Haimar Zubeldia used his high place in the standings and his keen climbing skills to grab himself the title in the Tour de L'Ain, but it certainly wasn't easy. Zubeldia had to keep on his toes because the very group he was working with to pull away from the field was full of the guys who were right on his tail in the GC. Zubeldia stayed right with them, and finished with the same time as the group. This was just enough, as he won the General Classification over Wouter Poels by less than 1 second. 
Poels, who easily won the sprint over eventual third place finisher and GC contender David Moncutie, received a time bonus for his win that was just enough to bring him right up to Zubeldia but not past him. (In fact, Zubeldia only won by a few hundredths of a second.) It was a remarkable performance by Poels, who was not expected to be as high up in the GC as he finished. Race favorite John Gadret put in a very disappointing performance, losing touch with the leaders, and finishing almost 4 and a half minutes behind the pace. Tejay Van Garderen put in a very good ride, and moved himself into a 4th place finish in the General Classification, leading all Americans. Zubeldia's director Alain Gallopin said that he was "happy he pushed Haimar in the prologue," because that small margin turned out to be the race. It was a great result for the 33 year old vet, and may be one of his last opportunities for individual glory.
Final Podium1. Haimar Zubeldia
2. Wouter Poels
3. David Moncutie
Points
Romain Feillu (47 pts)
King of the Mountains
Benoit Daeninck (39 pts)
Best Young Rider
Tejay Van Garderen
Best Team
AG2R
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