"It must have rained a hundred times today, and there was mud on the road that you wouldn't even walk on. Some guy ahead of me tapped his brakes and bam - a casino!"
Those were the words of Astana's Michele Scarponi after stage five at the Tour de France. Scarponi crashed with around two dozen other riders in the final hour of racing on Tuesday on a flat and windy stage across northern France.
Unhurt but with slight bruises on his back, Scarponi quickly remounted his bicycle and rejoined the peloton to finish alongside teammate Vincenzo Nibali in the same time as stage winner Andrei Greipel of Germany. There were no changes among the race favorites on Tuesday, but wind and rain made for a slow and careful day in the peloton after a series of early crashes.
On Thursday the Tour de France moves towards the Atlantic seacoast for a finish in Le Havre. More strong winds are forecasted, and the riders can expect to encounter crosswinds that could disrupt the tactics of rival teams all attempting to gain time on the competition ahead of two important stages in the weekend.
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