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SAINT-LO, France -- The landing beaches. The war cemeteries. The museums. The first towns that were liberated more than 70 years ago.The D-Day and World War II history that is embedded in the culture of Normandy is earning extra spotlight this weekend when the Tour de France opens with two stages in the region.Saturdays opening leg starts at Mont-Saint-Michel, a World Heritage Benedictine abbey perched on a rock off the coast, and ends at Utah Beach, one of the key landing sites for Allied troops on June 6, 1944.The first stage also passes through Sainte-Mere-Eglise, where American paratrooper John Steele dangled from a clock tower after his parachute got caught during the invasion, and survived. The town is now home to the Airborne Museum.Stage 2 on Sunday finishes in Cherbourg-En-Cotentin, site of the Battle of Cherbourg.Tejay van Garderen, the BMC rider who represents the United States best hope for overall victory in the Tour, was wide eyed as he took a look around this week.It really puts into perspective what were doing here, Van Garderen said on Friday. We always say that were soldiers going to war and then you see the real soldiers and youre like, `OK, maybe this is just bike racing.Teams were driven into the official team presentation in Sainte-Mere-Eglise on WWII-era jeeps and trucks on Thursday.I like the way organizers and the local people here have put together the appropriate historical reminders, that teams have been accompanied on the jeeps by the local people in costumes, said Brian Cookson, the British president of the International Cycling Union.A legacy of the war was freedom, underlined by the diversity of the Tour teams.Van Garderen, who was in third place when he had to abandon last years Tour in tears due to illness four stages from the end, shares the BMC leadership with Australian standout Richie Porte. They are backed by riders from Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland, and Belgium.Were such an international team, Van Garderen said. It shows that the world has come a long way.The favorites for overall victory in the three-week race are two-time winner Chris Froome of Britain, two-time runner-up Nairo Quintana of Colombia, and two-time champion Alberto Contador of Spain.After Saturdays stage, a group of American, British, Canadian, French, and German riders will lay white roses in front of Utah Beachs Peace Monument to commemorate the Allied landings.We will celebrate cycling as a peace symbol, Tour director Christian Prudhomme said. The only thing that prevented the Tour de France taking place was world war, twice.Started in 1903, the Tour is beginning its 103rd edition. The only years it wasnt held came from 1915-18 and 1940-46.French rider Thomas Voeckler, whose grandfather fought during WWII, volunteered to take part in the ceremony, along with German sprinting standout Andre Greipel and Van Garderen.Amael Moinard, a French member of BMC, was born in Cherbourg and knows all about D-Day.Growing up here, Ive been into it from an early age because all our school trips were related to D-Day commemorations: Utah Beach, the Sainte-Mere-Eglise museum, the Caen memorial, Moinard said. Then the 50th D-Day anniversary was something big for me, with all the presidents from countries across the world coming to Normandy. Its nice to start here.Like the paratroopers before him, Moinard has a deep understanding of the winds in La Manche, as this area of Normandy is called. The way he sees it, the seven kilometers (four miles) of exposed road along the coast with 30 kilometers to go in the opening stage will evoke more fear about the wind -- which has the potential to split the peloton in two -- than the wind itself.As soon as you see the sea on the map each rider will say, `Its going to be windy, tricky, Moinard explained. Its going to make everybody nervous, and for sure a crash will happen. So all of the leaders and sprinters will want to be in the front.But then we take a much more protected road for the last 25K, Moinard added. So its more telling them, `Just be relaxed. Everything is going to be OK, hopefully.---AP Sports Writer Samuel Petrequin contributed to this report.---Andrew Dampf on Twitter: www.twitter.com/asdampf Vapormax Plus Discount . Andreas Johnson had a goal and two assists while Jacob de la Rose also scored for Sweden (2-0-0). 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They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. RIVERIA MAYA, Mexico -- Brittany McPhee and Shannon Coffee scored 13 points apiece and No. 11 Stanford blitzed Wichita State 87-39 on Friday at the Cancun Challenge.Erica McCall added 13 points for the Cardinal (5-1) and Alana Smith, Nadia Fingall and Marla Snezek had 11 each.Stanford scored the last seven points of the first quarter to take a 20-11 lead and then scored the first 16 of the second. The Cardinal made 11 of 13 shots in the second quarter and led 46-15 at the break. They outscored the Shockers (1-4) 22-2 on points in the paint and got 20 points off 13 turnnoversWith Smith and McCall grabbing eight rebounds and Coffee seven, Stanford dominated the boards 45-18.dddddddddddd The Cardinal ended up at 62 percent shooting (33 of 53) and a 50-13 advantage on inside points.No player reached double figures for the Shockers, who shot 26 percent (14 of 54). In their only other meeting, the Shockers beat Stanford 71-68 on Dec. 4, 1980.Stanford wraps up the round-robin tournament facing Purdue on Saturday. ' ' '