Cycling-Nibali poised for Tour triumph, Martin takes 20th stage

Reuters

By Julien Pretot PERIGUEUX, France, July 26 (Reuters) - Vincenzo Nibali was poised to win the Tour de France after avoiding any late dramas in the penultimate stage on Saturday - a 54km time trial from Bergerac won by Germany's Tony Martin. The Italian finished fourth on the day, nearly two minutes slower than the dominant Martin who set a provisional time of one hour six minutes 21 seconds, and will roll into Paris on Sunday with a seven minute 52 lead. France's Jean-Christophe Peraud climbed to second overall ahead of compatriot Thibaut Pinot as France is set to have two riders on the podium for the first time since Laurent Fignon and Bernard Hinault finished first and second in 1984. Nibali will become the sixth man to win all three grand tours barring a race-ending crash in Sunday's processional final stage which ends on the Champs Elysees. Pinot, who will also claim the white jersey for the best Under-25 rider ahead of compatriot Romain Bardet, is 8:24 off the pace. Peraud started the day in third place overall behind Pinot but was stronger against the clock than his young compatriot and managed to beat him despite suffering a puncture shortly after the halfway point. Spain's Alejandro Valverde, fourth in the standings, lacked the freshness required in a final grand tour time trial and was never a threat. Poland's Rafal Majka, who claimed two mountain stages, will take the polka dot jersey for the mountain classification while Slovakian Peter Sagan will claim the green jersey for the points classification by a large margin. Alessandro De Marchi of Italy was voted the most aggressive rider of the race by a panel of journalists and race officials. (Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Martyn herman)