Portuguese Alberto Rui Costa of the Movistar team hung on during a tense finish to win the Tour de France eighth stage, a 189km ride from Aiguirande to Super-Besse on Saturday. Norwegian Thor Hushovd of Garmin-Cervelo upset predictions to retain the race leader's yellow jersey on the first day in the mountains of the Massif Central.
Hushovd, who took the lead last Sunday when Garmin-Cervelo won the team time trial in Les Essarts, was expected to lose it on the first of two consecutive hilly stages. However the reigning world champion battled hard to keep pace with the climbers and punchers who had threatened to steal Rui Costa's thunder in a wet finish to the stage.
He retained his 01sec overall lead on Australian Cadel Evans of BMC. Despite BMC working hard earlier in the day to close the gap to an early nine-man breakaway, Evans said he was happy not to have taken the yellow jersey so soon. "I didn't get the jersey but for us it's not a problem right now. As I keep saying, there's a long way to go to Paris," he said.
Belgian Philippe Gilbert finished second 12secs behind Rui Costa after punching out of a peloton containing all the yellow jersey favourites as they tackled the last section of the steep 1.5 climb to Super-Besse. Evans led the peloton home three seconds later just ahead of fellow yellow jersey contenders Andy Schleck of Luxembourg and reigning champion Alberto Contador.