Degenkolb wins Tour de France ninth stage, Van Avermaet leads

Belgian Greg van Avermaet took second place and retained the overall leaders yellow jersey.

Belgian Greg van Avermaet took second place and retained the overall leaders yellow jersey.

German John Degenkolb won the ninth stage of the Tour de France, a 156.5-km ride from Arras on Sunday.

Belgian Greg van Avermaet took second place and retained the overall leaders yellow jersey.

Another Belgian, Yves Lampaert, was third.

Among the contenders for the overall title, last years runner-up Rigoberto Uran lost ground on his rivals after hitting the asphalt about 30km from the finish on a stage that featured 21.7km of cobbled sectors. Australian Richie Porte pulled out after an early crash.

The peloton will enjoy their first rest day on Monday.