Julian Alaphilippe won a dramatic opening stage of the 2021 Tour de France to clinch the yellow jersey as two huge crashes caused chaos on a wild ride through Brittany.
A fan posing for the cameras with a cardboard sign managed to inadvertently wipe out most of the field with 40km to go when Jumbo-Visma’s Tony Martin couldn’t avoid the placard in his way. Most riders recovered only to be caught up in another crash in the final 10km at higher speed and with more casualties. Chris Froome appeared to be one of them, and the four-time champion could be seen walking away gingerly from the scene.
More to follow…