The Tour de France peloton is lining up in Noirmoutier-en-l'Île for stage 1 of the 2018 edition. The neutralised start is due at 11am local time, with the bunch set to hit kilometre zero by 11.10. 201 kilometres of almost entirely flat racing then follow, and we can almost certainly expect a bunch sprint in Fontenay-le-Comte, where the first man across the line will be the first maillot jaune of this year's race. The trek along the Vendée coast is not without its complications, as Stephen Farrand points out in his stage preview, though reports indicate there is only the lightest of easterly wind on the route today.
The build-up to this Tour has been dominated by the Chris Froome salbutamol case, and though he was cleared on Monday morning, the cloud has hardly lifted. The UCI's decision-making process still remains rather nebulous, WADA's credibility has taken a serious blow, while the serious questions previously flagged by the Parliamentary Select Committee still linger over Team Sky. Froome and his Sky teammates were handed a frosty reception by spectators at Thursday's presentation, but there seems to be only warm applause for the peloton at large as it rolls out and begins to navigage the neutralised zone.
When Noirmoutier-en-l'Île was first named as the venue of the Grand Depart, it looked like the peloton would cross to the mainland via the infamous Passage du Gois, which played such a pivotal part in the 1999 Tour. The causeway has not been included, however, as the high tide at this hour of the morning would have prevented the race's passage. Remember, today's stage has an earlier than normal start to avoid a clash with the World Cup quarter-finals.
The intermediate sprint today is after 119.5km at La Tranche-sur-Mer, while the first of the new time bonus sprints - which feature on 8 of the first 9 stages - comes Maillezais with 13.5km to go. There are bonuses of 3, 2 and 1 seconds for the first three riders across the line, while the stage winner will get a 10-second bonus.
201km remaining from 201km
Christian Prudhomme waves the flag from the sunroof of the lead car, and the 2018 Tour de France is underway. Immediately, a trio of riders accelerate and it looks as though they might be granted their freedom.
There is no flurry of attacks in the opening kilometres, and instead the day's early break has slipped clear with no resistance whatsoever. Kevin Ledanois (Fortuneo-Samsic), Yoann Offredo (Wanty-Groupe Gobert) and Jerome Cousin (Direct Energie) have opened an early lead over the peloton, and that seems to be that as far early aggression goes.
197km remaining from 201km
Offredo, Ledanois and Cousin have a lead of 1:11 over a most relaxed peloton. Things will, of course, become altogether more fraught as the day progresses, but the GC contenders will certainly be glad for a gentle introduction to what is sure to be a white-knuckle opening week of racing.
There were reportedly some boos for Froome as he took his place on the start line. Nairo Quintana, meanwhile, was spotted in conversation with an arm draped around the Sky rider. Out on the road, Froome pedals alongside Luke Rowe in the middle of the peloton.
192km remaining from 201km
Offredo, Cousin and Ledanois continue to stretch out their early buffer, which now stands at 2:43. Meanwhile, Quick-Step and Dimension Data look to organise themselves at the head of the bunch on behalf of Fernando Gaviria and Mark Cavendish.
191km remaining from 201km
Three minutes the gap for the three escapees, who race beneath pleasant sunshine and in still conditions.
187km remaining from 201km
Our three leaders have reached the striking Pont de Noirmoutier en route to the mainland. Their gap over the peloton is up to 3:44.
Two years ago, Mark Cavendish claimed the first yellow jersey of his career by winning the opening stage of the Tour, the first of four victories on that year's race. Remarkably, the Manxman has clocked up just four victories in total - all in the United Arab Emirates - in the two years since. That, of course, is due to the wretched luck Cavendish has endured over the past two seasons. His 2017 campaign was ruined by illness and then his crash - caused by Peter Sagan - in the opening week of last year's Tour. Cavendish's season thus far has been hampered by the trio of crashes he suffered at the Abu Dhabi Tour, Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo, but he had a solid block of racing in June and will have designs on drawing closer to Eddy Merckx's record of 34 Tour stage victories. "The number is so close, but it's still far away. I always say that one stage makes a rider's career, let alone one a year, or multiple stages in a year. It's harder than it looks. I'll try and do it before the end of my career, that's for sure," said Cavendish. Daniel Benson has more here.
177km remaining from 201km
LottoNL-Jumbo, Dimension Data, Groupama-FDJ and Quick-Step all have riders at the head of the peloton on behalf of their fast men. Interestingly, Robert Gesink is the man currently setting the tempo for LottoNL-Jumbo on behalf of Dylan Groenewegen. The gap to the three escapees is just under four minutes.
Nairo Quintana lines up in a Movistar team that also features Alejandro Valverde and Mikel Landa. The Colombian has placed on the podium three times at the Tour - second in 2013 and 2015, third in 2016 - but, like his fellow South American Lionel Messi at the World Cup, it seems that nothing short of actually winning the race outright will satisfy the expectations that developed around him early in his career. “For me, this year is completely different to last year,” Quintana said. “I’ve arrived here fresh, in very good condition, and above all with a lot of motivation. I want to do well. I’m feeling good mentally and I’m ready to enjoy this Tour.” Patrick Fletcher has more on Quintana here, including his comments on the booing of Froome and his joking not joking remark about welcoming offers from other teams...
165km remaining from 201km
The escapees are past Saint-Jean-de-Monts and their advantage over the peloton is now stable at around four minutes. A reminder that our breakaway is composed of Yoann Offredo (Wanty-Groupe Gobert), Jerome Cousin (Direct Energie) and Kevin Ledanois (Fortuneo-Samsic).
The Tour de France is not the only major stage race taking place in July. The Giro Rosa got underway in Verbania yesterday, with Sunweb claiming the opening team time trial to put Ellen van Dijk into the overall lead. Full details are here.
158km remaining from 201km
The break's lead has dropped slightly, to 3:45, but with 100 miles still to go, there is little by way of urgency in the main peloton.
Although the break sallied clear without a struggle, the pace has still been very brisk indeed thus far. Ledanois, Offredo and Cousin covered some 46.2km in the first hour of racing.
150km remaining from 201km
Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) drops back to his team car for a running adjustment, but the Olympic champion's machine is quickly put to rights and he is safely back with the peloton. The break's lead is down to 3:21.
Van Avermaet opts for a change of bike after all, and wheels to a halt on the roadside. The Belgian is quickly back up to speed as he bridges up again to the rear of the peloton.
6th overall a year ago, Dan Martin will have designs on at least replicating that result this time out. After an ill-starred start to life at UAE-Team Emirates, a stage win and 4th overall at the Criterium du Dauphine was a welcome return to form for the Irishman. As ever, Martin begins the Tour with a pragmatic outlook. "I'm committed to the GC, but I'm just going to enjoy the race. It's a rollercoaster, and I'm bound to lose some time at some point, but I'll gain some time at others. It would be nice to come away with a stage victory, but there's not a single rider on the start-line who isn't thinking that. It's a tough field this year, but it is every year," Martin said. Read more here.
137km remaining from 201km
Mark Cavendish has dropped back off the rear of the peloton, and seems to be waiting for his team car, presumably to remedy a mechanical issue. 2:46 the gap to the escapees.
Mark Cavendish is safely back in the main peloton after being paced back up by a group of his Dimension Data teammates.
Meanwhile, there is a puncture for Philippe Gilbert (Quick-Step), who was the stage winner - and first yellow jersey - when the Tour began in these parts back in 2011. Today, his main duty will be to help Fernando Gaviria to stage victory.
130km remaining from 201km
Fernando Gaviria is making his Tour de France debut and will hope to open his account this afternoon. A year ago, Quick-Step piloted Marcel Kittel to five stages wins and expectations on Patrick Lefevere's team are always high. "I'm anxious for it to start now, and to know how it's going to go," Gaviria said on Friday. "It's the same with any new race: you're a little nervous before the start. It's a new race and a new experience, and you don't know what's going to happen." Patrick Fletcher has more here.
The break has passed through Les Sables d'Olonne, where Mario Cipollini won his first Tour de France stage back in 1993. His victory came on the opening road stage, a day after Miguel Indurain had claimed the prologue at Le Puy du Fou.
120km remaining from 201km
Robert Gesink placed 5th on the 2010 Tour and 6th just three years ago, but the Dutchman's GC ambitions have been shelved this time out and he is still riding on the front for Groenewegen. Steven Kruijswijk and Primoz Roglic lead LottoNL-Jumbo's overall challenge here.
118km remaining from 201km
Jay Thomson is on the front for Dimension Data, while Tim De Clerq is on the early pace-making duties for Quick-Step Floors. 2:18 is the gap to the break.
Chris Froome is surrounded by Team Sky riders towards the front of the peloton. In the wake of the abrupt end to Froome's salbutamol case, Team Sky are not the most popular among roadside spectators, and the jeers aimed at Team Sky during Thursday's presentation echoed Alberto Contador's reception at the start of the 2011 Tour. Transparency's Dave Brailsford had this to say: "We have confidence in the French people. They will understand this is someone innocent. I think they're fair, the French."
There is one classified climb on today's almost pan flat stage, incidentally. The category 4 Cote de Vix (0.7km at 4.2%) comes 28km from the finish, which gives the escapees a fighting chance of holding on to battle it out for the first polka dot jersey of the Tour.
108km remaining from 201km
Letour.fr reports that the average speed after two hours of racing is a brisk 44.7kph. The peloton is 2:17 down on Offredo, Cousin and Ledanois.
There is a distinct air of detente in the peloton for the time being, as Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) chats to his former teammate Michael Matthews (Sunweb) in the body of the bunch. The speed will ratchet inexorably upwards as we approach the finish, of course, and the finale will be fraught.
102km remaining from 201km
100km remaining from 201km
The three leaders enter the final 100 kilometres with a lead of 2:30 over the peloton.
94km remaining from 201km
The temperature at the finish in Fontenay-le-Comte is a pleasant 27 degrees. The escapees continue with an advantage of 2:19 over the bunch.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Festina Affair and the 10th anniversary of the implementation of the biological passport, but it's hard to shake the dispiriting feeling that precious little has changed. The tone deaf wording of the UCI press release announcing the end of its proceedings against Froome - "The UCI hopes that the cycling world can now turn its focus to, and enjoy, the upcoming races on the cycling calendar" - certainly contributed to that impression.
Speaking at the start this morning, UCI president David Lappartient, said: “I know there are doubts from the fans towards the institutions and the UCI. But I call on the fans to please continue to follow this sport. We are the sport of ant-doping, we’re the cleanest sport because we’re fighting doping, we have strong procedures in place. When you fight doping, you can find something. In this case we had to follow the statement of WADA on June 28, where WADA agreed with Chris Froome’s explanations. Froome’s sample does not constitute an anti-doping violation. So we had no choice but to close the case.” Stephen Farrand will have the full story in due course.
84km remaining from 201km
The break are approaching the intermediate sprint at La Tranche-sur-Mer (no bonus seconds on offer here), and it's notable that Quick-Step Floors are winding things up in the bunch on behalf of Fernando Gaviria.
81km remaining from 201km
Cousin leads Ledanois and Offredo through the intermediate sprint, with the three leaders not even bothering to contest the points. It should be rather more heated when the sprinters come through in two minutes' time.
Lawson Craddock (EF-Drapac) was a faller in the feed zone. The American has a bloodied face and muddied jersey, but he is back on his bike. He is currently being treated by the race doctor at the rear of the peloton.
Meanwhile, Gaviria wins the sprint for 4th ahead of Andre Greipel and Arnaud Demare. Peter Sagan was a bit too far back, though he will have picked up some points at least. The world champion shares a joke with Bora-Hansgrohe teammate Maciej Bodnar - who actually crossed the line ahead of him - as the pace relents again.
78km remaining from 201km
Craddock is now trying to make his way back up towards the peloton, and is engaged in conversation with his directeur sportif Charly Wegelius as he does so.
Craddock seems to be struggling with a shoulder injury, and, however it finishes up, this will be a most uncomfortable afternoon for the Texan. The 26-year-old is competing in his second Tour de France.
The result of the first intermediate sprint of the Tour, where Sagan, in fact, fell just shy of picking up any points. Last year's green jersey Michael Matthews, true to his word, also did not contest the sprint.
1 Jerome Cousin (Fra) Direct Energie 20 2 Kevin Ledanois (Fra) Fortuneo-Samsic 17 3 Yoann Offredo (Fra) Wanty-Groupe Gobert 15 4 Fernando Gaviria (Col) Quick-Step Floors 13 5 André Greipel (Ger) Lotto Soudal 11 6 Arnaud Démare (Fra) Groupama-FDJ 10 7 Maciej Bodnar (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe 9 8 Mark Cavendish (GBr) Dimension Data 8 9 Rigoberto Uran (Col) EF-Drapac 7 10 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) UAE-Team Emirates 6 11 Andrea Pasqualon (Ita) Wanty-Groupe Gobert 5 12 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin 4 13 Maximilian Richeze (Arg) Quick-Step Floors 3 14 Rick Zabel (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin 2 15 Marcus Burghardt (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe 1
68km remaining from 201km
Dimension Data, Quick-Step, Groupama-FDJ and LottoNL-Jumbo are all prominent at the head of the peloton on behalf of their sprint leaders. The gap to the break stands at 2:08.
Lawson Craddock is back in the peloton, but he is still suffering from his injuries, and his face is still bloodied. Simon Clarke drapes a consoling arm across his teammate's shoulder.
62km remaining from 201km
It's no surprise to see Jerome Cousin in the break today. The Vendee region is home to Jean-Rene Bernaudeau's Direct Energie team, and the first break of the Grand Depart was always likely to have one of their number aboard. The leading trio are still collaborating well, and their advantage stands at 2:11.
Richard Ings, the former head of the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority, has called for Chris Froome, WADA and UCI to release all documents relevant to his salbutamol case. When science is proved to have exceptions, then those need to be provided to all athletes. WADA need to disclose the information on what it means to be over the limit but be shown to have only used a therapeutic dose. We've seen the decision at a top-line level, but there's no documentation behind the decision. Given this is a multi-time winner of the Tour and the event is about to kick off, I think we as a public deserve to see it. There should be no reason why the information can't be released if there's permission from the cyclist," Ings told Cyclingnews. Read more here.
Richard Ings, the former head of the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority, has called for Chris Froome and WADA to release all documents relevant to his salbutamol case. When science is proved to have exceptions, then those need to be provided to all athletes. WADA need to disclose the information on what it means to be over the limit but be shown to have only used a therapeutic dose. We've seen the decision at a top-line level, but there's no documentation behind the decision. Given this is a multi-time winner of the Tour and the event is about to kick off, I think we as a public deserve to see it. There should be no reason why the information can't be released if there's permission from the cyclist," Ings told Cyclingnews. Read more here.
55km remaining from 201km
Three hours into the stage, the average speed is 44.9kph.
The break have 1:26 in hand on the peloton, and they'll hope to survive in front at least as far as the Cote de Vix, with 28km remaining. One would expect the trio to be swept up ahead of the bonus sprint in Maillezais with 13.3km to go.
Vincenzo Nibali is at the rear of the peloton, being paced back up by Gorka Izagirre after pausing to remedy a mechanical issue. The Bahrain-Merida rider expressed concern yesterday that the UCI's decision to drop its proceedings against Froome was a case of double standards, given that Diego Ulissi served a nine-month ban in 2014 and 2015 for returning a lower level of salbutamol in an anti-doping control. "I don't know why he was cleared, it's not very clear to everyone why he was cleared. We know there's a full written verdict but we've not seen why, in detail, he was cleared," Nibali said. "I witnessed what Ulissi went through because we're neighbours and friends. I saw it was a very difficult moment for him. I can only say that there's been a case of double standards in Froome's case." Stephen Farrand has the full story here.
48km remaining from 201km
John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo) has had a couple of bike changes through the day, but the German now appears to be back on his first-choice machine as he makes his way back onto the rear of the peloton.
46km remaining from 201km
Robert Gesink is still prominent at the head of the peloton for LottoNL-Jumbo. 1:45 the gap to the three escapees. There has been a slight lull in proceedings in the main bunch, but we can expect the intensity to increase exponentially from here on in.
Lawson Craddock is at the rear of the peloton, but still hanging in there after his earlier crash as the pace begins to edge upwards.
39km remaining from 201km
Offredo, Cousin and Ledanois remain committed to their task at the head of the race, but they can sense that the peloton is beginning to close in. The gap now stands at 1:11.
There is a strong delegation from Quick-Step Floors at the head of the peloton, as the stage's endgame begins in earnest. The GC contenders brace themselves for the inevitably tense finale.
35km remaining from 201km
The three leaders are 7km from the day's lone climb with a buffer of 1:14 over the bunch. One of Offredo, Cousin and Ledanois will surely wear the first maillot a pois of the 2018 Tour.
The on-screen graphic from France Televisions pegs the distance between the break and the bunch at 982 metres. Both break and bunch are hurtling along at 48kph or so.
32km remaining from 201km
On a rather false flat, Yoann Offredo decides to press on alone and opens a small gap over Ledanois and Cousin, who will have to work to get back up to the Wanty man. We are still a little over 3km from the foot of the Cote de VIx.
On the same rise, the unfortunate Craddock looks to be losing contact with the peloton, but Pierre Rolland is with him and his situation is not irretrievable.
31km remaining from 201km
Cousin and Ledanois catch Offredo, who accelerates immediately, but he is unable to shake them off. For this trio, the top of the Cote de Vix is their finish line, and they all want that polka dot jersey.
Craddock is back in contact with the peloton as the road flattens out. The American's shoulder injury appears to be hindering him from climbing out of the saddle.
29km remaining from 201km
Offredo, Cousin and Ledanois hit the foot of the category 4 Cote de Vix (700m at 4.2%) with a lead of 45 seconds on the peloton.
28km remaining from 201km
Kevin Ledanois (Fortuneo-Samsic) wins the sprint atop the Cote de Vix. The Tour debutant, son of former professional Yvon, will wear the king of the mountains jersey tomorrow.
Now attention turns to the bonus sprint with 13km to go, where there are bonuses of 3, 2 and 1 seconds on offer - but no points towards the green jersey.
26km remaining from 201km
Competition for positions towards the head of the peloton is beginning to intensify. The deficit to the three escapees is 50 seconds.
23km remaining from 201km
A tired Ledanois sits up, and only Offredo and Cousin remain at the head of the race with a lead of 22 seconds over the peloton.
Team Sky and AG2R La Mondiale are both present in numbers towards the head of the bunch on behalf of Froome and Romain Bardet, respectively.
20km remaining from 201km
Cousin and Offredo know they are fighting a losing battle, but they remain committed to their effort as they enter the final 20km still holding a buffer of 30 seconds.
The break may have ghosted clear without much resistance this morning, but the average speed thus far has been anything but steady. After 180km of racing, the average speed was 45.36kph.
18km remaining from 201km
Craddock is now off the back of the peloton, and the American will have to plough a lone furrow from here to the finish.
17km remaining from 201km
Oliver Naesen (AG2R) attacks from the front of the peloton ahead of the bonus sprint. He is 20 seconds down on the two leaders.
16km remaining from 201km
The peloton is 3km from that bonus sprint. It appears that Naesen's effort has been brought to heel.
Robert Gesink, Jay Thomson and Tim Declerq set the tempo in the main peloton on the approach, as they have done for much of the afternoon.
15km remaining from 201km
Offredo and Cousin hit the final 15km with a lead of 20 seconds on Naesen, who is, in fact, still just ahead of the peloton.
13km remaining from 201km
Cousin wins the sprint from Offredo at Maillezais and takes 3 bonus seconds. Oliver Naesen held off the bunch to take third place and one bonus second.
13km remaining from 201km
The bunch has closed to within 12 seconds of Offredo and Cousin, who surely won't survive too much longer off the head of the race.
Confirmation of the order and the bonuses allotted at that sprint:
1 Jerome Cousin (Fra) Direct Energie 3” 2 Yoann Offredo (Fra) Wanty-Groupe Gobert 2” 3 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale 1”
11km remaining from 201km
Quick-Step up the pace to 50kph in the peloton and they are almost within touching distance of Offredo and Cousin.
A crash midway up the peloton and a number of riders went down. Given the narrowness of the roads, a lot of riders will have been held up too, though there is time for any GC men caught behind to latch back on.
Arnaud Demare (Groupama-FDJ) was among the riders to come down, and he is now chasing back on. Even if he makes it up to the peloton, he will surely pay for this effort in the eventual sprint.
9km remaining from 201km
Offredo and Cousin have been caught, incidentally, while the riders held up in that crash are desperately trying to latch back up to the front. David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) was among those caught up, but for now, it seems that all of the GC contenders are safely in the front group, as are the main sprinters bar Demare.
Pierre Latour (AG2R La Mondiale) was also caught up in the crash and is chasing back on alone. Demare, meanwhile, seems resigned to his fate.
7km remaining from 201km
Philippe Gilbert sets the pace for Quick-Step at the head of the reduced peloton. Astana are also here in numbers.
6km remaining from 201km
A delegation from LottoNL-Jumbo moves up on behalf of Groenewegen. Tom Dumoulin is well-placed among his Sunweb teammates.
Egan Bernal and Wout Poels (Sky) were both caught up in the crash. Bernal may have even come down. Either way, the Colombian looks set to lose some time on his maiden Grand Tour stage.
5km remaining from 201km
The on-screen graphic from France Televisions reads 'Chris Froome chute'. Froome has come down in a crash with a little over 5km to go, and is now chasing back on in a sizeable group.
4km remaining from 201km
Froome looks set to lose some time here, as Bora-Hansgrohe take up the reins for Peter Sagan.
Froome is 20 seconds behind the front group, or 381 metres according to the France Televisions graphic.
More drama! With 3.5km to go, Nairo Quintana punctures - and the Colombian waits for a change on the roadside as the Froome group trundles past him...
2km remaining from 201km
The gap to Froome is 35 seconds, and Quintana is even further back. The GC picture will be very interesting at day's end...
1km remaining from 201km
49 seconds the gap to the Froome group, as Bob Jungels leads the front group on behalf of Gaviria.
1km remaining from 201km
Quick-Step lead into the final kilometre with a strong train in Gaviria's service.
Yves Lampaert leads with Richeze and Gaviria on his wheel.
Richeze leads out the sprint, then Gaviria goes... Sagan follows.
Fernando Gaviria (Quick-Step Floors) wins stage 1 of the Tour de France.
Meanwhile, Chris Froome crosses the line in a group with Richie Porte (BMC), 50 seconds behind Gaviria...
Peter Sagan took second on the stage ahead of Marcel Kittel, but the surprising early gaps in GC are the story of the day.
Alexander Kristoff took 4th, ahead of Christophe Laporte (Cofidis), with Dylan Groenwegen taking 6th in front of Michael Matthews.
It was a most confident sprint effort from Gaviria, who had Sagan on his wheel. The world champion couldn't get on terms with the Colombian, who is the first Tour debutant to win on his opening day on the race since Fabian Cancellara claimed the prologue in Liege in 2004. David Zabriskie, of course, won stage 1 in 2005 but was stripped of that win in 2012.
Result:
1 Fernando Gaviria (Col) Quick-Step Floors 04:23:32 2 Peter Sagan (Svk) Bora-Hansgrohe 3 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin 4 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) UAE Team Emirates 5 Christophe Laporte (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits 6 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo 7 Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb 8 John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-Segafredo 9 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team 10 Rafal Majka (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe
Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) was also in the Froome group, together with Richie Porte (BMC), and they each concede 50 seconds to Nibali, Tom Dumoulin, Geraint Thomas, Mikel Landa, Alejaandro Valverde and Dan Martin.
Nairo Quintana lost 1:10. One has to wonder why Quintana a) did not ride on the flat wheel to the 3k to go mark, and then take the change and b) why Movistar did not have a teammate waiting with him.
General classification after stage 1:
1 Fernando Gaviria (Col) Quick-Step Floors 04:23:22 2 Peter Sagan (Svk) Bora-Hansgrohe 00:00:04 3 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin 00:00:06 4 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale 00:00:09 5 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) UAE Team Emirates 00:00:10 6 Christophe Laporte (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits 7 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo 8 Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb 9 John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-Segafredo 10 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team
Fernando Gaviria speaks: "“It’s an incredible day for me and for our team. It’s amazing for everybody on the team. We were ready for it, ready for the sprint. The yellow jersey is one that everyone dreams of wearing and to get it on the first day is amazing. I’m so happy to wear it and we’ll try to keep it as long as we can. The last kilometre was very tricky and we knew some big riders were caught up behind us. But we were in front and out of trouble. We had a clear plan and we’re happy because we pulled it off.”
An overview of how the GC contenders fared today:
1 Fernando Gaviria (Col) Quick-Step Floors 04:23:32 9 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana 00:00:00 10 Rafal Majka (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe 11 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Bahrain-Merida 14 Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky 27 Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Team Sunweb 32 Mikel Landa (Spa) Movistar Team 34 Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 38 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team 52 Daniel Martin (Irl) UAE-Team Emirates 83 Richie Porte (Aus) BMC Racing Team 00:00:51 84 Adam Yates (GBr) Mitchelton-Scott 91 Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky 112 Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team 00:01:15 113 Egan Bernal (Col) Team Sky
Gaviria won by a considerable distance from Sagan, and - given the strength of his Quick-Step team - the Colombian looks a solid bet for multiple stage wins on this Tour. That said, Kittel made up a lot of ground in the final 50 metres, but the German had to come from a long, long way back.
Nairo Quintana (Movistar) had this to say at the finish line, according to EFE: “That’s the way it is. We have to keep going. The only consolation is that Chris Froome also lost time. We have to try to stay ahead and try to recover what I lost today.”
Mikel Landa's first thoughts were a little more dramatic. “It was a disaster and a catastrophe after things were controlled for three quarters of the stage," Landa told EFE, before settling on a more measured analysis. "In the end, there were nerves and the crashes came. It was the first stage and there were still a lot of riders in front at the end. Today it affected some riders and tomorrow it might affect others.” As Fernando Escartin used to say on reaching the Kelme camper van at the end of each stage in the Tour's opening week in the 1990s - another day less.
Chris Froome on his travails in the finale: "I came off in the last 10k there. I saw that there were a lot of crashes out there. It’s one of those things. We always knew that this was going to be one of those days that were going to be sketchy. We were right at the front part of the peloton, in the top third. It was getting quite chaotic there with some of the sprinters but that’s bike racing. I’m not injured in any way. There’s still a lot of road to cover before we get to Paris."
Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha-Alpecin) and Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) also finished safely in the front group, and they have an early advantage on Froome, Porte, Adam Yates and Quintana.
Geraint Thomas finished in the front group and spoke to Cyclingnews after crossing the line: "Geraint Thomas The first 180 was fine. The last 20k just went bonkers. Saying that all of us where there. Then I got squeezed hit the curb, Bernal hit me and then crashed, which wasn’t great. Then Froome has his thing with about 4 or 5 k to. Not 100 per cent sure what happened but someone hit him in the corner and made him go off his line and onto the grass and crash. That’s certainly not ideal but at the end of the day his biggest rivals were behind him with Richie and Quintana behind him. I’ve spoken to him. He’s fine. He’s a bit pissed because we were right up there and missed the crashes for that to happen. It wasn’t ideal."
Lawson Craddock (EF-Drapac) came in last on the stage, 7:50 down on Gaviria. The Texan confirmed afterwards that he suffered a fractured shoulder blade. The Texan suggested that he will attempt to start stage 2, though he knows it will be a tall order. "I’ve had some x-rays and ultrasound and I have a small fracture to the scapula so it’s definitely not an ideal start to the Tour. I’ll see how I feel tonight and maybe get on the bike tomorrow to give it a feel. I’ve put too much work in…”
Richie Porte (BMC) had this to say after his concession of early ground: "It was pretty nervous there. It was not ideal but I think Quintana (Movistar Team) has probably lost more [than me], Froome (Team Sky) was there, and Yates (Mitchelton-SCOTT) was there. That's the Tour. I was pretty close to coming down. I sort of rode Damiano Caruso, my teammate, into the ground and that softened the blow. I don't really know what happened to be honest, it's just one of those things. It's all ok and the next thing, there's a crash in front. There were a few more crashes after that."
Some clarification on Quintana's time loss. The Colombian broke both wheels when he rode into a traffic island with 3.6km to go, and although he did not crash, he needed to stop and wait for a replacement bike. As it was not a simple puncture, he was unable to ride to the 3k to go banner to limit his time loss before stopping for assistance.
Result:
1 Fernando Gaviria (Col) Quick-Step Floors 04:23:32 2 Peter Sagan (Svk) Bora-Hansgrohe 3 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin 4 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) UAE Team Emirates 5 Christophe Laporte (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits 6 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo 7 Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb 8 John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-Segafredo 9 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team 10 Rafal Majka (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe
General classification after stage 1:
1 Fernando Gaviria (Col) Quick-Step Floors 04:23:22 2 Peter Sagan (Svk) Bora-Hansgrohe 00:00:04 3 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Katusha-Alpecin 00:00:06 4 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale 00:00:09 5 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) UAE Team Emirates 00:00:10 6 Christophe Laporte (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits 7 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo 8 Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb 9 John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-Segafredo 10 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team
Thanks for joining our live coverage of today's opening stage of the Tour de France, which saw Fernando Gaviria take the first yellow jersey of the race, while Chris Froome, Richie Porte and Adam Yates conceded 51 seconds and Nairo Quintana lost 1:15. A full report, results and pictures are available here, while you can also read reaction from Froome, Quintana and Yates. We'll be back with more live coverage from stage 2.
