Newsdeck

TOUR DE FRANCE

In Pictures: Sagan wins second stage and takes yellow

In Pictures: Sagan wins second stage and takes yellow
Slovakian rider Peter Sagan of the Bora Hansgrohe team celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the 2nd stage of the 105th edition of the Tour de France cycling race over 182.5km between Mouilleron-Saint-Germain and La Roche-Sur-Yon, France, 08 July 2018. EPA-EFE/YOAN VALAT

Another sprint finish.

World champion Peter Sagan won stage two and took the overall leader’s yellow jersey on the Tour de France on Sunday after edging Sonny Colbrelli in a reduced sprint finish after a late crash in the peloton.

Overnight leader Fernando Gaviria came down in a mass high-speed crash just 1.3km from the line, which Sagan and around 15 other riders avoided to set up a frantic finish.

Champion Chris Froome avoided a repeat of his first stage tumble, the Team Sky leader staying out of trouble as he goes in pursuit of a record-equalling fifth Tour triumph.

But another Briton Adam Yates was delayed by a fall and two of his Mitchelton Scott teammates were both also involved in separate falls.

Sagan, riding for Bora-Hansgrohe, edged a field of nine lined up for the final reckoning but had to deal with French specialist Arnaud Demarre and the Italian Colbrelli, who came within a hair’s breadth of the win with a daring last second wheel push to come second.

Germany’s Andre Greipel was fourth but never really involved in the struggle for first with the other three.

“It’s a great start for the fans,” said Sagan.

“Fernando won yesterday and now I’m the one with the yellow jersey,” it’s been exciting.

“I could see it was going to be a good year,” said Sagan, who was thrown off the Tour last year after being judged culpable of a fall that ended felw sprinter Mark Cavendish’s Tour.

The Slovak led the pack in the intermediate sprint behind solo escapee French veteran Sylvain Chavanel, and is now also top of the green jersey standings.

The race embarked in sizzling heat with local hero Chavanel of the Direct Energie team based in this Vendee Western France region being cheered all along some 155km of solo break.

Luis Leon Sanchez of Astana pulled out of the race after falling on a traffic island and getting up covered in cuts and climbing crying into the team car. Tsgabu Grmay of Ethiopia also pulled out.

Tour de France Classification, Stage 2

Gallery

Please peer review 3 community comments before your comment can be posted

We would like our readers to start paying for Daily Maverick...

…but we are not going to force you to. Over 10 million users come to us each month for the news. We have not put it behind a paywall because the truth should not be a luxury.

Instead we ask our readers who can afford to contribute, even a small amount each month, to do so.

If you appreciate it and want to see us keep going then please consider contributing whatever you can.

Support Daily Maverick→
Payment options

Become a Maverick Insider

This could have been a paywall

On another site this would have been a paywall. Maverick Insider keeps our content free for all.

Become an Insider

Every seed of hope will one day sprout.

South African citizens throughout the country are standing up for our human rights. Stay informed, connected and inspired by our weekly FREE Maverick Citizen newsletter.