US cyclist Tyler Farrar won his first-ever stage of the Tour de France on Sunday as his Garmin-Cervelo team took its second straight victory.
The 27-year-old from Wenatchee, Washington, crossed the finish line flashing a “W” with both hands in honor of his Belgian friend and training partner Wouter Weylandt who died in a crash during the Giro d'Italia.
After the race, Farrar said his friend's father told him, “Win a stage for Woulter in the Tour.”
Sprint confusion
The Stage 3 victory in Redon came as the highly disciplined sprint machine of Mark Cavendish's HTC-Highroad team came unhinged in the final couple of kilometers.
Lined up for a textbook finish after the 198km (122 miles) race from Olonne-sur-Mer, the organization fell apart when the team accelerated to reel in a solo attack and Cavendish got lost in the shuffle.
Emerging from the confused sprint then were a group of Garmin cyclists led by Thor Hushovd, wearing the yellow jersey earned in the Stage 2 team time trial on Saturday.
The Garmin riders pulled Farrar along and he won the race by a half-length ahead of Romain Feillu of Vacansoleil-DCM.
After the race, Farrar told Versus:
“I think you see the team is flying. … We have nine guys in super form. I think it's just the beginning. I hope we can win even more.”
Breakaway
The stage was a flat one along the French coast. The highest point of the day was the center span of the Pont de
Saint-Nazaire, a bridge that crosses the Loire River. In fact, it's
rated a Category 4 climb and the one mountain point was earned by
Mickael Delage (FDJ), a member of the breakaway.
That breakaway escaped in the first couple of miles of the race and comprised Delage, Niki Terpstra (Quickstep), Jose Gutierrez
(Movistar), Ruben Moreno (Euskaltel-Euskadi), and Maxime Bouet (AG2R).
The break gained up to about 8 minutes before Garmin-Cervelo went to the front of the peloton to bring them back. Gutierrez and Delage were the last to survive out front, but the peloton caught them with about 5 miles to go.
Overall, Hushovd retains the general classification lead while helping deliver a stage win to his team.
Top 10 overall
1. Thor Hushovd (Nor) Team Garmin-Cervelo
2. David Millar (GBr) Team Garmin-Cervelo
3. Cadel Evans (Aus) BMC Racing Team – 1 second behind
4. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Sky Procycling – 4 seconds behind
5. Linus Gerdemann (Ger) Leopard Trek – 4 seconds behind
6. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Sky Procycling – 4 seconds behind
7. Fränk Schleck (Lux) Leopard Trek – 4 seconds behind
8. Andy Schleck (Lux) Leopard Trek – 4 seconds behind
9. Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Leopard Trek – 4 seconds behind
10. Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling – 4 seconds behind
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