Tactical approach to wet conditions
With the rain forecast for Stage 1 in Copenhagen, a lot of teams were looking at predictions that the rain would start during the stage. That saw most squads lead off with their riders that had the best chance at the stage win or were their protected men for the general classification.
Puddles filled on the course, but the fans stayed out, lining the roads with a wall of noise. There were some tentative lines taken through corners, and a number of slips and crashes on course for those that weren’t so cautious.
As it turned out, the forecast was off by an hour or so, and the best conditions were actually right at the end of the time trial as the roads began to dry up.
What hurt knee?
Wout van Aert pulled out of his national championships in the lead-up to the Tour de France, claiming an injured knee meant he couldn't ride. That was questioned, with Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl boss Patrick Lefevere pointing towards the non-attendance of other Jumbo-Visma riders at their national championships as part of a COVID-19 mitigation strategy with the knee injury as a cover story.
The Belgian star showed no ill effects as he looked the winner until overtaken by Lampaert's stunning ride. He stole a march on his green jersey rivals as well, a rarity in time trials, but the 17 points from finishing second will see him wear green on loan from Yves Lampaert on Stage 2.
GC winners and losers
It was big tick marks for the likes of Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), Primož Roglič, Jonas Vingegaard (both Jumbo-Visma), Aleksandr Vlasov (BORA-hansgrohe), Adam Yates and Geraint Thomas (both INEOS Grenadiers) but all other riders who were considered contenders for the final podium in Paris conceded significant time in the fight for yellow.
A tremendous send-off for the Tour de France
The Danish crowds have brought a lot of passion to the Grand Depart of the Tour de France! All the riders commented on the volume and passion of the crowd at the teams presentation, and that continued into the first stage. It seemed that every metre of barriers along the 13-kilometre course was lined by enthusiastic fans yelling in support of the riders.
The biggest cheers were reserved for last year’s overall runner-up and hometown hero Jonas Vingegaard, who was riding through a cacophony of support from the enthusiastic fans. Even the heavens opening up and dumping down rain didn’t dissuade the onlookers, everyone was a bit too tightly packed for umbrellas so ponchos and rain jackets were the protection devices of choice.
Aussies on Tour
Michael Matthews was the top performer out of the Aussies, the shorter time trial distance suiting the versatile sprinter more than the other riders on the startlist.
General classification candidates Jack Haig (Bahrain Victorious) and Ben O’Connor (AG2R Citroen) lost a chunk of time to their major rivals, but they were mostly happy to get through the race unscathed physically.
“I was super nervous, I was pretty scared today,” O’Connor said. “It was a weird one today, sprint to the corner, scare yourself through the corner, don’t deck it and voila, you go to the next one.
“If I hit the deck today I’d be pretty pissed and I think the team would be too.”
Haig talked of the decision to send the protected riders off early in the order, with the weather surprising the majority of teams.
“The rain came a bit earlier than everyone thought,” Haig said. “I went off as the team’s second rider to try and miss the rain. To make things even worse I had a flat tyre… I had a bike change before the first intermediate check.”
Haig conceded 51 seconds to the race winner, with O’Connor losing a minute and one second.
The Tour de France continues on SBS with Stage 2, a 199-kilometre route from Roskilde to Nyborg. Watch from 8.05pm (AEST) on the SBS ŠKODA Tour Tracker, with SBS television and SBS On Demand coverage starting at 8.30pm (AEST.)
