The fourth stage of the 2011 Tour De France featured a photo finish as Cadel Evans edged out defending champion Albert Contador by a nose. Ten cyclists were packed together approaching the finish line but Evans just barely snuck by for the victory. Overall leader Thor Hushovd was in that ten-man pack and retained his overall lead. Hushovd's teammate David Millar finished eight seconds back of that pack dropping him out of his virtual tie with Hushovd. Evans remains a second back of Hushovd but now occupies second place.
Santa Rosa resident Levi Leipheimer also finished eight seconds back with a pack of 28 total cyclists. The finish dropped him from ten seconds back of Hushovd to eighteen seconds. While Leipheimer didn't want to lose time, dropping eight seconds is definitely not the end of the world, particularly when Contador did not gain on the race leader and co-favorite Andy Schleck also lost eight seconds on the lead.
Santa Rosa-based BMC racing got the stage win with Cadel Evans at the helm but otherwise struggled in the stage. Ivan Santaromita finished 25 seconds back, Steve Morabito finished 1:55 back, and George Hincapie finished 2:06 back, with the rest of the team at least four minutes back. Of course, as long as Evans can stay up at the top of the pack, the rest of the team will simply be there to support his battle for the yellow jersey.
Here are the top ten finishers:
| Ord | Rider | Rider # | Team | Time | Gaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |
 EVANS Cadel |
141 | BMC RACING TEAM | 4h 11' 39" | |
| 2. |
 CONTADOR Alberto |
1 | SAXO BANK SUNGARD | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 3. |
 VINOKOUROV Alexandre |
61 | PRO TEAM ASTANA | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 4. |
 URAN Rigoberto |
118 | SKY PROCYCLING | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 5. |
 GILBERT Philippe |
32 | OMEGA PHARMA - LOTTO | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 6. |
 HUSHOVD Thor |
51 | TEAM GARMIN - CERVELO | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 7. |
 SCHLECK Frank |
18 | TEAM LEOPARD-TREK | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 8. |
SANCHEZ Samuel |
21 | EUSKALTEL - EUSKADI | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 9. |
VAN DEN BROECK Jurgen |
31 | OMEGA PHARMA - LOTTO | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
| 10. |
 KLÖDEN Andréas |
74 | TEAM RADIOSHACK | 4h 11' 39" | + 00' 00" |
Here are the top 16 cyclists in the overall standings:
| Ord | Rider | Rider # | Team | Time | Gaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |
HUSHOVD Thor |
51 | TEAM GARMIN - CERVELO | 13h 58' 25" | |
| 2. |
EVANS Cadel |
141 | BMC RACING TEAM | 13h 58' 26" | + 00' 01" |
| 3. |
SCHLECK Frank |
18 | TEAM LEOPARD-TREK | 13h 58' 29" | + 00' 04" |
| 4. |
 MILLAR David |
56 | TEAM GARMIN - CERVELO | 13h 58' 33" | + 00' 08" |
| 5. |
KLÖDEN Andréas |
74 | TEAM RADIOSHACK | 13h 58' 35" | + 00' 10" |
| 6. |
WIGGINS Bradley |
111 | SKY PROCYCLING | 13h 58' 35" | + 00' 10" |
| 7. |
THOMAS Geraint |
117 | SKY PROCYCLING | 13h 58' 37" | + 00' 12" |
| 8. |
HAGEN Edvald Boasson |
114 | SKY PROCYCLING | 13h 58' 37" | + 00' 12" |
| 9. |
SCHLECK Andy |
11 | TEAM LEOPARD-TREK | 13h 58' 37" | + 00' 12" |
| 10. |
 FUGLSANG Jakob |
13 | TEAM LEOPARD-TREK | 13h 58' 37" | + 00' 12" |
| 11. |
MARTIN Tony |
175 | HTC - HIGHROAD | 13h 58' 38" | + 00' 13" |
| 12. |
 VELITS Peter |
179 | HTC - HIGHROAD | 13h 58' 38" | + 00' 13" |
| 13. |
 VAN GARDEREN Tejay |
178 | HTC - HIGHROAD | 13h 58' 38" | + 00' 13" |
| 14. |
HORNER Christopher |
72 | TEAM RADIOSHACK | 13h 58' 43" | + 00' 18" |
| 15. |
LEIPHEIMER Levi |
75 | TEAM RADIOSHACK | 13h 58' 43" | + 00' 18" |
| 16. |
 BRAJKOVIC Janez |
71 | TEAM RADIOSHACK | 13h 58' 43" | + 00' 18" |
We'll be here for the entire race providing news updates and stage previews and recaps, particularly as they relate to Bay Area cyclist Levi Leipheimer. For more in-depth discussion on the 2011 Tour De France, head over to Podium Cafe. For more general Tour coverage, head over to the SB Nation story stream.