Norway's Kristoff wins crash-marred first stage
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Alexander Kristoff wearing the overall leader's yellow jersey during the start of the second stage yesterday. Kristoff won the opening stage, which started and ended on Nice's Promenade des Anglais.
PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
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NICE • Ineos rider Luke Rowe said on Saturday that the decision to call a truce on the rain-lashed and treacherous opening stage of the Tour de France was the right move and blasted a rival as "stupid" for ignoring it.
The stage, which started and ended on Nice's Promenade des Anglais, was won by Norway's Alexander Kristoff. But it was marred by so many crashes that it became a lottery before agreement was reached to slow the pace to avoid further damage.
"Whilst you want to race and put on the best show, you could see how many crashes there were and that was with the three descents at a very careful speed," said Rowe.
In the absence of previous winners Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas, the 30-year-old from Cardiff might not be the key rider at Ineos. However, he is an influential voice even if some rivals may not want to hear him.
Rowe claimed Miguel Angel Lopez, who crashed heavily into a traffic sign, and his Astana team had not cooperated with the truce.
"As a result their leader was left on his back. They made themselves look pretty stupid," said Rowe.
The Tour de France should have been held in June, but the two-month delay due to the coronavirus pandemic means more poor weather is expected.
"The problem was it hasn't rained for two, three months, then it rains and it was literally like ice," added Rowe. "I think half the teams had around half of their team who hit the ground today."
Belgian veteran Philippe Gilbert of Lotto Soudal is out of the Tour, having fractured a knee in one of the dozens of falls around the rain-slick roads of Nice.
Accidents in cycling have been headline events in recent weeks. Belgian rookie Remco Evenepoel plunged head first into a ravine at the Tour of Lombardy while sprinter Fabio Jakobsen said he felt "lucky to be alive" after a horror crash at the Tour of Poland.
But 2011 Tour de France champion Britain's Bradley Wiggins told any moaners to toughen up.
"It's a tough sport, if you don't like it, probably retire," he said.
Deceuninck-QuickStep's Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe won the second stage yesterday to claim the yellow jersey, completing the 186km mountain ride from Nice Haut Pays to Nice ahead of Sunweb's Marc Hirschi. Mitchelton-Scott's Adam Yates was third.
REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
