AMIENS, France – A brief look at the 5th stage of the Tour de France on Wednesday:
Stage: A 117.5-mile ride in rainy and windy conditions through the battlefields of World War One from Arras to Amiens that was marred with seven crashes.
Winner: Andre Greipel, who overpowered Peter Sagan and Mark Cavendish with an impressive burst of acceleration in the final 300 meters.
Yellow jersey: Tony Martin, who retained the coveted shirt he won in Stage 4. Martin has a 12-second lead over 2013 Tour champion Chris Froome. American Tejay van Garderen is in third place, 25 seconds back.
How did the “Fab Four” perform?: On slippery roads, the favorites’ main concern was to stay safe. They all escaped unscathed, with the general classification unchanged. Second-placed Chris Froome leads Alberto Contador by 36 seconds, Vincenzo Nibali is 1 minute and 38 seconds adrift and Nairo Quintana lags 1:56 behind.
Quote of the day: “It’s mother nature, either you’ve got the fast twitching muscles, or you don’t have them. I’ve got to thank my mother for the fast-twitching muscles.” – From Andre Greipel, when asked why German riders are so good in sprints.
Stat of the day: 59.58 – In kilometers per hour, the average speed in the stage final kilometer, on a damp road.
Next stage: Thursday’s sixth stage is another mostly flat stage for sprinters, taking the pack over 119 miles from Abbeville to Le Havre, France’s biggest commercial port.
