LA TOUSSUIRE, France — Just as the Tour de France seemed set for an overall victory by Chris Froome, he suddenly seemed at least a bit vulnerable on Friday.
Froome’s vulnerability appeared in two different forms at two different points in the 86-mile loop from Saint Jean de Marinenne to this ski resort town just above it in the Alps. The most significant came on the final climb. The Colombian Nairo Quintana, who started the morning second overall, became the first rider in this Tour de France to successfully drop Froome in an attack. By the finish line, Quintana has chipped half a minute off of Froome’s lead.