PLOUAY (France), July 14: Rabobank rider Karsten Kroon bagged his first ever stage on the Tour de France here Sunday as Dutch riders produced a 1-2-3 at the finish line to deny the French a stage win on their national holiday of Bastille Day.

The 26-year-old, on his first Tour campaign, nipped ahead of his Dutch compatriot Servais Knaven a metre before the finish line to leave last year’s Paris-Roubaix classic winner in second.

World Cup champion Erik Dekker of Rabobank, who had led out Kroon perfectly in the dying metres, came third after the 217.5km stage from St Martin de Landelles to Plouay in Britanny.

Kroon clocked a time of 4hr 36min 52sec on a day when, surprisingly, there were no falls or injuries and the overall standings changed little.

In the overall standings Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano retained his 34-sec lead over three-time winner Lance Armstrong, who was content to ride a careful race ahead of Monday’s 52km individual time trial.—AFP