The Associated Press

L'ALPE D'HUEZ, France - Lance Armstrong took the overall leader's yellow jersey for the first time in the Tour de France after finishing third in the second mountain stage of the race Sunday.

Iban Mayo of Spain dominated a battle with Armstrong and other chasing riders on the legendary L'Alpe d'Huez climb, powering up the 8.5-mile ascent and its 21 hairpin bends to win the eighth stage.

Armstrong, having a difficult day, didn't respond when Mayo attacked and finished 2 minutes, 12 seconds behind the Spaniard.

The Texan, 31, who is going for a record-tying fifth straight Tour victory, stayed close enough to seize the overall lead.

"I didn't have the greatest sensations or the greatest legs today - no bluffing," he said.

With Mayo racing ahead, Armstrong was left to battle moves by Spain's Joseba Beloki and American Tyler Hamilton, riding with a broken collarbone, the result of a crash on the second day.

Beloki, the Tour runner-up last year, is second overall to Armstrong, 40 seconds back. Mayo trails by 70 seconds.

Armstrong and Beloki struggled for position moving up the mountain to the delight of cheering fans who lined the route to the ski resort.

"If you'd asked me a month ago: 'Are you going to suffer like that on L'Alpe d'Huez?' I would have said, 'No way!' " Armstrong said.

"I decided to just let Mayo go and limit my losses and cover Beloki because he's close on the classification - and that worked out OK."

Armstrong, trying to match Miguel Indurain's record of five straight titles, was fighting a stomach flu entering the Tour. Armstrong is feeling better, but acknowledged that he doesn't feel as strong as in years past, when he won from 1999-2002. "Let's hope that things get better and not worse," he said.

The 135-mile stage from Sallanches included the monstrous Col du Galibier, which towers 8,728 feet.

Armstrong said he could tell going up the climb that he was not having a great day. "It was a hard stage from the start," Armstrong said. "The whole pack attacked."

At a glance

Sunday's stage: Morzine to L'Alpe d'Huez, 135.78-mile climb up the Tour's second alpine route; includes the Col du Galibier, which peaks at 8,728.5 feet.

Winner: Spain's Iban Mayo, in 5 hours, 57 minutes and 30 seconds.

How others fared: Four-time winner Lance Armstrong finished in third; Germany's Jan Ullrich, a 1997 Tour winner, was 13th; American Tyler Hamilton, riding with a fractured collarbone, placed seventh.

Yellow jersey: Armstrong leads the field with an overall time of 35 hours, 12 minutes and 50 seconds.

Next Stage: Bourg d'Oisans to Gap, a 114.39-mile trek, final of three Alpine climbs; includes the Col d'Izoard, a 7,788-foot uphill grind.