Italian cyclist Alessandro Petacchi has won the 12th stage of the Tour of Spain in a mass sprint finish, but Russia's Denis Menchov retains the overall lead.
Petacchi, of the Fassa Bartolo team, finished the 148-kilometer ride from Logroño to Burgos in three hours, 13 minutes, 36 seconds. German Erik Zabel was second, with Marco Zanotti of Italy third. The top 142 riders were all credited with the same time.
Menchov finished in 25th place, so the Russian retains the overall lead, 47 seconds ahead of Spain's Roberto Heras.
Heras was injured in a crash during the stage. Heras cut his knee in the crash but could not receive full medical treatment until he crossed the finish line. The Spaniard needed 12 stitches on his left knee at the end of the stage. It is not clear if Heras will race in Friday's 13th stage. Francisco Mancebo of Spain is third overall, nearly two minutes behind Menchov.
Friday's 13th stage covers 196 kilometers from Burgos to Santuario de la Bien Aparecida (Ampuero). The race ends in Madrid September 18th.
Some information in this story provided by APand AFP.
