Danish rider Jakob Fuglsang rides as he bleeds after a fall during Stage 1 of the 106th edition of the Tour de France. Photo: EPA/JEFF PACHOUD
TDF2019 Stage 1: Sagan beaten, Fuglsang, Thomas and others crash
Sagan pipped to the post in Belgium, as Teunissen upstages Team Jumbo-Visma colleague Groenewegen.
Danish rider Jakob Fuglsang rides as he bleeds after a fall during Stage 1 of the 106th edition of the Tour de France. Photo: EPA/JEFF PACHOUD
Mike Teunissen pipped Peter Sagan to Stage 1 of the 2019 Tour de France in the sprint into Brussels on Saturday, as a photo finish gave the Dutchman a shock victory and Yellow Jersey.
Intended sprint contender Dylan Groenewegen was left sprawled on the tarmac in the run-in, paving the way for his Team Jumbo-Visma lead-out man to step up and snatch the opening stage.
A bumpy ride started and finished in the Belgian capital, taking a ride through Flanders and Wallonia on a sunny first day of racing.
Stephane Rossetto was the last man standing from the breakaway, making it to just inside 10km from the finish in the colours of Cofidis before being swallowed by the peloton.
Peter Sagan earlier took the first sprint points of Le Tour, in the perfect start to his bid to win a record seventh Green Jersey by the time they roll into Paris.
Local hero Greg van Avermaet also put in an early blast, with the veteran scaling the Mur de Grammont ahead of the rest to snap up the first Polka Dot Jersey of 2019.
But the latter stages were marred for the Astana team as lead rider Jakob Fuglsang was caught up in a crash in the peloton.
The Dane was left with blood trickling from his head and a dodgy shoulder at the very least after hitting the roadside, before clambering back on to the back ahead of the run back into Brussels.
The race was marked by two falls as young Dutch sprinter Dylan Groenewegen, who many tipped for the stage win, caused a mass fall as the tension mounted a kilometre from home.
Tour de France 2019: Stage 1 crash report
One of the Tour de France overall favourites, Denmark’s Jakob Fuglsang also crashed 18km from the finish but struggled back to the peloton looking shocked and bleeding from the head.
Greg Van Avermaet claimed the first King of the Mountains polka dot jersey after winning an intense struggle on the 7.8 percent gradient Mur de Grammont climb at 45km, which often features in the Flanders one-day classics.
The 34-year-old Van Avermaet, on his golden Olympic champion bike, was in Saturday’s early breakaway, from which he also came second on the day’s other, lesser, Bosberg climb securing the polka dot jersey after just 50km.
Half a million fans and well-wishers turned out as the race embarked in balmy sunshine from Brussels city centre, passing the Grand Place, the Royal Palace and the European Commission building before a 194.5km loop through the lush Belgian plains.
Tour de France 2019: Fuglsang crash
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Fuglsang bloodied and battered after his crash
Crash in the sprint
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