Frenchman takes his second career stage and first career yellow as peloton hit by crashes on wet roads
Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) won the second stage of the Tour de France between Brussels and Spa, Belgium, as the last remaining member of an eight-man breakaway. The Frenchman, who fractured his skull on similar roads in the Liège-Bastogne-Liège back in April, benefited from the peloton behind him neutralising itself after a crash brought down a number of favourites inside the final 30km.
The peloton rolled slowly over the line, 3’56” later, refusing to race after the dangerous conditions of the last section of the race. 23-year-old Frenchman Maxime Bouet (AG2R-La Mondiale) was awarded on of the biggest results of his career, after being adjudged to have been the first of the bunch to cross the line, with Fabian Wegmann (Milram) third.
“It was a big show today!” exclaimed Chavanel after his victory. “I said I would start this Tour in a good state of preservation, and that I would not be far from my best form.
“Finally, I took my chances on this stage and I managed to win,” continued the Frenchman, who only returned to racing in last month’s Tour de Suisse. “This is the happiest day of my sporting life. When I think about it, I realize that this season started with a plague of problems, and yet I never gave up… finally I do not regret having suffered as much, if only to feel such great emotion now. I savour this moment is what I want: it was my day.”
As a specialist in Ardennes style races, Chavanel had identified this stage of the Tour in advance as one that he could do well in. “I made a mark next to this stage in my mind a long time [ago],” he added, “and I succeeded. This proves that cycling’s wheel does indeed turn!
“Now I have almost three minutes ahead overall! So I think I can go far.”
The stage started quite normally as constant attacks from Chavanel instigating an eight-man break after just 17km. The Frenchman was joined by his Quick Step compatriot Jérôme Pineau (Quick Step), Daniel Lloyd and Jürgen Roelandts (OmegaPharma-Lotto), Marcus Burghardt (BMC Racing), Sébastien Turgot (Bbox Bouyges Telecom), Rein Taaramae (Cofidis) and Francesco Gavazzi (Lampre-Farnese Vini).
After 32km the group had built a lead of 6’55” over the peloton, which was to be the break’s high watermark. Unfortunately though, some 25km later, the rain that spoiled Saturday’s prologue returned to the race and was to proved just as disruptive as persistent showers made many of the narrow Ardennes roads treacherous.
Much of the drama early on saw a battle between Pineau, Taaramae and Lloyd for the first few 4th category climbs. Lloyd won the mountains jersey in the Giro d’Italia last month and is looking to become the first rider since Claudio Chiappucci in 1992 to take the Tour and Giro mountains jerseys. Unfortunately for the Australian though, the others were sharper at the top of each one, with Pineau taking victory each time.
With around 57km to go, and the gap to the peloton down to 2’40”, a crash in the peloton saw Julian Dean (Garmin-Transitions) and most of the OmegaPharma-Lotto team come down. Mickael Delage (OmegaPharma-Lotto) was forced to abandon with facial injuries.
Sensing the danger, race leader Fabian Cancellara put his Saxo Bank team on the front and the speed of the peloton increased.
Until this point the eight breakaway riders had worked well together, but on the 3rd category Côte d’Aisomont with 40km to go, an attack from Gavazzi saw Lloyd and Turgot dropped. The group broke up after summit with Roelandts and Chavanel getting clear on the descent; the French Quick Step rider went alone on the Col de Stockeu but the two got back together on the descent.
The breakaway riders were then picked off one by one by the peloton, and as Burghardt was absorbed Maxime Monfort (HTC-Columbia) leapt clear. The Astana team moved to the front as the peloton entered the final kilometre of the climb, and near the top Amets Txurruka (Euskaltel-Euskadi) attacked.
On the descent of the Col de Stockeu a crash brought down most of the race favourites, including Albeto Contador (Astana), Lance Armstrong (RadioShack), Andy and Fränk Schleck (Saxo Bank), Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky), Christian Vandevelde (Garmin-Transtitions) and Cadel Evans (BMC Racing). Many riders crashed again a few hundred metres later, with most blaming oil on the wet road for the problem.
Andy Schleck stood at the side of the road holding his right arm as if in pain, but teammate Matti Breschel gave him his bike and the Luxemburger continued gingerly; Vandevelde was even slower to get going again.
Most of Saxo Bank, besides Cancellara, dropped back to pace Schleck back on as the yellow jersey tried to delay the front of the race.
The race was now divided into four distinct parts. Up front Chavanel dropped Roelandts once again as they started the Col du Rosier and he continued alone with Monfort 47 seconds behind him. 1’40” behind Chavanel was a small group, which included Cancellara and white jersey Tony Martin (HTC-Columbia); the main peloton was chasing just under a minute behind the Cancellara group, containing Armstrong, Contador, Basso, Wiggins, Evans and most of the other favourites.
The Schleck group, with most of the Saxo Bank team chasing was more than a minute behind the main peloton. Jens Voigt was leading the chase and pulled them steadily back while Cancellara sat on the front of the peloton to keep the pace down.
Vandevelde and a number of other stragglers were scattered on the road behind.
As Chavanel crossed the Col du Rosier alone with 12km to go the roads were drying, and the peloton’s wait for the Schleck group meant that his lead was approaching 3 minutes. The Frenchman kept the pressure on all the way to the finish to take the second Tour de France stage of his career.
Meanwhile the peloton, seemingly under the leadership of yellow jersey Cancellara, had decided that they were not going to either chase the Frenchman, or contest the sprint for second place. More riders joined the back as the bunch was spread across the road and the Frenchman’s lead continued to rise; as the riders approached the line the reminded one another not to sprint.
Chavanel started the day 59 seconds behind race leader Fabian Cancellara (Saxo Bank), and so he takes the first ever maillot jaune of his career. Although the time gaps on the stage were applied, the Quick Step rider was the only one to be awarded points on the line and so he was also awarded the green jersey. Pineau, Chavanel’s breakaway companion and teammate, got the first polka-dot mountains jersey of the race for the Belgian team.
Result stage 2
1. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Quick Step
2. Maxime Bouet (Fra) AG2R-La Mondiale @ 3’56”
3. Fabian Wegmann (Ger) Team Milram
4. Robbie McEwen (Aus) Team Katusha
5. Christian Knees (Ger) Team Milram
6. Jürgen Roelandts (Bel) OmegaPharma-Lotto
7. Thor Hushovd (Nor) Cervélo TestTeam
8. Linus Gerdemann (Ger) Team Milram
9. Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) Française des Jeux
10. Bernhard Eisel (Aut) HTC-Columbia
Standings after stage 2
1. Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Quick Step
2. Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Team Saxo Bank @ 2’57”
3. Daniel Martin (Ger) HTC-Columbia @ 3’07
4. David Millar (GBr) Garmin-Transitions @ 3’17”
5. Lance Armstrong (USA) Team RadioShack @ 3’19”