SPA, Belgium – Tour de France officials on Monday agreed to help reduce the risk of further injuries in the peloton by virtually canceling the sprinters’ points competition on the race’s second stage.

For the second day running a number of spills caused panic, with several yellow jersey favorites including Lance Armstrong and Andy Schleck hitting the tarmac on the 201km ride from Brussels to Spa.

Following the crash-marred first stage, it was another eventful day as the peloton raced from Brussels towards the hilly Ardennes region, where the rain on the descents of several winding climbs made for treacherous racing.

As Schleck and his brother Frank battled to close the gap to the yellow jersey group of overnight leader and teammate Fabian Cancellara, the Swiss took his leader’s responsibilities all the way and negotiated a non-aggression pact.

A day ahead of the third stage where carnage is expected on the seven cobblestone sectors leading into northern France, Cancellara decided enough was enough.

“It was the right thing to do to wait, so everybody comes together to the finish line together,” Cancellara later explained.

“When you have everybody on the ground and people five minutes behind because they can’t find their bike then it’s only normal.

“I think fairness comes before being selfish. That was the reason why I spoke with (race official Jean-Francois) Pescheux.”

Frenchman Sylvain Chavanel of Quick Step went on to take an early breakaway all the way to victory, picking up maximum points in the process for the race’s points competition – which is usually contended by the sprinters.

All the points normally attributed behind him, however, were canceled.

Race official Pescheux explained: “Cancellara came to see me to tell me there had been enough injuries in the peloton today.

“(He said) there were (potential) leaders stuck behind and that no one wanted to sprint for second place.

“It was a tacit agreement.”

Cancellara’s move meant he lost the yellow jersey and he is now 2min 57sec behind new race leader Chavanel.

Chavanel had been part of an earlier eight-man breakaway and even before the mayhem going on his wake he was virtually certain of winning the stage.

Whether he would have taken the race lead or not, nobody knows.

But Cancellara said he was happy to lose the lead if it meant no further crashes: “There’s other things to think about than the yellow jersey.”

Article: AFP
Photo: CorVos