Cyclist Johnny Hoogerland, who fast became a hero after being catapulted high speed into a barbed wire fence on Sunday, got a standing ovation this afternoon at the Tour de France.

Despite having 33 stitches in his legs and abdomen, he not only completed the 158-kilometre tenth stage of the race between Auriallac and Carmaux, but also held onto the title King of the Mountains.

"To be honest, it went better than I thought it would," said Hoogerland. He finished almost six minutes after today's winner, André Greipel. This was made possible by fellow Vacansoleil team member Marco Marcato, who managed to take all the day's points for climbing, thus keeping Hoogerland ahead of the rest in points.

Meanwhile, Tour manager Christian Prudhomme is still deliberating over future measures to make the race safer. Tour riders have already demanded that the number of accompanying cars and motorbikes be reduced by half.

At the beginning of Tuesday's race, Mr Prudhomme reiterated this, stating: "The car should never have driven the way it did."

The International Cyclists Union (UCI) is investigating the cause of the large number of pile-ups this year. A spokesperson said they are looking into the number of cyclists, the material and the course after a number of prominent cyclists were forced to exit from enduring serious injuries.

So far, Bradley Wiggens, Aleksandre Vinokurov, Jurgen van den Broeck and Tom Boonen are among the cyclists who have dropped out. Vinokurov had to be operated on for a broken leg. Van den Broeck was treated in intensive care after breaking his ribs and shoulder blade and suffering a pneumothorax. Boonen pulled out in the seventh stage due to a concussion after a fall in the third leg.

(nc/kh)

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