Tour De France 2015: Stage 9 Results, Latest Standings and Highlights

BMC Racing won the 28-kilometre team time trial from Vannes to Plumelec in Stage 9 on Sunday, but Team Sky's Chris Froome stays in the yellow jersey.

In a thrilling finale, BMC took the top spot from Movistar with Sky the only team yet to come in. With Tejay van Garderen 13 seconds back from Froome in the general classification, Sky needed a decent finish to keep the Englishman in yellow.

And despite some tricky moments on the climbing finish, Sky finished just one second back from BMC. Sky Sports Cycling provided the stage results and updated GC standings: 

Vincenzo Nibali's Astana team were the first of the big names to head out, and they set the early pace. They lost a couple of riders in the first 10 kilometres but were up on pace-setters IAM Cycling at the first time-check.

They finished the course with a time of 32 minutes and 50 seconds, Nibali having led the team up the climbing finish. 

The Kazakh outfit were leaders as Froome's Team Sky—the final group—headed out:

"

And they're off! GO! GO! @TeamSky blast into the team time trial. The benchmark to beat out there is 32'50" (Astana) #AllezTeamSky #TDF2015

— Team Sky (@TeamSky) July 12, 2015"

However, Movistar looked set to head the cards as they went through the 20.5-kilometre time-check, still with a full complement of riders, including Peter Sagan and Nairo Quintana.

They came apart a little as they mounted a climb, but they managed to get back together and took top spot from Astana as they went 31 seconds faster.

Billed pre-stage as a battle between BMC Racing and Team Sky, the team time trial did indeed pan out as much as the last two teams went faster.

BMC were desperate to get Van Garderen in yellow ahead of the rest day. They did all they could, going quickest at 10 kilometres, but Sky matched their time exactly when they went through the first time-check.

As noted by Cycling Weekly, Froome took a big turn on the front in the opening stages and continued to do so as he aimed to stay in yellow for the rest day:

On a day that could have seen big time-gaps open up, there was actually very little to split the top teams.

Tinkoff-Saxo's Alberto Contador lost time on his rivals as his team went through the finish 24 seconds down on Movistar.

BMC did go quickest as they crossed the line, but only four seconds up on Movistar, and they did not look to have done enough to put Van Garderen atop the general classification.

However, Sky almost had a disaster on the finishing climb as Froome, Richie Porte and Geraint Thomas pushed to the finish.

Nicolas Roche struggled on the climb and fell back, but he was pulled up by Froome to see Sky finish second, just a second back from BMC. 

Pos	Rider	Points
1	Peter Sagan (Svk) Tinkoff-Saxo	213
2	Andre Greipel (Ger) Lotto Soudal	210
3	Mark Cavendish (GBr) Etixx - Quick-Step	159
4	John Degenkolb (Ger) Team Giant-Alpecin	158
5	Bryan Coquard (Fra) Team Europcar	102
6	Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing Team	73
7	Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Etixx - Quick-Step	63
8	Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal	61
9	Alexis Vuillermoz (Fra) AG2R-La Mondiale	52
10	Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky	51

Pos	Rider	Points
1	Daniel Teklehaimanot (Eri) MTN - Qhubeka	4
2	Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Team Katusha	2
3	Alexis Vuillermoz (Fra) AG2R-La Mondiale	2
4	Michael Schar (Swi) BMC Racing Team	1
5	Romain Sicard (Fra) Team Europcar	1
6	Rafal Majka (Pol) Tinkoff-Saxo	1
7	Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Lotto Soudal	1
8	Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky	1
9	Daniel Martin (Ire) Cannondale-Garmin	1

It was a great result for the British team, as they kept Froome at the top of the standings, and he will head to the Pyrenees in yellow.

After Monday's rest day comes the first foray into the mountains for three consecutive stages, which could prove hugely influential in the eventual outcome of the race.