Kittel wins Tour leg as cycling bounces back in Germany
LIEGE, BELGIUM — The thriving current state of German cycling stood out in sharp contrast to the sport’s dirty past during the second stage of the Tour de France on Sunday.
As Marcel Kittel rode toward a commanding sprint victory to conclude a leg that began before large crowds in Dusseldorf, Germany, disgraced 1997 champion Jan Ullrich stood by the road as an uninvited spectator.
“It makes me really, really proud to see that this sport is now well accepted again in my home country,” Kittel said.
“There was definitely a time where not so many spectators were standing next to the road. And those who were there were showing signs with EPO syringes or other (stuff ).”
Without any teammates in the final 500 metres of a mostly flat stage concluding in Liege, Kittel wisely stayed on his rivals’ wheels before bursting ahead at the final moment for his 10th career stage win in the Tour.
Meanwhile, three-time champion Chris Froome had to work hard to catch up with the main pack after falling to the pavement amid a mass crash on a wet corner.
Froome’s Sky teammate Geraint Thomas held on to the leader’s yellow jersey.
Froome was near the front of the peloton when a Katusha rider ahead of him lost control coming around a sharp turn with about 30 kilometres to go.
Froome’s shorts and several layers of skin were torn and he had to change bikes as three teammates paced him back to the peloton.
“I have no injuries thankfully. I’ve just lost a little bit of skin on my backside,” Froome said.
Ullrich was suspended in 2006 in the fallout from the Operation Puerto blood-doping scandal in Spain and he retired a year later.
There were also scandals involving prominent German riders like Patrick Sinkewitz and Stefan Schumacher.
The Tour remains in Belgium for the start of Stage 3 on Monday, a 212.5-kilometre leg from Verviers to Longwy, France.