Top Sprinter's Crash Ruins Bid for First Stage Win
BERGERAC, France - It was another rainy day at the Tour de France with a rider from the American Garmin-Sharp team off the front as the finish neared. But unlike Jack Bauer, who was caught only yards before the finish line in Nîmes, Ramunas Navardauskas managed to win alone after a 129.5-mile trek through heavy downpours, thunder and lightning.
'From the last minute, I was afraid to look backward in case it happened like Jack,' Navardauskas, a Lithuanian, said of his seven-second win. 'I had no idea what was happening behind me. I was thinking that maybe the sprinters were chasing me.'
That was the plan, at least. But the chase for Navardauskas fell apart on a tight, slick right-hand turn about a mile and a quarter from the finish.
Peter Sagan, a Slovak with Cannondale, accepted the blame for causing the spill, although the blame might more appropriately be attributed to the rain.
It was an unusual misstep for Sagan, who has a reputation for his extraordinary bike-handling skills. A video released last year shows him riding his bike onto the hood of a car and then into its rooftop bike rack.
On Friday, Sagan hoped to eliminate his frustrating position of holding the best sprinter's green jersey without having won a final sprint. Points accumulated from a series of near-misses at the finish as well as ones from the sprint that the race organizers include midway through stages to liven up the proceedings have made him the leader.
For Sagan, a stage win is more about pride than securing the best sprinter's green jersey. He now has 417 points in the green jersey standings, compared with 253 for the second-place rider Bryan Coquard of the French Europcar team.
But, instead, there was just more frustration for Sagan. After the fall, he stood in the downpour with his hands on his hips for an extended period, apparently waiting for a replacement bike. His last hope for saving face will come Sunday, the final day of the Tour, which finishes with what is often the most intense sprint of the race.
Vincenzo Nibali, the Tour's leader and the presumed overall winner in Paris on Sunday, stayed out of trouble and came in with a large group behind Navardauskas. As they crossed neared the line, however, they were riding more at the pace of a training outing.
Saturday brings the first and only time trail of this Tour, a race against the clock. Again for pride, officials at his team, Astana, said Nibali would attempt to win the stage, which will mostly be important to riders looking for spots on the podium.
He will have some unusual technical assistance. Specialized, Astana's bicycle supplier, will have people along the route measuring the wind speed and direction using equipment normally employed in yacht races. In an event where there is no hiding from the wind behind other riders, their radio reports could be an advantage for Nibali.
Ji Cheng, the first Chinese rider in the Tour de France, further secured his last-place status. Suffering from knee pain, the rider for Giant-Shimano finished alone in the rain, 12 minutes 41 seconds after Navardauskas's happier solo trip across the line. To move out of last place, Ji has to make up more than 38 minutes, an insurmountable amount.
Post a Comment for "Top Sprinter's Crash Ruins Bid for First Stage Win"