Miraculously the Canadian has nothing broken but was able to start Stage 3 Montreal’s Guillaume Boivin crashed during the super-tough Stage 4 on Tuesday, but hopefully will live to see another day. Stage 3 of the Tour de France saw Biniam Girmay, the first Eritrean and the first Intermarché-Wanty rider to earn a stage win.
As the pack came into the finale at full speed, Boivin of Israel – Premier Tech team fell hard with Jake Stewart, Boivin’s teammate, also went down.
“It was riding at 67 km/h and a guy fell in front of me,” Boivin told Sportcom. “I have nothing broken, but I’m scratched everywhere. Left, straight, knees, elbows, shoulders, hips, all the back. It’s nothing serious, but it’s sure it’s going to be stiff on Tuesday.”
First sprint stage was marred with a big crash
A French rider, Fabien Grellier of TotalEnergies, tried to spoil the party for the sprinters, trying to solo to the win. Grellier was caught with 28.5 km remaining. Casper Pedersen crashed with 14 km to go, leaving him battered. A mechanical issue for world champion Mathieu van der Poel prevented him from leading out Jasper Philipsen.
The crash wreaked havoc on the peloton. It held up most of the pack. After it, only about 40 riders were able to go for the win. Girmay opted for a tight path along the right-hand barrier, outkicking Movistar’s Fernando Gaviria and Lotto Dstny’s Arnaud de Lie in the sprint.
“We’re going to hope to be entitled to a proper night,” Boivin said after the race. “Of course, the next few days will be difficult and it is really not ideal, but I should get by. It’s part of the bike.”
Survive another day to keep on
Boivin ended up starting Stage 4–the very tough mountain stage, featuring the dreaded Galibier. He would roll in 30 minutes after Pogacar, in 126th. But there are plenty of stages left for either Boivin or Hugo Houle to play their cards and go for a stage.
CYCLISME : Une 17e place mardi pour le 🇨🇦 Derek Gee @IsraelPremTech à la quatrième étape du Tour de France. Ses compatriotes et coéquipiers Hugo Houle (97e) et Guillaume Boivin (126e) étaient aussi de cette première étape en montagne.#TDF24 @CyclingCanada @Equipe_Canada… pic.twitter.com/hlI9GShArM
— Philippe Germain – VCI (@goVCIca) July 2, 2024
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