TOUR DE FRANCE Landis squanders lead, plunges to 11th place, likely out of contention

The American fell more than eight minutes behind new leader Oscar Pereiro.
LA TOUSSUIRE, France (AP) -- A day after reclaiming the yellow jersey, Floyd Landis struggled through a disastrous ride Wednesday, falling all the way to 11th place and likely losing any chance to win the Tour de France.
The American began the 16th stage with a lead of 10 seconds; by the end of the day, he was more than eight minutes behind new leader Oscar Pereiro, who relinquished the jersey to him on Tuesday.
"I suffered from the beginning, and I tried to hide it," said Landis, a Pennsylvania native. "I don't expect to win the Tour at this point. It's not easy to get back eight minutes. That was the best I could do."
With one final Alpine stage and a penultimate individual time trial ahead as the biggest tests, Pereiro is now favored to finish first when the three-week race ends Sunday on the Champs-Elysees in Paris.
One shy of record
Seven riders have worn the leader's yellow jersey this year, just one shy of the record.
"This is a totally crazy race," Pereiro said.
Unaided by teammates Wednesday, Landis breathed heavily and was struggling as he ascended La Toussuire under a hot sun.
The Alps, where seven-time champion Lance Armstrong always separated himself from the field, turned out to be the undoing of a former teammate who was hoping to follow in Armstrong's footsteps.
"He had a bad day -- he lost lots of time," Pereiro said of Landis. "I'm really sad for him ... He's a friend of mine."
Mickael Rasmussen, who won the polka-dot jersey for the best climber at last year's Tour, finished in 5 hours, 36 minutes, 4 seconds to win the 113-mile stage that had four climbs -- including two so tough they defy classification in bicycling's ranking system.
Moved away from Landis
Illes Baleares rider Pereiro placed third in the stage -- behind fellow Spaniard Carlos Sastre -- and was followed by several other contenders who moved away from Landis in the last ascent up La Toussuire.
"It was difficult to imagine that things would turn out like this," Pereiro said. "Floyd Landis seemed untouchable, but like everybody, he wasn't immune to collapse."
"Something in me said that today could be my day."
Overall, Pereiro holds a 1:50 lead over Sastre, and is 2:29 ahead of third-place Kloeden. Landis is 8:08 back.
Landis gave up the lead to Pereiro on Saturday in a strategic decision to let another rider face the pressures of leading. Landis had gained the yellow jersey in the toughest stage in the Pyrenees.
In Tuesday's first stage in the Alps, Landis accidentally took back the lead by focusing on Andreas Kloeden of T-Mobile -- leaving Pereiro in his wake.
The top three
Overall, Pereiro holds a 1:50 lead over Sastre, and is 2:29 ahead of third-place Kloeden. Landis is 8:08 back.
Rabobank cyclist Rasmussen started the stage as the third best climber but moved up to No. 1 with the victory. It was the 32-year-old Dane's second career Tour stage win.
"It's difficult not to be overwhelmed by emotions," he said. "It's 90 percent of my season -- it happens yesterday, today and tomorrow," in the Alps as he bids for the polka-dot jersey.
Riders ascended the mammoth Col du Galibier, the highest point of the race at 8,681 feet, just after the start. They battled the Col de la Croix-de-Fer before the uphill finish.
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