VICTORY OF CHAVANEL !!!!
The French cyclist Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) won the second stage of the Tour de France alone, run on Belgian soil between Brussels and Spa over 192 kilometers, on a day in which he took advantage of a chain of massive falls in the peloton to wear yellow instead of the Swiss Fabian Cancellara (Saxo Bank). Read the full chronicle here
(3 km goal): Chavanel crowns the level in first position the Frenchman who will almost certainly win the stage except for some unexpected event. Maxime Monfort is still hunting for Chavanel but it is difficult to link with the French
(4 km goal): Chavanel headed to victory and the Schlecks link with the group's tail where the rest of the favorites are. Today the two Schleck could have been eliminated, especially Andy after his fall
(5 km goal): Armstrong and Accountant's group is one minute away from Cancellara's. Chavanel is still solo in the lead and it seems that he will take the stage.
(10 km goal): The race is still broken after the falls due to rain, Andy Schleck is 4:15 from Chavanel, head of the race and more than three long minutes from the squad where the rest of the favorites are.
(15 km goal): Be careful that El Cervelo is eager to throw in these last kilometers. The first group is 1:49 from Chavanel who is still in the lead.
(20 km goal): The road is very wet, there are still kilometers and there may be even more falls, beware that Petacchi, Terpstra, Devenyns and Seeldraeyers have also ended up on the ground.
(25 km goal): Astana gets in the lead of the platoon. Vinokourov may try it …… Andy Schleck has fallen down !!!! and he's waiting for his team's car. You can say goodbye to the Tour the greatest enemy of Contador ……
(30 km goal): Chavanel is head of solo career … at a good pace the gallop of Quick Step that is putting a minute to the platoon …..
(35 km goal): The escapees maintain a difference of 50 seconds with respect to the thickness of the squad. In the lead the group is breaking down and the rain is complicating things.
(40 km goal): The Côte d'Aisomont begins, and the distances of the escapees are less than one minute. The adventure will end here because Saxo Bank prints an infernal rhythm in the bulk of the platoon
(45 km goal): Less than a minute for the eight escapes that approach the Aismont Cota, from 4.5 km to 5.2 percent.
(50 km goal): The advantage of the escaped has diminished until the minute and twenty seconds ….
(55 km goal): At the top of the plate is pulling the Saxo Bank but without much effort. Most of the runners who had been left behind by the fall have returned to the yellow jersey group
(60 km goal): Fall in the platoon. It seems that the most affected is Michael Delage. The fall has left the front group in just 40 riders. Saxo Bank and Cervélo lead the platoon.
(61 km goal) Falls of Rojas and Charteau, who manage to get up. In addition, without changes in the general classification. Alberto Contador is still in sixth place.
(64 km goal) Eight escapes about to start climbing the level. They are almost 2'30 'and with Jeôme Pineau at the head of this hillside.
(67 km goal) They begin to climb the Côte de Werbomont, to 3.5% after the fall of Sebastian Lang. The rider was able, however, to rejoin the race after getting back on his bike.
(73 km goal) About to reach the port of Côte de Filot, the race is still calm with Jérôme Pineau about to be the first to pass it.
(75 km goal) Sylvain Chavanel is at the head of the race followed by Daniel Lloyd and Marcus Burghardt. The leader group is 3'10 ''.
(77 km goal) Counterattack of the platoon, a leak that had already been waiting for much of the stage. This is an auspicious day for this even considering that sprinters have clear options. Time for others to attack.
(84 km goal) The wind is facilitating that the average velocity of the etpa is being a little higher. In addition, the heat does not overwhelm the runners. The second sprint of the day is coming!
(88 km goal) The stage is now softer, and the race head is 3'07 '' apart. It starts to rain which could complicate the descents that are coming!
(94 km goal) In the first port of the stage, the Côte de France, Jerome Pimeau is in the lead. The yellow jersey stands at 3'23 ''.
Welcome to the Tour de France. The third stage of the French round arrives. After the prologue and the inaugural stage of yesterday, the platoon will start fighting again in what is supposed to be a race that will be decided to sprint. With the presence of three ports of the fourth category and another three of the third, the end of the route invites a massive arrival.
The great candidates to take the yellow jersey will try to avoid incidents such as those that ended yesterday with a good part of the group on the ground after two falls, one of them caused by the presence of a dog on the asphalt. Contador hardly suffered a blow and nothing seems to indicate that today he will suffer. The Swiss Cancellara continues to be the leader.