Tour de France - Alberto Contador Virtually Clinches Tour de France Victory

Alberto Contador all but sealed his second Tour de France title Saturday, keeping the yellow jersey after a punishing mountain ride in the next to last stage. And almost certain to join him on the podium is Lance Armstrong.

Armstrong, a seven-time champion in his first Tour since 2005, held off attacks from his closest challengers in the dreaded climb up Mont Ventoux to hold third place. The 37-year-old Texan arrived in a small group that included Contador, his Astana teammate, and second-place Andy Schleck of Luxembourg.

Armstrong, coming out of 3 1/2 years of retirement, wanted a higher finish in cycling's showcase race but he knew it wouldn't be easy.

The only thing keeping Contador from adding to his 2007 Tour title is a ceremonial ride into Paris on Sunday. The finale is a flat stage that traditionally doesn't feature breakaways, meaning only an accident can prevent the Spaniard from going down the Champs-Elysees as the winner.

Garate entered the stage more than 1 1/2 hours behind Contador. He finished in 4 hours, 39 minutes, 21 seconds, holding off fellow breakaway rider Tony Martin of Germany by three seconds.