Christophe Riblon wins on Alpe d'Huez as Chris Froome suffers

Christophe Riblon wins stage 18 of the Tour de France 2013

Ag2r-La Mondiale rider Christophe Riblon soloed to take France's first victory of the 2013 Tour de France atop Alpe d'Huez this afternoon as race leader Chris Froome (Sky) endured his toughest day in the yellow jersey.

Riblon was part of the day's main breakaway, and having survived overshooting a corner and ending up in a ditch on the descent of the Col de Sarenne, he managed to catch and Tejay Van Garderen (BMC) with two kilometres remaining after the American had distanced him on the lower slopes of the Alpe.

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Nick Bull is an NCTJ qualified journalist who has written for a range of titles, as well as being a freelance writer at Beat Media Group, which provides reports for the PA Media wire which is circulated to the likes of the BBC and Eurosport. His work at Cycling Weekly predominantly dealt with professional cycling, and he now holds a role as PR & Digital Manager at SweetSpot Group, which organises the Tour of Britain.