Tour de France 2015: Stage 2

Hello and welcome to Cyclingnews' live coverage of the 102nd Tour de France. Stage 2 sees the riders travel 166km from Utrecht to Zélande with racing getting underway at 13:15 local time.

• Tour de France Stage 2 report
• Tour de France Stage 1 report
• The Cyclingnews Tour de France Podcast episode 2
• Tour de France 2015 stage 2 forum
• Tour de France 2015 preview
• Tour de France 2015 - stage-by-stage guide
• Tour de France 2015 start list 

Hello and welcome to Cyclingnews' live coverage of the Tour de France's second stage. Make sure you visit our Tour de France race page for all the latest on the race.

It's a pancake flat 166km stage but it won't be a straight forward day in the saddle for the peloton with crosswinds and storms predicted for today. Read our stage preview by clicking here

Yesterday Rohan Dennis became the tenth Australian to win a stage at the Tour de France and seventh to wear the yellow jersey. You can read our race report of stage 1 by clicking here

It is 25 degrees in Utrecht but just 19 degrees at the finish in Zelande at the moment. Isolated showers at predicted for the first part of the stage before becoming more frequent, and locally heavy and thundery. Adding to that, northwesterly crosswinds are expected at the finish with gusts around 40/50 km/h.

There was lots of new tech on show yesterday. We've put together a gallery of Aero goodness, cool components and set-up peculiarities for you to browse through. Click here to have a look.

Yesterday he was on a standard BMC bike but as the first yellow jersey wearer of the 2015 Tour de France, Rohan Dennis will be riding all an yellow BMC today. Click here to find out more

Rohan Dennis won all three jerseys on offer yesterday, yellow, green and white but of course he can't wear all three.

Tony Martin (Etixx-Quick Step) will wear the green points jersey for stage 2 while Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin) is in the best young rider's white jersey. No king of the mountains jersey was awarded 

LottoNL-Jumbo lead the team classification after stage 1 but as they team already wears yellow helmets, it's business as usual for the Dutch squad.

Of the 'Fab Four' it was defending champion Vincenzo Nibali posting the best time in the time trial yesterday. To read what he had to say after the stage, click here

Chris Froome, second best of the 'Fab Four', was content with his showing in the time trial as he explained yesterday.

In case you've missed it, Cyclingnews will have a daily podcast from the Tour de France. To listen to the stage 1 podcast, click here

30 minutes until the start of stage 2 

Alexander Kristoff turns 28 today. He'll be looking to celebrate by claiming the stage win today

@tinkoff_saxo Sun, 5th Jul 2015 11:48:48

This is the profile for stage 2 of the Tour de France

L'Equipe's A. Thomas-Commin has tweeted a photo of Rohan Dennis in the yellow jersey with his yellow bike and helmet

@TourDeJose Sun, 5th Jul 2015 12:00:10

Today's intermediate sprint is hosted by Rotterdam at kilometre 80.5. The Dutch city was the grand depart of the 2010 edition of the race.

@BMCProTeam Sun, 5th Jul 2015 12:11:33

A storm is brewing in the Netherlands. Have a read of what to expect on the second stage of the Tour de France by clicking here

 And they're off!

The riders are rolling out of Utrecht in the neutralised zone. race leader and yellow jersey Rohan Dennis is on the front. 

It is sunny and warm at the start but the wind is already blowing at the finish. 

@Ride_Argyle Sun, 5th Jul 2015 12:18:42

@BoraArgon18 Sun, 5th Jul 2015 12:15:45

Along side Dennis at the head of the peloton are the other jersey wearers. Dennis won all the jerseys but Tony Martin is wearing the green points jersey and Tom Dumoulin is wearing the white jersey a best young rider. There is no polka-dot jersey in the peloton today as the climber's competition has yet to start. 

@GiantAlpecin Sun, 5th Jul 2015 12:26:17

Who is your tip to win today's stage? Lets us know in our special stage forum page. 

Click here to head to the forum.

Alexander Kristoff spoke to Eurosport before the start of the stage. He’s expected a hectic finale today.

“I think it’s going to be a stressful race and the wind could make a difference at the end on the stage. We’ll all try to stay at front and so the speed with high and there possibly will be crashes." 

The stage is still neutralised, with the riders tucked in behind the red ASO race car. 

There is a special start ceremony before the actions begins.  

The race stopped briefly to listen to the national anthem of the Netherlands.

The ceremony is now offer and the riders are rolling again. Now more riders are pushing for a place at the front ready to jump in the break when the race starts officially and the flag is dropped.

And here we go! Prudhomme waves the flag and the stage is underway. 

We immediately have riders on the attack, looking for the early break of the day.

It seems the big teams are happy to let four riders go. 

The four riders are Stef Clement (IAM Cycling), Armindo Fonseca (Bretagne Seche), Perrig Quemeneur (Europcar) and Jan Barta (Bora Argon 18).  

We're hearing from the finish at the wind is blowing stronger and stronger, with rain starting to fall. 

Etixx-Quickstep is leading the peloton but not really chasing the break for now. 

@EquipeBSE Sun, 5th Jul 2015 12:53:17

9km remaining from 166km

The four has a lead of a minute now. 

Tour de France race director Christian Prudhomme made a visit to the finish of stage 2 back in December. It was rather windy 

Armindo Fonseca is making his third successive Tour de France appearance in 2015. His two professional wins were both in 2014, a stage of Boucles de la Mayenne and the one-day Tour de Vendée race.

Mark Renshaw spoke to Cyclingnews contributor Rupert Guinness this morning about the stage and what to expect from Etixx-Quick Step.

"For sure. We know it's going to be hectic with crosswinds and stuff. I'd imagine we will take responsibility straight away. First sprint … it would be nice to put one on the board."

For Jan Bárta, it is the second straight year that he is riding the Tour de France. His best result in 2014 was third in the final time trial.

Stef Clement is the most experienced of the four breakaway riders with four previous Tour de France appearances. He first rode the French grand tour back in 2008.

The fourth and final member of the breakaway is Perrig Quemeneur. This is his third appearance of racing the Tour de France

After 20km of racing, the break of four riders have an advantage of 2:14 minutes

New for the 2015 Tour de France is the introduction of live GPS tracking and analysis for all riders, plus GoPro cameras on certain bikes. With big gaps expected at the finish of today's stage, the GPS tracking in particular should be very helpful to the time keepers

With 27 of the 166km in today's stage covered, the four leaders advantage is out to 2:40 minutes

Alberto Contador admires the yellow jersey of Rohan Dennis on the start line

Rain has been reported at the finish line in Zelande 

Etixx-Quick Step and BMC are the two teams on the front of the peloton keeping the break at a stable distance out in front

It's one year to the day that Mark Cavendish crashed on stage one of the 2014 Tour de France. His boss, Etixx-Quick Step team manager Patrick Lefevere, spoke to letour this morning. Here's what he had to say.

"Of course Mark [Cavendish] is out for revenge after what happened last year. He's on this Tour to prove he's still the greatest sprinter in the world. I don't want to give figures of how many stages we expect him to win. The most important one to win is the first one because if you do, confidence sets in while if you have to wait for a week, stress starts to take you over.

"Mark did not perform as well as we had hoped for in Switzerland but I could see at the British championships that he was back in great form. With 12 wins this season, he's back on the winning trail even if he has not won many races at World Tour level. But he's still a winner and a star.

"He's nervous and pumped up. He did not like it very much that everybody talked about Marcel Kittel's absence in pre-Tour interviews. When he crashed out last year, did anybody ask Kittel about Mark's absence? Nobody did."

35km remaining from 166km

The gap between the four-man break and the Etixx-Quick Step controlled chase is 2:41 minutes after 36km of racing

Fabian Cancellara needs a wheel change 

Tyler Farrar also requires a new wheel after puncturing

The average speed in the first 41.5km of the stage is 46km.h

@letour Sun, 5th Jul 2015 13:35:38

118km remaining from 166km

 It is starting to rain on the race and the wind is also picking up. 

@caluweski Sun, 5th Jul 2015 13:50:46

The drops of rain have raised the tension in the peloton, with teams trying to move their leaders to the front. 

@inrng Sun, 5th Jul 2015 13:53:17

@katushacycling Sun, 5th Jul 2015 13:58:05

The Tinkoff-Saxo team is now on the front of the peloton protecting Alberto Contador.

Team Sky is also up front for Chris Froome.

Cyclingnews has a daily podcast after each stage.

While awaiting for the finale of today's stage, why not listen to our reporter's analysis and what Chris Froome said after his TT.

Click here to listen and subscribe to get the daily updates.   

Contador is riding in fourth place and Tinkoff-Saxo seems ready for any echelons. 

Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) spoke to Italian television RAI briefly before the start. 

"It’s a difficult stage, especially in the finale. People are going to be nervous and so we’ve got to be careful."

"We’ve got a strong team and we’ll try to look after ourselves but you need legs to do it."

The roads are now exposed and the peloton is lined out. 

Tinkoff-Saxo has split the peloton! 

Bennati and Tosatto kicked it off and caused the split when Contador shouted at them to switch to the right side of the road. 

Team Sky is also on the front and driving the echelon.  

A front echelon of 40 or so riders has already gone off the front.  

There are 3 groups spread down the road.

Froome is safely protected, as is Nairo Quintana by his Movistar teammates.

The front echelon is only 40 seconds behind the break now.

Rui Costa (Lampre) is one of the big names to miss the front echelon. Several sprinters too.

The road furniture and traffic islands is also making the racing tough. it splits the peloton and forces riders to chase and switch sides of the road. 

The second echelon/group is closing the gap on the peloton as the road is protected from the wind.

Andrew Talansky (Cannondale-Garmin) is in the chase group.  

As the groups come back together,  riders quickly eat and drink.

The riders are on the outskirts of Rotterdam, protected by the buildings and trees.

The break is still off the front as the peloton catches its breath before the next section of exposed roads.

90km remaining from 166km

It is pouring with rain at the finish in Zelande, with about two hours of racing remaining.

Barta attacks from the break in pursuit of the intermediate sprint points.

Barta is pushing a huge gear as he tries to stay away.

The peloton is also about to fight for the remaining points.

Barta reaches the intermediate sprint first, waving to the huge crowds to stand back from the road. 

The other breakaways reach the sprint with Degnkolb beating Kristoff, Sagan and Cavendish in the sprint for fifth place.

Barta is still going and has been joined by Quemeneur in the break. 

Crash. Several riders have been involved and are getting mechanical assistance. 

The riders have crossed the river Mose via a bridge. Three riders are chasing after the crash.  

The race is heading more and more towards the coast and so will soon be more exposed to the wind and rain.

Barta seems to knew his time will soon be up and blows a kiss to the television.  

The riders are passing through the feed now, grabbing their musettes and bottles from their team soigneur. 

Crash! Jens Debusschere (Lotto Soudal) has gone down and is in pain. 

He gets a front wheel change and sets off in pursuit of the peloton. He will be hoping to be luckier in the finale of the stage.

70km remaining from 166km

The peloton is playing a waiting game now, almost scared of what will happen in the finale.

@letour Sun, 5th Jul 2015 14:51:33

The race is riding into the wind at the moment but with 57km to go, the race route turns left just after Geervliet. The wind will blow from the right and so perhaps spark more echelons.

Crash! 

Wilco Kelderman has crashed again and taken a bike from a mechanic. He seems a bit shocked as he tries to get going again.

Up front Team Sky is back on the front and driving the race after another split. 

It seems the Kelderman crash split the bunch.

The peloton is about to swallow the trio up front. 

62km remaining from 166km

@letourdata Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:04:08

The speed is rising. It seems that Rafa Majka (Tinkoff-Saxo) is stuck in the second group.   

The front group is going away after sweeping up the break. 

It is now raining hard.

Pierre Rolland (Europecar) is also in the second group. His GC hopes could end today.

Ryder Hesjedal (Cannondale-Garmin) and sprinter Michael Matthews (Orica-GreenEdge) are also in the chase group. 

The rain is coming down in buckets now and the roads are exposed.   

Crash! Adam Hansen (Lotto Soudal) goes down on his right side. 

He's covered in mud but fights the pain to get going again.

Upfront Etixx-Quickstep has hit the front to force a split in the wind.

55km remaining from 166km

The weather has eased at the finish but the riders are heading into the storm.

We already have several echelons.

52km remaining from 166km

The race has exploded with reports that Valverde, Quintana, Mollema, Peraud are all in second group.  

Movistar is trying to drag Quintana back to the front group. 

They are 30 seconds behind.

Katusha is also chasing for Purito Rodriguez.

But the gap is growing and is now 45 seconds.

Upfront the Lotto Soudal, Etixx and BMC teams are setting a fast pace. 

Bouhanni has a problem and calls from his team car from the back of the peloton. 

@TrekFactory Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:24:01

2014 winner Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) is also behind the front group, in a smaller chase group. We have three groups on the road. He is 15 secs back, with Rohan Dennis.

BMC seems to have abandoned Dennis to protect van Garderen

Froome and Contador are in the front group of 40 riders or so.

The race is on!

The team cars are going up to the front group, passing Quintana in the chase group. The gap is over a minute, with the Nibali/Dennis group at 30 seconds.

It seems the storm and rain has passed through but the wind is still blowing.

Nibali is chasing desperately to get across the gap. 

Several of Nibali's teammates are in the third group. He should wait for them. 

upfront the Etixx, Tinkoff and others are working hard to drag the lead group up the road. 

However not everybody is working and the gap is only 40 seconds. 

@letour Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:32:04

The third group containing Quintana is about to catch the Nibali/Dennis group. That could help them chase and close the gap.

Vanmarcke is leading the second group but his teammates tells to ease up to wait for the third group. 

@TheRaceRadio Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:38:28

The chase group is joining forces and trying to close the gap but they are 1:05 behind. 

There are 26 riders in the front group: Froome, Stannard, Thomas (Sky), Contador, Bennati, Rogers, Sagan (Tinkoff), Van Garderen, Oss, Quinziato, Schär, Van Avermaet, Wyss (BMC), Gallopin, Greipel, Sieberg (Lotto-Soudal), Barguil, Dumoulin (Giant), Kwiatkowski, Cavendish, Martin, Renshaw, Stybar, Uran (Etixx), Cancellara (Trek), Koren (Cannondale).

Teams are riding hard at the front to ensure the gorup stays away for the sprinters and for the GC contenders who are in there. 

Nibali has four teammates leading the chase behind but the gap remains at 1:00. 

Stybar, Martin and Kwiatkowski are doing a lot of the work to protect and set up Cavendish. 

GC contenders in the front group include Contador, Uran, van Garderen and Froome.  

For the sprint finish there are Cavendish, Sagan and Greipel. 

With a chance of taking the yellow jersey are Martin, Cancellara and Dumoulin. The sprint placing and time bonuses will decide who pulls on yellow. 

Bike problem for Nibali. Front wheel change. 

He's away and chasing but that will slow the chase.

The gap to the Nibali/Quintana/Pinot/Dennis group is down slightly to 50 seconds but the BMC team has sent riders to the front to help van Garderen gain time on his rivals.

@letourdata Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:51:33

@Laura_Weislo Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:51:13

Nibali has chased in the team cars and is at the back of the chase group.  

It has stopped raining but the roads are wet and the wind is still blowing.

18km remaining from 166km

The gap to the Nibali/Quintana group remains at 1:00 as the race follows the open sea on a fast, wide road. 

It's a real pursuit match between the two groups.

Flat for Bennati. He drops out the front group.

Ian Stannard is also working on the front now, trying to help Froome gain time.

@letour Sun, 5th Jul 2015 15:58:43

Flat for Sagan too!

He takes a new bike and is trying to chase to get back on in the hope he can contest the sprint.

14km remaining from 166km

The dirty roads are causing a series of flats. Now it is Fuglsang's turn behind. 

@Lotto_Soudal Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:02:06

Sagan uses the slipstreams to get back up to the front group. But he will surely be tired in the sprint against Cavendish and Greipel.  

12km remaining from 166km

The late roundabouts have started, with riders sliding out from the chase group. 

10km remaining from 166km

The chase group is far bigger than the front group but it does not have the horsepower to close the gap. 

Upfront they are working smoothly in a double line to gain more time. 

Behind there is some tension as the Etixx riders try to disrupt the chase.

7km remaining from 166km

The gap is now 1:25. this stage is going play a big role in the overall GC and the final result of the race. 

Andrew Talansky (Cannondale-Garmin) is also in the chase group, with teammate Dan Martin.

With his Etixx teammates working so hard in the front group, Cavendish has been able to sit back in the group and save his legs for the sprint.

It will surely be him against Cavendish in a sprint finish.

Stybar and Kwiatkowski are still doing big turns on the front for Cavendish and Uran.  

2km remaining from 166km

We're getting close to the finish. Will Cancellara or Dumoulin try to attack to avoid the sprint?  

@TheRaceRadio Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:13:41

Incredibly after all the wind and rain, the sun is now out and the roads are dry.

1km remaining from 166km

Last kilometre!

Renshaw is there to lead out Cavendish.

Here we go!

Cav leads it out but fades and eases up. Greipel celebrates. He thinks he's won it but it's close.  

Sagan was second, with Cancellara third, who snatches the yellow jersey thanks to the time bonus. 

The Nibali/Quintana chase group finishes 1:27 back. That's a big loss. 

Greipel is overjoyed as he heads to the podium area, celebrating with his teammates.

Etixx worked so hard today but come out with little. Cavendish seemed to start his stage too early and Greipel past him.  

Cancellara also snatched the yellow jersey, with only Uran's GC gains the good result of the day.  

Cavendish finished fourth on the stage, with the GC contenders just behind him. 

@TeamSky Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:20:23

In the new GC, Cancellara leads, with Tony Martin (Etixx) at 3 seconds. Dumoulin is third at 6 seconds.

What a day! What a stage! What a finale! What a finish! 

Greipel was overjoyed to win. 

“I’d like to thank their team for their performance today. This was about team work. I feel they were superb. I felt strong and I’m just really happy to have won,” Greipel said before climbing on the podium.

“Today was a tough day out. We followed a different strategy today, riding hard early on to drop some of my sprint rivals. It worked out well. It was really nervous with all the wind and rain. The team managed to keep me up in the front, and it was a key factor. I'm really happy about my teammates and really proud we won the first stage." 

 

@HaydenRoulston Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:32:19

Cancellara hit in the front group all day because he was alone. He saved his effort for the charge to the line to try to take yellow. It worked out perfectly.  

Stay with us post stage as we bring you reaction from riders and the race. 

Fabian Cancellara had struggled before the Tour de France but takes is 29th yellow jersey on the podium. 

@GiantAlpecin Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:39:12

Greipel's stage win also secured him the green points jersey, while Dumoulin takes the white jersey as best young rider. 

To find out the time gaps between the overall contenders, check out our stage report page and full results.

Click here for the full story.   

Check out Andre Greipel as he celebrates his stage win.

@joelindsey Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:46:59

Amongst the GC contenders to miss the split was Andrew Talansky (Cannondale-Garmin). According to team manager Jonathan Vaughters, he crashed with Nibali and so lost time.

We've calculated the time gaps amongst the GC riders.

Cancellara is in yellow, with Uran, van Garderen, Froome and Contador all well placed.

Everyone else has lost at least a minute. Bardet and Rodriguez are 2:00 down whilel Pierre Rolland (Europcar) lost six minutes!  

7 Rigoberto Uran (Col) Etixx - Quick-Step (+10) 3:44:43
8 Tejay Van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing Team (+12) 0:00:02
10 Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky (+29) 0:00:06
14 Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo (+32) 0:00:18
28 Robert Gesink (Ned) Team LottoNL-Jumbo (-17) 0:01:17
30 Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek Factory Racing (-16) 0:01:21
31 Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ.fr (-13) 0:01:25
33 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team (-11) 0:01:27
39 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team (+4) 0:01:40
41 Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale (+9) 0:01:43
44 Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team (+13) 0:01:45
46 Richie Porte (Aus) Team Sky (+19) 0:01:50
55 Andrew Talansky (USA) Cannondale-Garmin Pro Cycling Team (+35) 0:01:59
71 Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Team Katusha (+54) 0:02:10
78 Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale (+67) 0:02:18
95 Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Team LottoNL-Jumbo (-86) 0:04:50
117 Haimar Zubeldia (Spa) Trek Factory Racing (-61) 0:05:21
170 Pierre Rolland (Fra) Team Europcar (-4) 0:06:06 

@tomcary_tel Sun, 5th Jul 2015 16:54:36

Here's Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing) enjoying his moment in yellow on the podium.

The women Giro Rosa Grand Tour is also underway, with the USA's Megan Guarnier (Boels Dolmans Cycling Team) winning the sprint to take the stage. She also took the overall race lead. 

Ryder Hesjedal (Cannondale-Garmin) also lost over five minutes, ending his overall chances. He will no doubt target stage victories in the mountains now and work for Martin and Talansky.

@alexdowsett Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:04:47

Tinkoff-Saxo owner Oleg Tinkov also took to Twitter after seeing Contador gain 1:28 on several big rivals, including Nibali and Quintana.

@olegtinkov Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:02:12

@fmk_RoI Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:12:56

Alberto thanked his Tinkoff-Saxo teammates after the stage when speaking to Spanish radio.

"Chapeau to the team, who have been great. We knew that today I could be important and we fought hard. There have been times when I went to the limit too but knew it was important because on days like today you can take more advantage than in the mountains," Contador told Cadena Ser .

"We had to be careful at all times. I was telling Froome and Van Garderen, that we have to take advantage of these opportunities. Their teams started to work very late."

Despite his gains, Contador ket his feet on the ground. 

"Much remains of this Tour. This is just the start."

Mark Cavendish has taken to Twitter to explain that he could not do anything to hold onto third place in the sprint and so help Tony Martin take the yellow jersey. 

@MarkCavendish Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:16:52

@MarkCavendish Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:19:41

Vincenzo Nibali lost 1:28 to many of his big overall rivals. He chased hard in the wind and rain and tried to take defeat and his time loss on the chin.

“That’s cycling, even if we were really unlucky today,” he told Italian television.

“When Hansen crashed I was delayed and only stayed up by chance. The team was split up and we were able to chase and close down the echelon immediately. We chased for a long time because what else could we do…”

“You’ve got to accept the unlucky days like this one and look forward. There’s still a long way to go in this Tour de France.”

Fabian Cancellara is holding his race leader's press conference. We will have a special story on Spartacus' big day out soon on Cyclingnews.

@DanMartin86 Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:27:04

@DanMartin86 Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:29:31

Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) was disappointed to lose 1:28 to Contador, Froome and Uran.

“It was a really close call. The storm happened at the worst possible time as we were leaving Rotterdam. There was a roundabout and we didn't take it on the right side. After, it was hard to know where you stood with the rain, the wind. There were riders all over the place,” he said on French television post-stage.

“I didn't really blow my advantage from yesterday. It was nothing, just 20 seconds. Tomorrow (Monday) we will need to be careful again and stay well positioned. It will be essential. We worked well with the other teams to try and close the gap but we couldn't. That's the way it is. It's a long race with surprises everyday. What took place today was one of those surprises.”

Tejay van Garderen (BMC) also gained time on many of his GC rivals by finishing safely in the front group alongside Contador, Froome and Uran.

However it was a day of mixed emotions as BMC lost the yellow jersey after stage one winner Rohan Dennis missed the selection. 

For a long time BMC opted not to work in the front group, hoping that Dennis could get back on. When it seemed difficult, they sent Oss and Quinziato to help open the gap on the chase group to 1:28.  

“It was a tough call to make out there because our yellow jersey was behind. For a while we were thinking, ‘Don’t work. Let them catch up.’ But then all the other GC guys catch up, so it was a tough call out there," he said.

“[Rohan Dennis] is professional. He’ll understand. He knows what the stakes are and what the situation was. I’m sure he’ll be disappointed, but no one can take the results from yesterday away from him and I’m sure he’s still going to have fond memories of being in the jersey, if only for a day. We’ll console him today." 
 

Cyclingnews is producing a daily podcast after every stage of this year's Tour de France.

Each day our reporters on the race analyse the racing, often with special guests and interviews with the riders who have been in the thick of the action. 

Click here to listen to our stage 1 podcast and click here to sign up to itunes to subscribe to the podcast to hear each episode first. 

This is our photo of the day, showing Andre Greipel's happiness t winning stage two after a chaotic day out in the wind and rain. 

@letour Sun, 5th Jul 2015 17:42:28

That's about it for today's live coverage from the Tour de France. 

Check out Cyclingnews or click here for a full stage report of the chaos from stage two. WE also have a huge photo gallery, special interviews, exclusive bike tech stories and other news.

Join us on Monday for more live coverage of every moment of the Tour de France.  

Stage three is from from Anvers to the steep finish on the Mur de Huy in Belgium. It's going to be like racing Fleche-Wallonne during the Tour de France.

We have live coverage of the final hour before the start, every move in the race and a full post-stage wrap up with quotes, photos and news snippet. 

There's no better way to follow the Tour live. 

A demain mes amis du Tour!