SPA, Belgium — Boulder-based cyclist Christian Vande Velde pulled out of the Tour de France after breaking two ribs in a crash during Monday’s second stage of the race.
Vande Velde was involved in one of the several crashes that marred the 125-mile rain- soaked stage from Brussels to Spa. On a day of chaos and crashes, riders tumbled like dominoes in the rain and littered the road in a scene Lance Armstrong called “surreal.”
The Boulder-based Garmin- Transitions team said Vande Velde “suffered a left eyelid laceration requiring multiple stitches, along with two broken ribs.” Vande Velde finished fifth in the Tour de France two years ago.
This year, Vande Velde was forced out of the Giro d’Italia after breaking his shoulder in a crash before suffering three broken ribs at the Tour of Switzerland last month. Vande Velde also crashed during the third stage of last year’s Giro, sustaining five broken vertebrae, a broken pelvis and broken ribs.
Garmin-Transitions teammates Tyler Farrar and Julian Dean, who also were taken to a hospital to be checked, will be able to start today’s stage, the team said, although Farrar broke his left wrist.
Garmin-Transitions rider David Millar of Britain, who did not go to a hospital to be checked, suffered a rib injury.
Most of the riders who fell Monday crashed toward the end of the stage in the Stockeu pass downhill, after a motorbike crashed and spilled oil minutes before the cyclists arrived.
Armstrong, a seven-time Tour champion, and defending champion Alberto Contador went down but escaped with scratches and road rash.
Sylvain Chavanel of France was among the few who avoided trouble. He sped to victory after breaking away early in the trip from Brussels to Spa and took the yellow jersey from Switzerland’s Fabian Cancellara. With the pack banged up, he finished nearly four minutes ahead.
With so many riders down in crashes, organizers said they considered canceling the stage altogether. But under the race rules, the spills were too spread out to warrant a cancellation.
Armstrong returned to the RadioShack team bus with his team outfit torn and a bloody scrape on his thigh. His team said he also injured his elbow but otherwise was all right.
Chavanel began the stage in 87th place and knocked everyone on the leaderboard down a notch. Cancellara dropped to second — 2 minutes, 57 seconds behind. Germany’s Tony Martin is third, 3:07 back.
At a glance
Stage 2: A 124.9-mile ride from Brussels to Spa that followed some parts of the Walloon Arrow and Liege-Bastogne-Liege one-day classics.
Winner: Sylvain Chavanel of France.
How Garmin-Transitions did: David Millar, who finished 3 minutes, 56 seconds off the lead, fell from third to fourth place overall. Several members were injured in crashes.
Armstrong watch: Lance fell to fifth place overall, 10 seconds behind Millar.
Yellow jersey: Chavanel.
Next stage: Today’s stage is a 132.36-mile ride from Wanze, Belgium, to Arenberg Porte du Hainaut, France, featuring four cobblestone sections during the last 18.64 miles.
The Associated Press
