Stage 18 - Annecy time trial, 40.5km
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By Chris Bevan
**1249: ** Mikhail Ignatiev’s time will probably be good enough to keep him out in front for a good while longer, but I’ll keep an eye on Fabian Cancellara’s progress (he’s just started) and Britain’s David Millar too (he starts in five minutes).**1245: **TOP FIVE FINISHERS (53 out of 158 riders have completed the course):
- Mikhail Ignatiev (Rus/Katusha)* 48 minutes and 46 seconds *
- Stef Clement* + 1 min 22 secs*
- Bert Grabsch (Ger/Columbia)* + 1 min 23 secs*
****Lance Armstrong on Twitter:](http://twitter.com/lancearmstrong) “Watch Kloden fly today…”
**1242: ** Both Wiggo and Lance Armstrong will be confident of making up time on the Schleck brothers today - neither Andy or Frank are renowned time triallers. But who does Lance think will shine around Annecy…**1240: ** So, what do you lot think Wiggo is capable of today… Can he really make the top three in Paris
1238: ****From Dan in Leicester, via text on 81111:“Watch out for Andreas Kloden today, could surprise a few people.”
**1233: **TOP FIVE FINISHERS (35 out of 158 riders have completed the course):
- Mikhail Ignatiev (Rus/Katusha)* 48 minutes and 46 seconds*
- Bert Grabsch (Ger/Columbia)* + 1 min 23 secs*
- Niki Terpstra* + 1min 59 secs***1227: ** And, of course, who is in possession of the jerseys:
TOUR DE FRANCE 2009 AFTER STAGE 17:
Yellow jersey: Alberto Contador (Spa/Astana)
Green jersey: Thor Hushovd (Nor/Cervelo)
Polka dot jersey: Franco Pellizotti (Ita/Liquigas)
White jersey: Andy Schleck (Lux/Saxo Bank)
**1225: ** Just a reminder of how things stand at the top of the GC…
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE 17:
- Alberto Contador (Spa/Astana) 72 hrs 27 mins 09 seconds
- Andy Schleck (Lux/Saxo Bank) + 2 mins 26 secs
- Frank Schleck (Lux/Saxo Bank) + 3 mins 25 secs
- Lance Armstrong (USA/Astana) + 3 min 55 secs
- Andreas Kloden (Ger/Astana) + 4 mins 44secs
- Bradley Wiggins*(GB/Garmin) + 4 min 53 secs*
1220: ****Tpott55 on 606:](http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A54788430)“Black clouds over the lake and a good chance for rain. Ignatiev quickest so far by a couple minutes, expect the quickest time to be low 46’s or maybe high 45’s. My tip for today will have to be split, either Contador or Cancellara.”**1218: ** And some other riders worth watching out for: Fabian Cancellara 1242
David Millar 1256
Charles Wegelius 1325
Cadel Evans 1422
Nicolas Roche 1438
**1216: ** Here’s the departure times (BST) of all the big-hitters in the General Classification today:Vincenzo Nibali 1529
Bradley Wiggins 1532
Andreas Kloden 1535
Lance Armstrong 1538
Frank Schleck 1541
Andy Schleck 1544
Alberto Contador 1547
**1214: ** The lower-ranked riders in the General Classification started out on the time trial a couple of hours ago - I’ll bring you the top five finishers so far soon, but first news of Mark Cavendish - He is 23rd out of 35 finishers so far, with a time of 54 minutes. Fastest so far is Russia’s Mikhail Ignatiev, who clocked 48 minutes and 46 seconds.
1211: ****BBC Radio 5 Live’s Alex Murray on 606:](http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A54788430)“Reports from out on the course (twittering journos mainly) suggest it could be windy out on the course with potential for rain which will have an effect on times.”
1210: Today’s route is a 40.5km circuit of the picturesque Lake Annecy - the first 25km are flat, followed by a climb up the Col de Bluffy and a descent to the finish. There are time checks at 18km (Doussard) and 28.5km.
1208: Yep, Britain’s Bradley Wiggins will look at Thursday’s time trial around Lake Annecy as a way of boosting his hopes of a place on the podium in Paris. Wiggo slipped from third to sixth overall after Wednesday’s gruelling stage from Bourg St Maurice to Le Grand Bornard, where the Schleck brothers (Andy and Frank) - plus Andreas Kloden - leapfrogged him in the General Classification. But he has a chance of repairing some, if not all, of that damage today…
1205 BST: Right then. It’s time to find out whether Wiggo has got anything left in the tank after his efforts in the Alps…