Legend:
A big day for the DSM-firmenich PostNL team
Frank van den Broek (l.) leaves the day’s victory to his captain Romain Bardet.
Keystone/AP/Daniel Cole
- Frenchman Romain Bardet wins the first stage of the Tour de France from Florence to Rimini and is the first wearer of the yellow jersey.
- Top favorite Tadej Pogacar reaches the finish line with the field just 5 seconds behind the day’s winner.
- At the tough start in Italy with seven classified climbs, the sprinters suffered, especially the Briton Mark Cavendish.
Romain Bardet was the Frenchman who was able to wear the “Maillot jaune” at the start of the 111th Tour de France. The leader from the DSM-firmenich team saved 5 seconds on the onrushing field at the finish in Rimini after 206 kilometers together with his teammate Frank van den Broek.
Behind the breakaway duo, Belgian Wout van Aert secured third place on the day ahead of top favorite Tadej Pogacar. There was no initial exchange of blows between the Slovenian and his competitors on the first stage with the Grand Départ in Florence.
Does Pogacar want to know on Sunday?
The first big showdown with Jonas Vingegaard could possibly take place on Sunday. Some observers are expecting an early attack from the Slovenian. “It’s not that time yet today. But I think Sunday or the stage on Tuesday will be really tough for the favorites,” said Pogacar before the start of the stage. He won the Giro in May by a clear margin, celebrating 6 stage victories.
Cavendish left behind early
Mark Cavendish did not have a good day. The 39-year-old Brit was left behind on the first mountain and had to vomit a short time later during the ride.
The sprinter shares the record with the legendary Belgian Eddy Merckx with 34 stage wins in the Tour. Cavendish had actually wanted to end his career at the end of last year. But because he had to drop out of the 2023 Tour early due to injury, he added another season.
First fall before the start
Open box
Box zuklappen
Jan Hirt fell before the start of the first stage. The Czech rider from the Soudal Quick-Step team got caught on a fan’s backpack after registering and fell over his handlebars. The 33-year-old, a teammate of the Belgian co-favorite Remco Evenepoel, suffered a bleeding wound to his mouth and, according to his team, broke three teeth. Hirt was still able to start the race.
This is how it continues
The second leg of the Tour de France will also take place in Italy and will take the riders on Sunday over almost 200 km from Cesenatico, the birthplace of Marco Pantani, to Bologna. Once again, the terrain is hilly with some short but tough climbs. However, it will probably not be quite as tough for the sprinters on the second day as it was on the opening day.
