Australian cyclist Michael Rogers lifted the trophy of the Tour of California on Sunday, while Canadian Ryder Hesiedal won the final and eighth stage.

Hesjedal claimed the 134.4km stage, but it was the 30-year-old Rogers who repelled repeated challeanges on a hilly circuit in the rolling country west of Los Angeles to top the overall standings by nine seconds.

The victory for the United States-based team of HTC-Columbia saw the fall of local favorite David Zabriskie of Garmin-Transitions, who claimed his third runner-up finish in the 5-year-old race.

Three-time champion Levi Leipheimer of the United States was the third for RadioShack, while the U.S. team lost Lance Armstrong after he crashed outside Visalia on Thursday, when he was accused of doping and cheating.