Aru signals Tour ambitions as Froome takes yellow

Cycling - The 104th Tour de France cycling race - The 160.5-km Stage 5 from Vittel, France to La Planche des Belles Filles, France - July 5, 2017 - Astana rider Fabio Aru of Italy wins the stage. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

LA PLANCHE DES BELLES FILLES, France (Reuters) - Fabio Aru claimed his maiden Tour de France win on Wednesday, as defending champion Chris Froome snatched a yellow jersey he intends to wear all the way back to Paris.

Italian champion Aru launched a blistering attack in the final stretches of the fifth stage, jumping away from the leading group with 2.3km left of the 5.9km climb at a lung-busting average gradient of 8.5 per cent.