Andre Greipel accepts his trophy and flowers, throws his arms in the air and affords himself a little smile. That’s it for now but stick around on the site for Barry Glendenning’s stage report and our video highlights. Thanks for reading and for all your emails, see you tomorrow for stage six, from Abbeville to Le Havre. Bye!
Stage five result
- Greipel
- Sagan
- Cavendish
- Kristoff
- Boasson Hagen
No huge shift at the top of the GC leaderboard but Peter Sagan picks up some bonus time after finishing second to climb above Tony Gallopin to fourth:
Nouveau classement général / New overall ranking. #TDF2015 pic.twitter.com/IVdl2CqZKf
— Le Tour de France (@letour) July 8, 2015
That was a thrilling conclusion to a dramatic stage disrupted by several crashes on the wet tarmac from Arras to Amiens. Andre Greipel seized the 50 sprint points on offer to strengthen his grip on the green jersey while Tony Martin retained yellow, but Froome finished well in the lead group to maintain his advantage over his main GC rivals.
Andre Greipel wins stage five!
Kritstoff leads 200m out, head down powering towards stage victory with Cavendish on his shoulder. Cavendish can’t seem to haul him back... but Greipel can! He fires round the outside with Sagan on his tail and the German wins his second stage of the 2015 Tour de France. What an impressive steal from the Lotto rider.
Updated
1km to go
Greipel is there, so is Cavendish, Kristoff is in position too. Who is going to make a move?
2km to go
All the big names are poised for this bunch sprint, hold on to your hats. Who is going to grab stage five victory? Tony Martin is up there and will have the yellow jersey tomorrow. Michael Matthews, who has taken some hits today but continues to ride near the front for his team, has been awarded ‘most aggressive rider of the day’.
#TDF2015 Yet 5 kilometres! Good luck to the team and especially to @AndreGreipel in the bunch sprint! #liveyourdream #maillotvert
— Lotto Soudal (@Lotto_Soudal) July 8, 2015
. @Etixx_QuickStep with seven riders on the right side. Uran is on the wheel of Cavendish. 4.8km to go. #TDF2015
— Etixx - Quick-Step (@Etixx_QuickStep) July 8, 2015
Team Katusha’s Alexander Kristoff is also in a good position to attack this stage victory, as is John Degenkolb. Reports from the finish is that they will be sprinting into a strong headwind.
The peloton is only 6km from the finish and Team Sky are well placed alongside Movistar at the front – GC contenders rather than the sprinters are currently leading the way but that may change very soon. Sagan in white, Greipel in green and Cavendish are all well placed.
“I’m wondering what on earth has happened to Richie Porte?” asks Luke Mckend. “Not even in the front bunch at the moment. If he cant keep on the relative flats what use will he be to Chris Froome in the mountains?”
Team Sky didn’t report him being caught up in the crash but he was seen having to chase back to rejoin the peloton on the tail of Thibaut Pinot, clearly struggling today.
10km to go
We are closing in on the climax of stage five. Mark Cavendish is behind team-mates Mark Renshaw and Tony Martin in the yellow jersey. Lotto have now brought Andre Greipel towards the front making their intentions clear. Remember there are 50 green jersey points available for the winner of this stage.
And incredibly Thibaut Pinot is back in the main peloton once again:
.@ThibautPinot de retour dans le peloton / back in the bunch! #TDF2015 pic.twitter.com/IhPy2j7RKO
— Le Tour de France (@letour) July 8, 2015
The tempo has noticeably increased at the front as faces harden. Michael Rogers and Matteo Tosatto stare ahead with focus as Alberto Contador slips in behind them. Astana, Sky and BMC are all there too. Mark Cavendish’s Etixx QuickStep team are a little further back, as is John Degenkolb’s Giant Alpecin riders: both will be eyeing this bunch sprint finish.
20km to go
Jean-Christophe Peraud, who finished second last year, was another involved in that crash. Most of those involved have slowly rejoined the peloton and all appear to be back on their bikes at the very least. The incident started about halfway back in the lead group, so the main GC contenders were unaffected at the front.
“All of the main contenders’ teams are looking strong in this first week so far,” emails Tom Atkins, “as they seem to have picked their teams to deal with these stages and the TTT – I couldn’t have seen Sky picking all three of Thomas, Stannard and Rowe, for example, if the stages before the mountains were more straightforward. Does this mean that the leaders will be left isolated in the mountains because their teammates are too exhausted or too slow uphill to stay with them? Might make for some unusual racing situations.”
Poels and Konig were caught up but both look OK. 20km to go now & hopefully there'll be no more tumbles... #TDF2015 pic.twitter.com/EAAEdi3an5
— Team Sky (@TeamSky) July 8, 2015
Orica-GreenEdge director Matt White, doing post-crash triage: “Svein, you okay? Ah, of course you’re okay mate, you’re Svein Tuft.” #TDF2015
— Neal Rogers (@nealrogers) July 8, 2015
#TDF2015 very slick roads. @BaukeMollema not involved in that crash, it looked to be @laurent_didier but he is back in the peloton.
— Trek Factory Racing (@TrekFactory) July 8, 2015
It looked like an FDJ rider that went down first, and certainly Thibaut Pinot was involved – yet another blow for the Frenchman. As one fell all those around him collapsed, several falling into the metal barriers to the side of the road. The majority of the peloton has continued and now a group of stragglers are attempting to reattach themselves to the pack. There don’t seem to be any serious injuries on first inspection.
This is a nasty crash involving perhaps 20 riders. The replay shows one rider on the far side lose control on the tarmac which must be feel like ice in these wet conditions. Chaos ensues as the teams dash to fix riders and cyclists.
Now 5mins clear, it is fair to say the winner of stage five is going to come from this lead pack, which includes Froome, Contador, Quintana, Nibali and Martin as well as the green jersey contenders.
“I count no less than 12 riders in the field as former participants in the Junior Tour of Wales,” Stuart Stanton emails. “Alex Dowsett, Dan Martin and Johan van Summeren are all winners with near misses from Geraint Tomas Peter Kennaugh and Edvald Boassen – Hagen…”
Updated
30km to go
The peloton crosses the Canal de la Somme. The pace is reasonable but you sense it will crank up over the next 10km or so. Wind and rain could play a significant part to the climax of this stage and the chance of a thrilling sprint finish is still on the cards.
A flash of yellow heads to the front of the peloton as Tony Martin takes a short stint as leader.
#TDF2015 Closer and closer to the finish and probable massive sprint...35 km to go.
— Katusha Team (@katushacycling) July 8, 2015
Still a 3min gap between the peloton and the secondary group and the crosswinds have not had the anticipated effect of breaking up the leaders. It feels like the calm before the storm as Team Sky, Movistar, BMC and Astana lead the way with Tinkhoff-Saxo in close attendance – 34km remain.
Updated
40km to go
The peloton pass Notre Dame de Brebières, an impressive basilica in the town of Albert.
“Lawrence are they racing or is there an armistice in place?” asks Peter Milne. It’s wet but not to the extent where an armistice is in, though admittedly there are no serious surges of attack – it is all building towards a bunch sprint finish, but the strong crosswinds could break up this lead group of 60 before then.
“Hi Lawrence,” Ben McDonald emails. “Any chance of an update on the Irish riders, I saw on the tdf feed Nicholas Roche came off, all ok? Sam Bennett, riding his first tour may fancy a go today in a sprint? The Irish national broadcaster coverage is pretty poor at the best of times. I know [Barry] Glendinning is there, will he give us a celtic connection??”
Regarding Nicholas Roche, he looks in good nick near the front of the peloton working hard for Chris Froome with several Sky team-mates.
Here’s the Press Association on Nacer Bouhanni’s race retirement:
France’s Nacer Bouhanni abandoned the Tour de France after being taken away in an ambulance following a crash on Wednesday’s fifth stage.
The sprinter, who was targeting stage wins and possibly the green jersey for the points classification, was caught in a crash with three team-mates and several other riders 18km into the 189.5km ride from Arras. Bouhanni was the only one who could not resume racing.
“He was taken to a hospital for checks on his ribs, elbow and wrist,” his Cofidis sports director, Didier Rous, said.
Bouhanni had sustained bruised ribs in a crash at the French national championships 10 days ago, only confirming his participation in the Tour at the last minute. The 24-year-old has three Giro d’Italia and two Vuelta stage wins to his name.
Swiss FDJ rider Steve Morabito falls but he’s back up quickly and chasing to rejoin the peloton.
Team Sky are well placed:
50km to go at #TDF2015 and @TeamSky are massed at the front of the 1st group protecting @chrisfroome. A large 2nd group are 3:14 behind.
— Team Sky (@TeamSky) July 8, 2015
Stage five so far
There are around 50km to go in this 190km stage five from Arras to Amiens. It’s been another wet day punctured by several crashes, the worst of which ended Nacer Bouhanni’s participation in this year’s Tour, while New Zealand’s Jack Bauer has also abandoned the race. The peloton has split in two with the lead group of about 60 riders around 3mins clear of the secondary group and containing the main GC contenders. The riders pass an imposing war memorial dedicated to the memory of those who lost their lives in the Battle of the Somme as they make their way through Thiepval.
La bordure se confirme, le 2ème groupe est à 2'22" du peloton / The 2nd group is 2'22" behind the peloton #TDF2015 pic.twitter.com/kcvmFlLx6S
— Le Tour de France (@letour) July 8, 2015
The peloton has built a 2min 40sec lead to the secondary group behind them. Team Sky have taken up residence on the right of the leading group with Froome tucked in amongst his team-mates. Movistar and Astana are up at the front too with Nibali and Quintana in tow. The riders will switch direction soon and head south, which will bring those strong crosswinds back into play.
#TDF2015 Who will win the stage? The finish line in Amiens is ready for it! pic.twitter.com/22auRmoHaG
— Lotto Soudal (@Lotto_Soudal) July 8, 2015
Cavendish had suffered a puncture but team-work comes to the fore as they drag him back into the peloton. This main pack, which contains Froome, Martin, Contador, Nibali and Quintana, are around two minutes clear of the secondary group. 60km remain on route to Amiens.
Mark Cavendish has had a problem with his bike and Etixx QuickStep are quickly on the scene.
Moto has gone down on a lip of the road, but looks like he is already up. Mechanical for Cav, Vermote & Golas pacing him back. #TDF2015
— Etixx - Quick-Step (@Etixx_QuickStep) July 8, 2015
Renshaw has dropped back for @MarkCavendish #TDF2015
— Etixx - Quick-Step (@Etixx_QuickStep) July 8, 2015
Updated
Here’s something you don’t see too often: one of the motorcycles riding alongside the peloton gets stuck on a muddy, grassy verge and goes down. The riders swerve skilfully around him and the motorcyclist is back on his way: pride dented but otherwise OK, which in my book makes it alright to laugh, just a little.
Updated
It looks increasingly miserable for the riders as rain continues to fall – this week continues to showcase relentless, brutal racing just as it should be. The lead peloton has Team Sky, Movistar, BMC and Tinkoff-Saxo all at the front, teams which contain most of the main GC contenders.
James Cavell emails: “The difference in power required hang on at the back of line of single file riders in the crosswind, rather than being safely tucked in the leading echelon is really significant. I saw on Twitter that on Sunday Kwiatkowski held 433 watts for 5 minutes as he rotated in the leading echelon, whereas Buchmann, who was riding off the back of the last group was holding about 460.
“For a good 10 minutes the rider in the race pedalling the hardest was probably the rider in very last place. Each and every time a rider has to close a gap, and struggle in the wind without shelter he’s essentially doing the same as riding off the front - That’s the power you need not go backwards. Having been dropped many times in crosswinds in Netherlands and Belgium I cannot stress enough how miserable it is. The top guys in the front group are having a far easier ride than those grovelling in the gutter.”
Team Sky put in a little burst of energy on a short uphill section and the peloton is now split in half with 70km to go. The big leading group is around 50sec clear and contains all the major GC contenders. Movistar now move to the front of the main pack.
Updated
News through that New Zealand rider Jack Bauer has abandoned the Tour following an earlier crash. I foolishly thought today might offer respite for the riders following a testing opening four stages but stage five is proving just as treacherous.
75.6km to go. Another split in the field. Abandon Bauer. #TDF2015
— Etixx - Quick-Step (@Etixx_QuickStep) July 8, 2015
The peloton take a sharp right-hand turn in a tiny village packed with fans before leaving the taste of civilisation and heading for an expanse of crop fields. The change in direction (now riding north for around 10km) creates a powerful crosswind which stretches the peloton and breaks up the pack.
Orica GreenEdge’s Michael Matthews is behind the peloton, perhaps struggling after his crash on stage three. He is having a chat with his team car and continues. The majority of the pack are together as one slicing through the fields on route to Amiens.
There’s a lull in the action which the riders must be grateful for, given the number of incidents this morning and the news that Bouhanni has withdrawn from the Tour through injury. The peloton swarms through a supporter-lined village as one, with Team Sky at its head. 82km remain.
“I saw a statistic early yesterday,” emails Fergus Carroll. “That this year’s Tour is the first since 1992 that there have been three different yellow jersey wearers after the first three stages, Indurain, Zulle and Virenque back then. After Martin’s exploits yesterday, any ideas how far back since we’ve had four leaders after four days?”
The riders are through 100km and 90km remain of stage five. Perichon has been swept up into the peloton following his early breakaway and the riders are all together as one – the food bags are round plenty of necks as they take on fuel. Here’s an update on the points after that intermediate sprint (there are 50 further points on offer for the stage winner):
Green jersey
- Greipel 101 points
- Sagan 89
- Degenkolb 75
- Cavendish 66
Greipel (LTS) and Degenkolb (TGA) both hit 78.48 km/h in their race to the Rancourt checkpoint #TDFdata
— letourdata (@letourdata) July 8, 2015
The result of the intermediate sprint at 90km:
- Pierre-Luc Perichon (BSE) 20 points
- Andre Greipel (LTS) 17
- John Degenkolb (TGA) 15
- Mark Cavendish (EQS) 13
- Peter Sagan (TCS) 11
Intermediate sprint
Perichon gets there first, 46sec clear of the rest but he is going to be swept up soon enough by the advancing peloton. In the main group the sprint is on: Greipel goes hard from 100m out down the right, Cav attacks through the middle and Degenkolb powers down left, but no-one gets within a couple of metres of Greipel and the Lotto rider is over the line first.
Updated
Nairo Quintana has a problem with his bike but his car is way back, so he makes a quick swap with a team-mate and is on his way. Moments later the car catches up and they’ve got his bike patched up. We are closing in on the intermediate sprint point which Perichon looks certain to cross first, with his 50sec lead over the peloton.
#TDF2015: @NairoQuinCo's puncture was quickly assisted by @jcastroviejo, so as not to lose any time. Now he's back with his spare bike.
— Movistar Team (@Movistar_Team) July 8, 2015
Updated
We are 85km through stage five and 5km from the intermediate sprint point. The peloton has been split by that incident and there’s a group of stragglers stretched out behind the main pack.
The peloton is clearly quite nervous and there's just been another sizable crash. Doesn't look like any @TeamSky involved. 108km to go #TDF
— Team Sky (@TeamSky) July 8, 2015
Yet another crash, with several riders down on the road and on the grass either side. It looks like they are all back up on their bikes within a minute or so. Bryan Coquard was amongst the unlucky ones and that’s his second fall of the morning – in addition he’s now got some catching up to do to rejoin the peloton. Perichon remains out in front with around a 1min lead as light rain continues to fall.
If you’d like to see what awaits for the riders over the coming days and weeks, take a look at our stage-by-stage guide to the 2015 Tour de France.
“I’ve heard the ‘mudguards are dangerous’ argument,” says John Sanderson. “But there’s plenty of other metal and sharp objects on bikes (ever had your hand caught in a chainset?) and they’re allowed. Seems odd to allow bikes made of carbon, metal and ride them on tarmac and cobbles, then say plastic mudguards and clips might cause an injury!”
The peloton trundles along with Team Sky leading the way around 15km from the intermediate sprint mark. The gap to Perichon out on his own is around 1min 30sec.
“Afternoon,” emails James Davison. “That’s a very decent thing of Froome, Kennaugh and Le Directeur to have done laying that wreath. The whole area has a sombre atmosphere to it and it’s impossible to forget the events that took place there just over a lifetime ago when you visit. The Thiepval and Vimy Ridge monuments are fitting memorials to the scale of the sacrifice, but I found the one that most moved me was Newfoundland Park at Beaumont Hamel on the Somme. It’s a huge caribou mounted on a mound covered in native Newfoundland vegetation. Not to be too gauche in making a Tour connection but to be doing battle in a land so far from home was and is very affecting. Good on them for acknowledging the history of the land they are covering.”
It's @Petekennaugh and @IStannard on the front right now, keeping @TeamSky's foot in the door at the head of the bunch #TDF2015
— Team Sky (@TeamSky) July 8, 2015
John Sanderson emails: “After the debate yesterday about the crash, something else occurs to me today (don’t tell me to get on with my work....). I’ve wondered why mudguards aren’t used on days like this - if I turn up on a club ride in the wet even with just lightweight clip-on guards I’m banished to the back of the group....I’m guessing its a combo of weight, marketing (be honest, race bikes look much sexier without guards) and possibly something which was mentioned yesterday – it’s a part of racing which riders look to exploit, if you’re at the front splattering your rivals with crap then they might miss a move, slow up a bit, etc. Any thoughts?”
I think weight is important but there is certainly a safety element to it, too: when riders collide mudguards can go flying and the attachments used to clip them to the bike can cause injuries.
Europecar riders Coquard and Voeckler are down on the road in a heap. Fortunately, this one doesn’t look too nasty and they gingerly hop back on their saddles and begin the catch up to the peloton, which is 1min 33sec behind Perichon. A reminder that today there are 50 sprint points up for grabs for the winner of the stage, and 30 for second place, a huge difference which will have a major impact on the race for the green jersey.
Green jersey
1 Greipel 84 points
2 Sagan 78
3 Degenkolb 60
4 Martin 55
5 Cavendish 53
If you’d like a little more insight into how Tony Martin took on the cobbles yesterday, Global Cycling Network gets technical. Have a watch.
Things have calmed a little in the peloton following those early crashes. Perichon remains out in front with a 1min 13sec lead from the rest after 60km of the day’s 190km. Worth noting that there is an intermediate sprint marker 90km into the stage so green jersey points are up for grabs – as well as a few euros.
And Adrian Harrington points DC Stultz and anyone else in the direction of this piece for all your camera-based wonderings.
Confirmation that Nacer Bouhanni has withdrawn from the Tour following a major collision earlier in the day – he has been taken to hospital for treatment. Better news for Thomas De Gendt and several other riders involved, all of whom appear to have caught up with the peloton.
Nacer #Bouhanni (Cofidis) abandon the #TDF2015 after a big crash today pic.twitter.com/2eEh4TMjrU
— Luca Stamerra (@StamLuca) July 8, 2015
#TDF2015 Good news, @DeGendtThomas is back in the bunch after his crash!
— Lotto Soudal (@Lotto_Soudal) July 8, 2015
Barry Glendenning is our man in northern France and he has been in touch with the view from the ground:
Greetings from Amiens, capital of the Somme and location of today’s finish. I had a very pleasant drive down here today, listening to Stephen Fry on Desert Island Discs, stopping to wander around the Thiepval Memorial to the fallen at the Somme and wandering around one of many cemeteries full of graves of unknown soldiers. While there, it started lashing rain so a nice elderly French couple of cycling enthusiast who had erected a roadside gazebo beside their camper van gave me a cup of coffee. It’s wet and windy in Amiens at the moment, but nothing too bad. That said, I have a feeling in my bones that today’s stage won’t be as straightforward as many suspect: a massive crash at the finish, perhaps?
There have been a couple of of early crashes in the peloton to report. In the most serious, four Cofidis riders went down and their leader, Nacer Bouhanni, has been taken away in an ambulance – more updates to come on this. The rest are back riding again and have made up the gap to the peloton.
“Hi Lawrence,” emails Simon Thomas. “I hear what you say about Tony Martin winning the stage and the yellow jersey yesterday but there was also a touch of the ‘life time achievement’ award in it - once he went clear, a few of the leading GC teams discovered that they were riding with glass cranks. And fair play to them too – he was unlucky not to be in yellow already and seems to be a popular guy. His team worked really hard for him too.”
42km down and Perichon has a 1min 23sec lead over the peloton, an advantage which has been slashed considerably in the past 10km. The Frenchman is out on his own on a wet and windy day in northern France as the rest take turns heading the peloton.
Standings before stage five
Yellow jersey
1 Martin
2 Froome +.12
3 Van Garderen +.25
4 Gallopin +.38
5 Sagan +.39
8 Contador +.48
13 Nibali +1.50
17 Quintana +2.08
Green jersey
1 Greipel 84 points
2 Sagan 78
3 Degenkolb 60
4 Martin 55
5 Cavendish 53
White jersey
1 Sagan
2 Barguil +.40
3 Quintana +1.29
4 Bardet +2.27
5 Pinot +5.51
“How many TV cameras cover the Tour?” emails DC Stultz. “How many on scoots and how many helicopters? While you’re at it, what kind of motorcycle/scooters are used by the two men TV teams? (Looks like high end scooters, but is hard to tell from the few fleeting shots).”
I’m sure someone will get in touch with the exact answer, but I believe there are five motorbikes dedicated to TV footage and two cameras providing those fantastic helicopter shots.
Stage five so far
The riders are through 30km of this 190km stage. Plenty of rain has fallen this morning and the wind is up, which could play a part in breaking up the peloton later in the day. For now, Pierre-Luc Perichon is out in front on his own, the Bretagne-Seche rider around 3min in front of the rest.
Yesterday’s stage was won in style by Tony Martin. The German did it against the adversity of the cobblestones, in the rain and wind, against the crowd of riders he left behind riding a team-mate’s bike after his own had failed him, saddle too high and brakes on opposite sides. This was not Froome giving away the yellow jersey but Martin pinning him down and wrestling it from him. Yet Froome won’t be perturbed: he continues to hold an advantage over his biggest GC challengers and that counts as a success in itself, despite being back in the dark blue today.
Updated
The great mass of cars, trucks, bikes and people that is the Tour de France has swept off the dust from the cobbles of Cambrai and shifted 40km west (north-west-west for any orientation pedants) to Arras. The historic town situated on the La Scarpe river marks the start of stage five, and perhaps some relief for riders after the helter skelter start to the 2015 Tour.
This is something of a traditional sprint stage which Mark Cavendish, Andre Greipel, Peter Sagan et al will have earmarked. The peloton rides north close to the World War One site of the Battle of Vimy Ridge before heading south-west over 190km to Amiens in Picardy. Amiens has been an important battleground over many centuries and with any luck will be the scene of an enthralling battle for stage five today.
Updated
What to look out for in stage five
Finally, a stage that should verge on the routine, with the nervous moments confined to the final 50 kilometres unless wind and rain intervene and something very unlikely happens along the exposed cliffs above the English Channel.
These are flat roads and the usual Tour script on such days is for an early break caught late on before a bunch sprint. But there it gets interesting, as with Marcel Kittel out of the race and Mark Cavendish still to regain his old dominance there is no nailed-on favourite for the bunch gallops this year.
