McEwen The Magnificent

The 203.0km first stage of the 94th Tour de France – from London to Canterbury – began at 11.00am after the peloton pedaled through a 6.8km neutral zone taking in some of the British capital’s landmarks. There was an official protocol on the Tower Bridge and the peloton stopped while the French and British national anthems were played. The course included three category-four climbs: the first was in Southborough, a 2.3km long ascent with the crest at the 94.5km mark; the second at Goudhurst, a 1.6km long ascent at 121.0km; and the rise at Farthing Common which is 1.1km and peaks at 183.0km. There were three intermediate sprints: the first in Gillingham at the 46.5km mark, the next in Teston at 76.0km and the final one in Tenterden at 140.5km. _ _ Millar: The First Successful Attacker _ The initial attack of the 94th Tour came from Feillu (AGRE) and Auge (COF) who tried in kilometer one. The first successful move came from Millar (SDV) who jumped ahead at the 3.5km. By 17km, he led four chasers – Grivko (MRM), Kuschynski (LIQ), Bichot (AGR) and Auge –by 45” while the peloton was at 1’25”. After 33km, Millar’s advantage over the peloton was 4’40”. At 45km the four were 1’40” behind, the peloton was at 5’25”. The points at the first sprint were won by: 1. Millar 6pts; 2. Grivko 4pts; 3. Kuschynski 2pts. The counter attackers were 1’00” behind at the 46.5km mark. The average speed for the first hour was 47.1km/h. Millar was caught by the four chasers at the 48km mark, the peloton was at 5’35”. _ _ CSC Lead Chase _ The team of the yellow jersey controlled the peloton’s pursuit of the five escapees. The points for the 2nd intermediate sprint were won by the same trio as the first - Millar, Grivko, Kuschynski. Their quintet was 5’05” ahead of the peloton at the 76km mark. There was a crash in the peloton involving Gonzalo Ramirez (AGR) who was forced to abandon. The average speed for the 2nd hour was 40.1km/h. The points for the 1st climb were won by: Millar, Grivko, Kuschynski. The peloton was at 4’40”. _ _ Reeling In The Escapes _ With 92km to go, the advantage of the five leaders reached 6’00”. This was the maximum gain. On the 2nd climb, Bichot attacked and led over the summit to collect 3pts ahead of Auge and Kuschynski. The peloton was 5’50” behind. With 80km to go the peloton was at 5’00”; with 70km, 3’50”... CSC was joined by Vasseur (QSI), Charteau (C.A) and Vansevenant and van Summeren (PRL) who swapped off at the front. Lancaster, Zandio, Moreni and Mercado were involved in a crash at 55km to go. _ With 50km to go, Millar and Grivko dropped out of the lead group and waited for the peloton. With 30km to go, the leading trio was 1’05” ahead. Auge attacked with 27km to go and Bichot and Kuschynski returned to the peloton. With 25km to go, Auge led by 35”. _ _ Crash & Mechanical Problems For Sprint Favorites _ With 23km to go, McEwen was caught up in a crash. Cavendish had bike troubles and had to change machines twice in the final 25km. Auge took first place at the 3rd climb but was caught 18km from the finish and the Quickstep team took charge. Millar claimed second at Farthing Common and ensured that he would lead the climbing classification for stage two. _ McEwen rejoined the peloton in the final 10km but was not seen near the front of the peloton until the final 200m. He jumped into the lead in the final 80m and claimed the win, finishing three meters ahead of his nearest rival. The Australian is now equal with Zabel (MRM) for having the most stage wins for any active rider. _ Fabian Cancellara finished in 22nd place and will wear the yellow jersey in stage two.