Chris Froome took another big step towards a third Tour de France title when he dropped his main rivals in the finale of the 17th stage, a 184-km mountain trek won by Russian Ilnur Zakarin on Wednesday.
Copenhagen is known as the world's most bike-friendly city but the stage was anything but as rain led to slippery conditions -- especially on the cobblestones -- where a couple of riders crashed.
Dutchman Bauke Mollema, the strongest and smartest of the breakaway riders, who had three top 10 finishes on the Tour, won the 189.5-km stage from Laissac-Severac L'Eglise but the action was elsewhere.
World champion Peter Sagan claimed his third 2016 Tour de France stage victory when he pipped Alexander Kristoff on the line at the end of the 16th stage, a 209-km ride from Moirans-en-Montagne on Monday.
Chris Froome has been so strong on this year's Tour de France that at times he appears to have been toying with his rivals.
German Marcel Kittel claimed his third victory on this year's Tour de France when he pipped Mark Cavendish on the line to take the 12th stage on Thursday.
Alberto Contador showed he was prepared to risk everything to win the Tour de France on Tuesday, crashing on the final descent as he tried to attack overall leader Chris Froome.
Mark Cavendish's Tour de France campaign suffered another setback on Tuesday when the Briton had to settle for third in a sprint after being involved in a crash in a chaotic stage 10 finale won by Marcel Kittel.
Chris Froome moved closer to a maiden Tour de France title with an awe-inspiring victory on top of the intimidating Mont Ventoux, pulling away from his rivals in brutal fashion seven kilometres from the finish on Sunday.
Chris Froome tightened his grip on the Tour de France on Wednesday, extending his overall lead to well over three minutes at the halfway mark with a predictably brilliant performance in the time trial.
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