BESANCON, France -- With defending champion Chris Froome and two-time winner Alberto Contador out of the race, the path is wide open for Vincenzo Nibali to become the first Italian to win the Tour de France since the late Marco Pantani in 1998. Wholesale Air Jordan From China . The French have waited even longer for a champion -- the last was Bernard Hinault way back in 1985 -- but with three riders in the top six places, hopes are growing of at least a first podium place since climber Richard Virenque finished second in 1997. After Tuesdays rest day, the race resumes with Stage 11 on Wednesday, followed by arduous mountain stages on Friday and Saturday which will reveal the genuine contenders. These are where Nibalis climbing skills could set him apart, and give him a chance to fully stamp his authority on the race. There are five days of hard climbing ahead, starting with Fridays 197.5-kilometre (122.4-mile) trek from Saint-Etienne to Chamrousse, which ends with a huge ascent of 18 kilometres (11.2 miles). As for Nibalis rivals, Contador broke his shin in a violent fall in Mondays 10th stage and Froome pulled out on stage 5 with a broken wrist. "Im not happy about what happened to Alberto and Chris," the 29-year-old Nibali said. "The climbs would have been better and more spectacular for everyone." Nibali, who won the Spanish Vuelta in 2010 and the Giro dItalia in 2013, is 2 minutes, 23 seconds ahead of Australian Richie Porte and 2:47 clear of Spaniard Alejandro Valverde, who won the Vuelta five years ago. Three Frenchmen are within four minutes of Nibali -- Romain Bardet, Tony Gallopin and Thibaut Pinot. None has come close to a podium place on a Grand Tour, although the 23-year-old Bardet and the 24-year-old Pinot have strong climbing skills. "Weve got to stay calm and study the situation," Nibali said. "The danger can come from anywhere." Porte rode as a key support rider for Froome last year on the Sky team, but now has free reign to attack. "Porte goes well in the climbs, he goes well in time trials, you have to keep a good distance on him," Nibali said. "You have to watch Valverde, he can attack at any time." The 34-year-old Valverde was handed a two-year suspension in 2010 for his involvement in the Operation Puerto doping plot, which involved dozens of riders over secretly stored blood bags. Like Nibali, Pantani was a courageous cyclist who loved to attack in the tough climbs. Pantani was found dead in a hotel room on Valentines Day in 2004 and a coroner ruled he died from cocaine poisoning. Nibali has one of Pantinis yellow jerseys at home, a gift from Pantinis mother to mark the 10th anniversary of his death. "It would be a great honour to follow on from him," said Nibali. Fridays stage will also be special for Nibali because it marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of two-time Tour champion Gino Bartali, who died in 2000 at the age of 85. "As an Italian, its a huge privilege to be asked about Bartali. I grew up watching documentaries on the big riders, the big wins of (Felice) Gimondi, Bartali and (Fausto) Coppi," Nibali said. "Theyre all in the encyclopedia of cycling. There are others like Hinault, too. Theyve written the history of cycling." The last French heyday came in the 1980s when Hinault, a five-time champion, competed against Laurent Fignon, who won in 83 and 84. Wednesdays stage is a 187.5-kilometre (116.3-mile) route in eastern France from Besancon to Oyonnax and features four small climbs. Veteran Fabian Cancellara wont be among the starters. The 33-year-old Swiss cyclist has pulled out to focus on the Road World Championships in Ponferrada, Spain, from Sept. 21-28. Cancellara withdrew prior to the start of the 11th Tour stage in 2012. Cheap Air Jordan Retro .com) - A top-10 showdown is on tap in at the McKale Center on Saturday, as the 10th-ranked Arizona Wildcats play host to the eighth-ranked Utah Utes in a key Pac-12 matchup. Cheap Nike Jordan Basketball .ca. Hi Kerry, Thursday nights Bruins-Blackhawks game had a goal by Patrice Bergeron initially waved off by the referee, but video review clarified it was a good goal. http://www.cheapairjordanfastshipping.com/ . "This doesnt end anything," he said. "Weve got 10-1 in our last 11 games, and were going home in first place. We just have to keep playing the way we are right now. REGINA -- Two years ago, GM Brendan Taman went outside the box to find a new head coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. On Thursday, he rewarded Corey Chamblin with a contract extension through the 2017 season after leading the Riders to just the fourth Grey Cup title in franchise history. "I went with my heart and some people may viewed it outside the box but I knew we had the right guy," Taman told reporters at a news conference. "Corey brings is a lot of things to the table I was looking for when we were hiring a head coach for this organization. "Hes knowledgeable, hes very confident, he can deal with people which is very important as a head coach, hes got a very very good ability to put a very good coaching staff together. The last two years weve been able to do that and were going to have another one this year and I think thats a huge credit to Corey." Taman hired Chamblin, then Hamiltons defensive co-ordinator, following the 2012 season after Saskatchewan posted a league-worst 5-13 record. The Riders finished third in the West Division with an 8-10 record in Chamblins first season, losing 36-30 to Calgary in the conference semifinal. Last year, Saskatchewan won eight of its first nine games before suffering four straight losses. The Riders finished the regular season with an 11-7 record -- second only to Calgary (league-best 14-4 mark). After dispatching B.C. 29-25 in the West semifinal, the Riders upset Calgary 35-13 to advance to the Grey Cup game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Before a rabid Mosaic Stadium gathering of 44,710, the Riders capped their season by downing Hamilton 45-23 for their first CFL title ever on home soil. "It was great for Brendan to think outside the box," Chamblin said of Taman. "He talks about making that decision from the heart, well, I coach from the heart and I thought that was a good match for us." The countrys sports editors and broadcasters rewarrded the Riders for their accomplishment by voting them The Canadian Press Team of the Year for 2013. Discount Jordans Shoes. And in February, Chamblin was also named the CFLs coach of the year. And now, Chamblin has a deal that gives him the long-term security often sought by a pro football head coach. But Chamblin isnt about to rest on his laurels. "Its not something for us to sit back and say, Yeah, hey, this is what weve done," he said. "I think the biggest thing it does is it gives us a chance to work together to continue something. "We dont want to be one and done. Theres a lot of things that I think we still have left on the table that we have not accomplished." Chamblin heads into his third season having amassed a 19-17 regular-season record. Hes also 3-1 in the playoffs, including the Grey Cup victory. But hell have a much different team to coach in 14. Running back Kory Sheets -- the Grey Cup MVP -- and veteran slotback Weston Dressler both signed NFL deals with Oakland and Kansas City, respectively. Among the other players no longer with the Riders are defensive tackle Keith Shologan (Ottawa, CFL expansion draft), defensive back Craig Butler (Hamilton, free agent), running back Jock Sanders (Calgary, free agent), receiver Kierrie Johnson (Ottawa, free agent), linebacker Abraham Kromah (Hamilton, free agent) and punter Ricky Schmitt (B.C., free agent). However, Taman said one of Chamblins biggest strengths is his ability to communicate with players. "One of the main things we wanted was to have a head coach who was able to walk into this lockerroom and get the message across to the players," he said. "Corey does a very good job of that, obviously. "Whether the message is good or bad or indifferent, he gets it across. He also brings a definite passion to win, hes driven to win on a daily basis. He wakes up every day with ideas and knowledge to try and improve this team." 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