By John Leicester
The Associated Press

Lance Armstrong has the yellow jersey, but he might surrender it temporarily for a chance to wear it at the finale, July 25 in Paris. The Associated Press/CHRISTOPHE ENA

ARRAS, France - It's the jersey Lance Armstrong covets and works so hard for: garish yellow and awarded daily to the leader of the Tour de France.

Armstrong slipped into the jersey Wednesday for the first time at this Tour after he and his team won a rain-soaked time trial. Then the five-time champion said he's ready to surrender the cherished shirt - at least temporarily.

The reason? Because defending the lead at this early stage of the three-week race would be too grueling. For Armstrong, there's just one place where wearing yellow really counts: at the finish on the Champs-Elysees in Paris July 25.

That would be Armstrong's sixth crown, a record in the 101-year-old race. The Texan took a big step toward that goal, opening important but not insurmountable time gaps over key rivals.

From here on, Armstrong will try to prevent them from recovering the lost ground and will look to extend his advantage when the Tour climbs into the Pyrenees at the end of week two, followed by the Alps.

Armstrong's team can't keep tabs on all 183 riders still in the race. As long as key challengers don't zoom ahead, Armstrong indicated he won't exhaust his teammates by making them chase down breakaways by second-tier riders at this stage - even if their efforts earn them the yellow jersey for a day or two.

"This is a hard race to defend," the 32-year-old Armstrong said. "We're not going to sacrifice the team to defend the yellow jersey in the north of France. The time to work and defend begins in the Pyrenees."

Last year, Armstrong's team surrendered the jersey to a French rider, Richard Virenque, for a day. Armstrong took the lead in the next Alpine stage and then wore yellow all the way to Paris - 13 racing days in all.

With Wednesday's win, Armstrong has earned 60 jerseys in his Tour career, including five as champion. But, "I don't really think about those things," he said.

"The only real yellow jerseys that matter are the ones that the guy wears on the Champs-Elysees."