Everyone wanted to talk about the Michael Sandstod "should we stay or should go?" moment, and this was team manager Bjarne Riis’s perspective: "I asked them to stop but they continued for three kilometres despite the fact that Sandstod was not far behind them. There’s no doubt that was the turning point, we could have won because we were going very well to that point."

Sandstod admitted there had been some confusion about what to do. "There was a bit of a problem with the race radio as it seemed to cut in and out. I just never managed to get close enough to them to get back on."

The contrast in the mood among ONCE’s staff was hardly surprising. The team won this equivalent stage in 2000, but it has been almost seven years since a Spaniard last wore yellow. Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano became the eighth Spaniard to do so and couldn’t stop beaming in his press conference.

"There are some mythical Spanish names that have worn this jersey, and it’s an honour for me to join them," the 30 year old who was 5th in the 2001 Tour said. "To have the lead at this point doesn’t really mean anything in terms of the race, but it does mean a huge amount to the team. The podium is our obvious target, and Beloki is still our main hope. He’s much stronger than he was last year. The team is also better. Last year before this stage we were quite nervous, but today everyone seemed very focused."

Asked if it was significant that he had beaten Armstrong in the time trial at the Midi Libre and now today with another time trial just four days away, Gonzalez de Galdeano was dismissive. "You can’t compare the Lance Armstrong of the Midi Libre to the Lance Armstrong of the Tour de France. He’s on another level to me. I’m going well, but he’s super."

ONCE supremo Manolo Saiz was full of praise for his riders, but stressed that the race was still Armstrong’s to win or lose, and that ONCE would be looking to US Postal to control things over the next few days.

"It’s an important indicator of the development of the team, this is a new generation and a good group. They have picked up the mantle from the Jalabert era at ONCE. To win today was like winning the European Championship, but to win the Tour would be the ultimate, like winning the World Cup."

"But there is still only one patron in the Tour, and that’s Armstrong," Saiz added. "We will see what happens tomorrow, and much depends on whether teams such as Mapei, Lotto and Telekom decide to chase any breakaways. If not I think it will be up to Armstrong to control things."

George Hincapie summed up US Postal’s feeling of disappointment. "We felt like we went well today and ONCE must have been going super strong to beat us. All of the team rode very consistently and we didn’t have any of the bad luck that dogged us last year."

Fuller versions of the post-race interviews and press conferences can be found on the ProCycling website at www.procycling.com