GERARDMER, France -- In a solo breakaway, Blel Kadri gave France its first stage winner at the Tour de France in the entree to the Vosges mountains on Saturday. Josh Manson Jersey . Meanwhile, Vincent Nibali extended his lead over his biggest rivals except an important one: Two-time champion Alberto Contador. Over two minutes back, an attacking Contador duelled with Nibali to capture second place at the uphill finish of a rainy 161-kilometre (100-mile) ride from Tomblaine to Gerardmer La Mauselaine ski resort. Contador gained only seconds on Nibali, and was still 2 1/2 minutes behind him, but the threat was loud and clear. The overall standings changed after Stage 8, with mostly strong climbers at the top. Kadri, sensing his looming victory in the last kilometre, clasped hands in joy with a staffer of his AG2R Mondiale team, who was alongside him in a team car. He kissed his fingers to the crowd and smiled broadly at the line. "Today was my day, and Im really, really, really happy," he said after his maiden Tour stage win. "We work all year for good performances in this race. ... Today it paid off." Kadri emerged from a five-man breakaway that chiselled out a lead of as many as 11 minutes. None of the breakaway riders threatened Nibalis yellow jersey: The highest-placed among them started the stage nearly 26 1/2 minutes back. Contador attacked as he and Nibali passed under the red flag marking one kilometre to go. But the Italian couldnt be shaken -- hewing right on the Spaniards back wheel except for Contadors final surge at the line. "Im not explosive, but I held my own," Nibali said. "I tried to respond as best I could to his attack ... he moved a lot, I really wanted to stick close to him ... in the last 100 metres he accelerated a lot." The ride featured three mid-grade climbs in the first of three days in the mid-sized Vosges range near the German border. 90. Christian Meier of Langley, B.C., was 90th, finishing in a peloton that clocked in at 4:7:19. Svein Tuft, also from Langley, was in the same group, finishing the stage 110th. Meier is 143rd in the overall standings, while Tuft is 146th. American Andrew Talansky had trouble and lost time in the title chase to other contenders. In the final ascent, he skidded off the wet road and fumbled -- with help from a fan -- to repair what seemed to be a problem with his bike. A race medical report said he had multiple contusions. Talansky, the Garmin-Sharp team leader, finished more than two minutes behind Nibali and Contador, and trailed the leader by 4 minutes, 22 seconds in 16th place overall. He started the ride in eighth, 2:05 down. Overall, Nibali led Astana teammate Jakob Fuglsang of Denmark in second by 1 minute, 44 seconds. Australias Richie Porte of Team Sky, who finished fourth on Saturday, was 1:58 back in third. Spains Alejandro Valverde was fifth, 2:27 adrift, and Contador was sixth, 2:34 behind. The breakaway five chiselled out their maximum lead with about 50 kilometres (30 miles) left, and the pack began to accelerate. With around 25 kilometres left, the lead dwindled to 4 1/2 minutes. Frances Sylvain Chavanel pressed the pace among the five in front, then Kadri overtook him, pedalling alone up the final climb. There were fewer crashes than in recent days. Before the stage, Swiss rider Mathias Frank, the leader of the IAM Cycling team, withdraw because of broken left femur in a crash on Friday. Frank, who was runner-up in the Tour de Suisse last month, underwent surgery in Geneva on Saturday. The toughest ride in the Vosges will come on Monday when cyclists face seven ascents, including an uphill finish to the storied ski resort La Planche des Belles Filles. The pack faces six ascents on Sunday with a 170-kilometre (106-mile) ride from Gerardmer to Mulhouse. White Ducks Jerseys . Ferguson told Uniteds in-house TV channel on Saturday that he has no immediate plans to walk away from the game, and that he still hungers for more trophies even after 25 years in charge of the club. Hampus Lindholm Jersey . The Maple Leafs handed their embattled head coach a two-year contract extension on Thursday, while at the same time announcing that assistants Dave Farrish, Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon will not be back. http://www.authenticducksshopnhl.com/andrew-cogliano-jersey/ .J. -- Tom Coughlin doesnt have many options at halfback for the winless New York Giants. BUFFALO, N.Y. -- First, Ryan Miller. Now, Pat LaFontaine. A day after trading their star goalie to St. Louis, the Buffalo Sabres lost another face of their franchise after LaFontaine abruptly resigned as president of hockey operations on Saturday a little more than three months after being brought in to provide a new direction to the NHLs last-place team. The Sabres announced the decision in a news release issued after speculation had been raised of a potential front-office shake-up involving LaFontaine. "I would like to thank Pat for all he has done for the organization," Sabres owner Terry Pegula said in the release. "Pat joined us at a very difficult time, and helped transition the organization down a new path." The Sabres said LaFontaine would be returning to his previous role working with the National Hockey League. LaFontaine had been working with the league on player safety issues before being hired by the Sabres in mid-November. The former Sabres captains arrival was hailed as a major turning point for a struggling team. LaFontaine took over following a change in the front office during which general manager Darcy Regier and coach Ron Rolston were dismissed following the Sabres 4-15-1 start. LaFontaines first move was hiring former Sabres coach Ted Nolan to take over as coach on an interim basis for the remainder of the season. LaFontaines next step came in January, when he hired Tim Murray as general manager. "Terry Pegula hired me in November, and my primary objective was to lead the Sabres organization through a time of transition," LaFontaine said in the Sabres release. "Im proud of what weve been able to accomplish in a short period of time, and want to thank Terry and Kim Pegula for the opportunity and their support during my time with the Sabres." LaFontaines resignation still comes as a major surprise. In January, LaFontaine talked openly about how he would use his connections to USA Hockey in a bid to lure national and international events to Buffalo. He leaves a day after Murray made his first big splash by trading star goalie Ryan Miller and captain Steve Ott to the St. Louis Blues. In exchange, the Sabres acquired goalie Jaroslav Halak, forward Chris Stewart, prospect William Carrier, a 2015 first-round pick and a connditional 2016 third-round pick in a deal reached in advance of the NHL trade deadline on Wednesday. Jakob Silfverberg Jersey. The Sabres (18-34-8) had the day off on Saturday, and return to practice on Sunday before travelling to play at Dallas on Monday. They remain in last place, but are enjoying their first three-game winning streak following a 4-2 win over the San Jose Sharks on Friday. This is not the first time LaFontaine has abruptly stepped down as an NHL team executive. In July 2006, LaFontaine quit the New York Islanders a little over a month after being brought in to serve as senior adviser to owner Charles Wang. In Buffalo, LaFontaines absence was notable this week once the team returned to the ice following the leagues Olympic break. He was not spotted in the press box during the Sabres three-game homestand that began with a 3-2 win over Carolina on Tuesday. That was unusual because LaFontaine had previously spent time watching games from the press-box level in Pegulas box, alongside Murray and several of the owners associates. LaFontaine also missed the teams "Power Play Luncheon" for fans on Friday, when he was scheduled to speak along with fellow former Sabres greats Gilbert Perreault, Rene Robert and Danny Gare. The crowd was informed LaFontaine had the flu. The Sabres have become a top-heavy organization since Regiers dismissal. Pegula created the position of president of hockey operations to hire LaFontaine. And Pegula did so only after LaFontaine declined a chance to become the GM by saying he didnt think he had enough experience for that job. Along with hiring Murray, the Sabres also brought in Hockey Hall of Fame member and long-time executive Craig Patrick to serve as a special adviser. LaFontaine backed the hiring of Murray and Patrick, by referring to both as his "wingers." He also discussed how important it was for him to be building a front-office team that could work together in rebuilding a team that has missed the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, and not won a playoff round since reaching the 2007 Eastern Conference finals. Its not clear what effect LaFontaines departure will have on the teams short-term future, including Nolans status. Murray said this week hes already had discussions with Nolan about extending his contract beyond this season. 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