CHAMBERY, France, July 9 -- Colombian rider Rigoberto Uran on Sunday won a dramatic, crash-filled Tour de France ninth stage on the photo finish, the second time in past three days, while yellow jersey contenders Richie Porte and Geraint Thomas had to bid farewell to the 2017 edition of the tournament due to serious injuries.
In the 181.5km stage from Nantua to Chambery, featuring three top-level HC climbs, Porte fell down at a bend when taking on the high-speed descent, and hit the rocky side on his right, also bringing down the Irish rider Daniel Martin that could not veer off in just a second.
Martin quickly regrouped himself back into the race, but Porte had to be taken away in an ambulance for further examination.
Thomas, second overall before Sunday's stage, also had to quit the tournament for collarbone fracture suffered in an earlier crash.
On the wet track caused by earlier rain, Porte and Thomas were just two unlucky riders, and only 181 out of 193 racers finished the stage in the Alps region.
A 39-member leading group were reduced to just two men at the foot of the final HC climb. After several changes between the leaders and the counter-attack group, local rider Romain Bardet built a sole lead before getting reeled into the final two kilometers by other five riders, including the yellow jersey owner Froome.
Then the six men put up their final sprint in Chambery, and Uran finally heard about the news that he beat another Frenchman Warren Barguil through the photo finish.
Uran said that he initially thought that it was Barguil that won the race. For Barguil, who made a quick celebration for the stage win with emotional tears, there was no more other feeling than pure disappointment.
However, Barguil could wear the polkadot jersey representing "king of the mountains" with 60 climbing points.
Froome withstood the mechanical problem at a crucial phase to finish third in the stage, and thanks to a four-second time bonus for the position, he extended his gap against Italian rider Fabio Aru to 18 seconds.
German Marcel Kittel retained his sprinters green jersey, and Simon Yates was crowned as the best young rider with an advantage of almost three minutes. Team Sky continued to lead the overall team standings.
Riders will enjoy a precious rest day on Monday, before moving on to the south-western part of France for the next challenge especially in the Pyrenees Mountains.
Tuesday's 10th stage will cover 178km from Perigueux to Bergerac with two fourth-category climbs.