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Nyborg (Denmark) (AFP) – The Dutchman Fabio Jakobsen (Quick-Step) won the sprint this Saturday in the second stage of the Tour de France, in Nyborg, after crossing the monumental bridge that joins two Danish islands (Seeland and Funen).
The Belgian Wout Van Aert (Jumbo), second at the finish line, donned the leader’s yellow jersey at the end of this stage in which the peloton suffered from the headwind in the Grand Belt strait.
“I’ve come a long, long way,” said Jakobsen metaphorically, making his Tour de France debut at the age of 25. “Those who know me know all the sacrifices I made,” he added. Jakobsen took victory less than two years after his serious crash in August 2020 at the Tour of Poland. He thus signed the 36th victory of his career, the eleventh of the year.
Van Aert, twice second that serve him to be leader of the general
Behind him, Van Aert finished second again, as he did on Friday in the opening time trial in the capital Copenhagen.
“When you finish second there is always a reason. Sometimes it’s because of yourself, sometimes it’s just because you were beaten by someone stronger. Today I was beaten by someone stronger. In the history of cycling there are many champions who often they were second”, affirmed the new leader of the general classification, with a second advantage over Lampaert thanks to the bonuses.
The Belgian, one of the riders who has had the most eyes on him since his first participation in 2019, wore yellow for the first time.
He stripped the leader’s jersey from his compatriot Yves Lampaert (Quick-Step), who was delayed by a crash at the entrance of the last 20 kilometers but managed to hook up with the peloton.
“I am happy to have been a yellow jersey once in my life. Today it is Van Aert who wears it. ‘Chapeau’ because he deserves it. We console ourselves with a new stage victory (for the team),” said Lampaert.
Another crash occurred in the last three kilometres, without consequences in terms of time. The current Tour champion, the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, reached the finish line with a late time and in 152nd place, but that is not counted as stipulated in the regulations.
“I am satisfied with the way the stage went, and now I hope that everyone is well. There are a lot of people who went down, including some of my teammates,” declared the reigning double Tour champion.
For the stage win, Jakobsen beat Van Aert by half a wheel, a day after his teammate Lampaert’s victory. Danish Mads Pedersen was third in the stage.
In this stage of 202.2 kilometers, the Danish public, who came en masse to witness the race, gave an example of knowing how to be on both sides of the asphalt.
Uran’s effort
Without having to regret the avalanche of crashes with dropouts (the 176 riders who started are still in contention) that often occur at the start of the Tour, the race was summed up in its first half of the route by a parade preceded by a breakaway of four riders , the Danish Magnus Cort Nielsen, who secured the first jersey on points from the mountain, the Norwegian Sven Erik Byström, as well as the French Cyril Barthe and Pierre Rolland, distanced later.
Byström, who was left alone in the lead, was caught up before the last 30 kilometers by an increasingly nervous peloton.
On the final long double bridge, occupied almost entirely widthwise by the peloton, the pace was slowed down by the headwind that dissuaded any will to attack. Although the Colombian Rigoberto Urán (second in the 2017 Tour), who was delayed before the entrance to the bridge due to a fall, was forced to a long chase race to be able to return to the peloton before the last eight kilometers.
On Sunday, the Tour will experience its last day in Denmark, with a third stage of 182 kilometers between Vejle and Sönderborg, before the caravan’s transfer to France.
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