Italian Takes Tour de France Yellow Jersey : Cycling: A mountain time trial proved a disaster for previous leader Ronan Pensec of France.

VILLARD-DE-LANS, France —  Italian rider Claudio Chiappucci captured the yellow jersey in the Tour de France in a mountain time trial today that proved a disaster for previous leader Ronan Pensec of France.

Eric Breukink of the Netherlands won the 20.8-mile climb from Fontaine near Grenoble in 56 minutes, 52 seconds, but the real drama was reserved for the last riders to go in the individual race against the clock.

Chiappucci, the second-to-last to start, clocked 57 minutes, 57 seconds to record the eighth-best time of the day, but behind him Pensec was struggling.

The Frenchman came in exhausted in 1 hour, 42 seconds. His 1-minute, 28-second advantage was wiped out, and he is now second overall, 1 minute, 17 seconds behind the Italian.

“I had no legs, no strength,” Pensec complained after crossing the finish line. “I don’t understand what happened today. But the tour is not yet over--there’s still a week left.”

Said Chiappucci: “I wanted this yellow jersey from the start and now it’s done. Today I was in my best shape.”

Pedro Delgado of Spain was second in the time trial, with his compatriot Miguel Indurain third and last year’s Tour winner Greg LeMond of the United States fifth.

LeMond fell back to fourth overall, 7:27 behind the Italian, and Delgado moved up to fifth, a further 1 minute, 35 seconds behind.

Breukink, who won the prologue in last year’s Tour de France and who took a stage victory in 1987, moved up to third in the overall standings but still 6:55 behind the new leader.

Chiappucci, the first Italian to wear the yellow jersey since Francesco Moser in 1975, is a surprise tour leader.

A rider with no great international record, he did not figure among the favorites before this year’s race, though he is now in an excellent position to become the first Italian to win it since Felice Gimondi in 1965.

Chiappucci said he believed that Pensec had overstretched himself in Wednesday’s 11th stage to l’Alpe d’Huez, the toughest mountain section of the entire race.

“Yesterday I saw Pensec was giving everything but personally I kept some reserves,” he said.

The two riders have been up among the leaders since the first stage of the tour, when they were in a group of four who finished with a huge lead over the main bunch.

Chiappucci, 27, has never won one of the top international races, though he did triumph in two races last season, the Placci Cup and the Tour of Piemont.