellow jersey race.
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Stage thirteen is from Saint Paul Trois Chateaux to Le Cap D'Agde.
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