TDF Team News: BMC

Richie Porte bangs his knee in big crash on stage 2 of the Tour de France but says good to get the first crash out of the way

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TDF Team News: BMC

The first road stage of the Tour de France was marred by a crash in the final 30km which brought down multiple race favourites. As heavy rain continued to fall, the breakaway tried to maintain their position but with 38km remaining, the advantage fell to under one minute.

A huge crash with 30km to go brought down half the peloton, including Porte, Stefan Küng and Michael Schär. Porte was able to get up quickly and resume racing while behind, Caruso was forced to chase back and Schär was left waiting for a new bike. The peloton slowed down in the nervous aftermath of the crash to allow riders to chase back, and in doing so enabled the breakaway to maintain their advantage.

With 10km to go, it was just Taylor Phinney (Cannondale-Drapac Pro Cycling Team) and Yoann Offredo (Wanty-Groupe Gobert) who were left in front. The duo forged on but were ultimately caught with 2km to go to set the stage for the first bunch sprint of the race won by Kittel. Porte crossed the line safely as did Küng, who maintains second overall and his Best Young Rider jersey.
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Richie Porte: “I came out of the crash ok but there were a few guys that went down a lot harder. It was a stressful day. It was the first real stage of the Tour and then you get the rain, then it dries up, and then starts raining again. It was a nice one to come through and it’s nice to get the first crash out of the way and get on with it. Hopefully my knee is ok, I have a little bit of a bang on that, but I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

b “I think it was more of a grey jersey by the end of the stage rather than a white jersey. It was the first real road stage of my Tour de France career so it was quite special. There were a lot of people on the side of the road which was amazing. It was also pretty hectic. With all of the people and the rain, it was difficult for everyone. So, everyone wanted to be up there. We tried to get through as safe as possible. The crash happened but this is something that happens and it was good that no one was too hurt. If we had keep going like that without the crash, it would have been a perfect day for us.”

Fabio Baldato, Sports Director: “We know that the first stages of the Tour de France are always nervous. Today, we also had the rain which made things difficult. We got through it. Of course, you always need to be attentive and anything can happen. You saw the crash. It was at a roundabout and with the rain everybody wanted to stay at the front. We made it to the finish without a lot of trouble. We will look tonight but I hope there is nothing serious.”

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