Result: GERMANY’S MARCEL KITTEL claimed his second stage win of this year’s Tour, holding off sprint rivals Andre Greipel, Mark Cavendish and Peter Sagan in a race to the finish line at Saint-Malo. Chris Froome maintains his stranglehold on the yellow jersey.
How it happened: They came to Saint-Malo expecting a bunch sprint to the line and that’s exactly what they got. After an early breakaway allowed Cofidis rider Luis Angel Maté to take the intermediate points, the sprinters’ teams moved in to position at the head of the peloton with 42 kilometres to go and gradually began to reel in their targets.
The break was swallowed up six kilometres from the line as Kittel’s Argos-Shimano and Greipel’s Lotto-Belisol teams moved into contention. Yards from the line Mark Cavendish was involved in a controversial collision with Kittel’s team-mate Tom Veelers as the two vied for position. The crash took the sting out of Cavendish’s charge and he could only finish third, leaving Kittel to edge out his compatriot in a photo-finish.
YouTube Credit: girasepcn
The big winner: Kittel. Two wins under his belt and with flat stages to come again on Thursday and Friday, he could easily add another before the Tour returns to the mountains.
The big loser: Cavendish. He will face a few questions about Veeler’s crash, with the TV replays appearing to show him leaning in to the German.
(Pic Credit: ITV Sport)
Who is wearing what jersey?
- Yellow (Overall): Chris Froome
- Green (Points): Peter Sagan
- Polka-Dot (Mountains): Pierre Rolland
- White (Young Rider): Nairo Quintana
What about the Irish? Riding his first stage since Sunday’s win Dan Martin finished in 42nd overall, 11 seconds behind Kittel and five behind Froome. He remains in eighth in the GC standings. Nicolas Roche finished today’s stage in 126th, 1’40″ back.
What happens tomorrow then? A 33-kilometre individual time trial from Avranches to Mont Saint-Michel; a chance for Chris Froome to increase his GC lead and for the chasing pack to make up some ground.
