CAP FREHEL, France — Mark Cavendish of Britain won a windy and crash-marred fifth stage of the Tour de France in a mass sprint on Wednesday, while Norway’s Thor Hushovd, who rides for Boulder’s Garmin-Cervelo, kept the leader’s yellow jersey.
Defending champion Alberto Contador fell in a crash and RadioShack rider Janez Brajkovic broke his collarbone and pulled out of the race during the 102-mile stage from Carhaix to Cap Frehel on the English Channel.
Cavendish, a sprint specialist, collected his 16th career Tour stage victory and his first this year by speeding past Philippe Gilbert — who finished second — and Jose Joaquin Rojas in third.
“I am really happy. It was a difficult finish,” said Cavendish, who rides with the HTC-Highroad team. “I put every thing into it. If we win, it’s not because we’re lucky, it’s because we’re good.”
The British rider, known almost as much for his powerful legs as his sharp tongue, took aim at unidentified critics who he said expressed doubts about his abilities.
“It’s always sweet to silence the ignoramuses,” he said.
But Gilbert succeeded in making him work hard in the sprint.
“Normally, I try to win by a little-ish margin, just to try and save energy,” Cavendish said. “Today, I had to give everything I had. He’s taken a lot out of me, so I’ll take a couple of days to recover.”
The top standings didn’t change because the vast majority of riders crossed in a pack right behind the sprinters. Hushovd kept his one-second lead over Cadel Evans of Australia in second. Frank Schleck of Luxembourg is third overall, four seconds back.
Schleck’s younger brother Andy — the Tour runner-up for the last two years — is 10th, 12 seconds behind. Contador, who lost time by getting caught up in a crash in Stage 1, is 39th overall, 1:42 behind Hushovd.
Contador, the Spanish three-time Tour champion, fell at about the 44-mile mark, but gave a thumbs-up to signal that he was all right.
A look at Stage 5
Mark Cavendish, the Manx Missile, wins the sprint in a crash- marred stage that sent Janez Brajkovic home with a fractured collarbone and concussion.
Stage winner: Mark Cavendish, Britain, HTC-Highroad, 3 hours, 38 minutes, 32 seconds.
Today’s stage: The 140.1-mile sixth stage from Dinan to Lisieux is the longest of this year’s race. It features a 1.86-mile climb to the finish in the pilgrimage city of Lisieux.
How Garmin-Cervelo is faring (overall standings): 1. Thor Hushovd, Norway, 17 hours, 36 minutes, 57 seconds; 4. David Millar, Britain, :08 behind leader; 43. Tom Danielson, United States, 1:57; 44. Christian Vande Velde, United States, same time; 144. Tyler Farrar, United States, 10:43; 185. David Zabriskie, United States, 19:04.
