McEwen wins Tour De France’s second Stage
Pakistan Times Sports Desk

NAMUR (France): While Lance Armstrong played it safe, Robbie McEwen sprinted to victory Monday in a crash-filled second stage of the Tour de France.

Armstrong kept his drive for a record sixth straight Tour victory on track by placing comfortably down in the field along with several key rivals in 85th. Armstrong’s biggest threat, 1997 Tour winner Jan Ullrich, finished 38th, in the same time as the Texan.

As the pack of riders bore down on the finish, McEwen used a burst of speed to get to the front and raised his arms in victory as he crossed the line. Such mass sprints are always hazardous and this one took out two riders who crashed in the last few hundred yards.

McEwen beat second-placed Thor Hushovd of Norway in the 122-mile route from Charleroi to Namur, with a small detour into neighboring France. But Hushovd, who was third in another sprint finish Sunday, still secured the overall race lead and the coveted yellow jersey that goes with it.

McEwen Reax

“Everything was on automatic,” McEwen said. “I won’t say it was easy but it went really nicely.”

Spills, wind, and the threat of breakaways fill the first week with stress for Armstrong and his rivals who are saving themselves for their duels in the mountains and later time trials.

“It’s really stressful. In the last 20 to 30 kilometers (15 to 20 miles) the pace really picks up and everybody fights. All etiquette is out the door. You do what you can you scratch and bite and do whatever,” said American rider Levi Leipheimer, 13th overall.

To keep the five-time champion safe, his U S Postal Service squad generally designates two teammates to stay with Armstrong during each stage, Postal veteran George Hincapie said.

Hincapie, competing in his ninth Tour, and Viatcheslav Ekimov, a Russian on his 14th Tour, usually take over the bodyguard role for final 12 miles, when the pack is speeding to the line.

“We keep him out of the wind, keep him from going too far behind, just keep him in a good position all day with as little energy expenditure as possible,” Hincapie said.

The Crashes

There were several crashes during the stage run under sunny skies. One came just 14 miles from the finish when a pack of riders caught up to six cyclists who had led most of the stage.

For Gian Matteo Fagnini, the Tour ended with a crash 25 miles from the finish. The Italian rider for the Domina Vacanze squad injured his collarbone and was taken to a hospital. Other riders caught up in the spill rejoined the race.

Tuesday could be another day of thrills and spills, with two sections of cobblestone paths that some riders are dreading. The weather forecast is for sunshine, a good sign for riders since the paving can become treacherous when wet.

“Everybody’s concerned,” said Hincapie. “It’s going to be a little technical stage and a lot can be lost.”

Both cobblestone sections come in the second half of the mostly flat 130-mile stage from Waterloo, Belgium, to the northern French town of Wasquehal. The route should again favor sprinters or riders who brave a breakaway ahead of the main pack.

The first cobbled section runs for 1.7 miles. The second, 15 miles from the finish, is nearly three-quarters of a mile long.

Punctures, crashes, crowds are all potential hazards. Some say the cobblestone sections have no place in the Tour and could spoil the race if they unseat a top rider.●