American Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France on Sunday, his seventh consecutive title, as the last stage has been shortened due to wet conditions.

Organizers stopped the clock and declared Armstrong as the official winner when he and the main pack entered Paris with eight circuits of the Champs-Elysees to complete.

The stage started with Armstrong celebrating and wearing the race leader's yellow jersey, the same scene in the last six races.He held up seven fingers, one for each win, and a piece of paper with the number 7 on it.

However, his last ride as a professional, the closing 144.5-kilometer 21st stage into Paris from Corbeil-Essonnes was not without incident.

Due to wet weather, three of his teammates crashed negotiating a bend just before they crossed the River Seine. Armstrong, just behind them, braked but did not fall.

His teammates recovered and led him up the Champs-Elysees at the front of the pack.

Organizers then announced that they had stopped the clock because of the slippery conditions.

Source: Xinhua