Geslin goes for it on the home front

The sixth stage of the Tour de France proved to be the first big appointment for Anthony Geslin. Born in Alençon, the rider of the Bouygues Telecom team grew up on the roads which, in the past delivered him wins in the ‘Route Adélie' of 2004 and this year's Paris-Camembert. To make sure he would be in the right break, he got in all of them.

"I had marked this stage before the start of the Tour de France because the course was pretty close to my place, so I wanted to show myself," Geslin told Cyclingnews after the finish. "At first, I was in the break of seventeen, but they didn't let us go. The presence of Boonen, Hushovd and Sinkewitz proved to be too much for the escape to enjoy a long adventure. When we were grabbed by the bunch, Bäckstedt attacked and I reacted immediately and that proved to be the good escape." Florent Brard joined the two riders and together they went flat out. "We never had more than four minutes so we knew it would be hard to make it to the finish."

The sprinters' teams worked hard to bring everything back in time to make it another bunch sprint. It must be frustrating to know that breaks are rarely successful. "It's very hard because McEwen wins every day, so the teams of the sprinters always work hard to get a bunch sprint. We can only try to make it difficult for them, but this is the Tour de France so we don't count on any presents."