Armstrong Bids For 7th Tour Crown

Tour De France Gets Underway As Rivals Target Lance

(AP)  Lance Armstrong had an impressive start to his final Tour de France, finishing second Saturday in the opening stage.

Armstrong, bidding for his seventh straight Tour victory before he retires, finished 2 seconds behind fellow American David Zabriskie on the 11.8-mile course in western France. Armstrong overtook one of his main rivals, Jan Ullrich, even though the German started one minute ahead of him.

Though Armstrong said the time trial course wasn't very complicated, he still had first-day jitters.

"Of course I'm a bit nervous," he said. "It's a real race today, I'm nervous."

Armstrong and Ullrich have both studied the course.

But Ullrich already ran into trouble.

The 1997 Tour winner and five-time runner-up crashed into the back of his T-Mobile team car Friday when he failed to spot a warning sign to brake. He fell forward through the back window and sustained minor cuts to his neck, but is expected to take the start line.

He appeared later in the day when all the teams were presented and did his best to look cool and confident.

"Jan is an excellent rider and he gets better as the Tour goes on," Armstrong said, adding that Ullrich's team appears slick and menacing. "They have three riders who have already been on the podium. We expect them to be very tough."

Vinokourov might also be a threat.