Cavendish wins stage 4 sprint in Tour de Suisse

Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) won stage four of the Tour de Suisse in Ossingen, ahead of Juan José Lobato (Movistar) and Peter Sagan (Cannondale).

The Omega Pharma-QuickStep team looked like they had lost control of the front of the peloton when Giant-Shimano brought the group into the final kilometre. But when Luka Mezgec pulled off, he looked back to see that it wasn’t John Degenkolb behind him but Cavendish’s teammate Mark Renshaw.

"It wasn't so easy, it was a headwind finish so it was chaotic in the peloton. A lot of teams trying to get it right, my team weren't 100 percent but we were committed," Cavendish said at the finish.

Sacha Modolo (Lampre-Merida) was the first to show his cards, but Cavendish didn't panic. He moved up the inside of the group and just when the others thought they might be able to get one over on him, the Manx Missile gave a second kick to win by almost three bike lengths.

"I sat in Mark Renshaw's wheel and he brought me around. It was about timing your sprint right. It was slightly uphill into the headwind, so even though the others jumped early, I waited until the last moment. I knew that I had to go with 200 or 100 to go."

Spanish rider Lobato came from well back to jump the other sprinters and finish second, with Sagan having to settle for third. Cavendish’s teammate Tony Martin finished safely in the bunch to keep hold of the leader’s jersey.

Sprinters delight

The sun beat down on the riders as they lined up at the start in Heiden. Day four of the Tour de Suisse would be another chance for the sprinters to notch up a victory.

Sagan was the man to watch, after his win the day before. However, his teammate Daniele Ratto wouldn't be there to assist him. The Italian crashed out in the neutral zone, which took place on an 18% descent. Ratto was taken straight to hospital. It was later confirmed that he had suffered a compound fracture of the right collarbone.

Jelle Vanendert (Lotto-Belisol) was also involved in the fall and he later abandoned with a bruised left knee and elbow. The official start was meant to be given at eight kilometres, but wasn’t given until five kilometres later.

As it was yesterday, two men slipped up the road and into the day's break. The lucky duo was Daniel Teklehaimanot (MTN-Qhubeka) and Laurens De Vreese (Wanty-Groupe Gobert).

Neither rider was a threat to Martin and his leader’s jersey and Omega Pharma-QuickStep were happy to let them go up the road. The Belgian team were also keen to keep their sprinter Mark Cavendish in contention for victory.

There were only two categorised climb in the finishing loop, making it hard for the escapees to stay away. The pair managed to build up an advantage of almost four minutes, before the peloton began to bring them back in. As they crossed the line for the first time, the advantage had been reduced to just over a minute.

Bradley Wiggins found himself on the ground soon after. The Team Sky rider tangled with CCC Polsat rider Jaroslaw Marycz. Wiggins took some time to get up, with the team’s doctor checking his knee. Tentatively he got back to his feet and set off in chase of the peloton, as did Marycz.

As De Vreese and Teklehaimanot were in the sights of the peloton with 17 kilometres to go, Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) turned on the afterburners and strung the main group out. The pair dangled out front for a few more kilometres, but it was only delaying the inevitable. They were finally reeled in with 10 kilometres to go.

Vladimir Isaychev (Katusha) made a surprise attack, considering he was working for Milan-San Remo champion Alexander Kristoff, with six kilometres to go. It didn't last long, however, and it was over before it really began.

There was a lot of movement on the front of the peloton, as each of the sprinters’ teams began fighting for supremacy. Giant-Shimano lead the group under the flamme rouge, as Omega Pharma-QuickStep lost control of the group.

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