Marcel Kittel collects another stage win, Chris Froome ready for time trial assault

RACING returned with another crash marred sprint as Marcel Kittel became the first rider to take multiple individual stage wins this tour.

Matt Keenan

3 min read

July 10, 2013 - 9:00AM

News Corp Australia Network

RACING returned, after the rest day, with another crash marred sprint as Marcel Kittel became the first rider in this year’s Tour de France to take multiple individual stage wins.

Kittel won the first stage, and took the yellow jersey, but this win was the most significant of his career.

The first stage was won in the absence of Mark Cavendish and Andre Greipel, who were caught-up in crashes.

This time he beat the world’s two best sprinters head-to-head at the world’s biggest bike race. It was a performance that moves him from being a challenger to an equal favourite for the remaining sprint finishes.

CRASH MARS STAGE TEN FINISH

Kittel’s leadout man, Tom Veelers, crashed heavily in the closing 200 metres after Cavendish clipped his elbow, while moving across the road in a desperate attempt to get into Greipel’s slipstream.

Cavendish was put under the microscope, with many jumping to the conclusion that he was at fault, but it wasn’t that simple.

Veelers also made mistakes.

After the Dutchman had done his job for Kittel he was looking over his shoulder, he also looked down at his gears as if there was a mechanical problem, and veered off his line as Cavendish was coming past.

Veelers paid the price for the movement of both riders but there was no malice on Cavendish’s behalf. A little reckless is the worst he can be accused of.

The race is now confronted with the first of its two individual time trials.

The time trial is always referred to as the test of truth, and for good reason.

There are no teammates for support, no other riders to sit behind and tactics are as simple as measuring your effort so you hit the finish line empty.

Germany's Marcel Kittel (R) reacts as he crosses the finish line ahead of Germany's Andre Greipel (2ndL) at the end of the 197 km tenth stage.

Cadel Evans has often describe it as start fast, go as fast as you can in the middle and hope it's fast enough at the end.

Stage honours should be a tussle between the reigning world champion Tony Martin and Chris Froome.

Sitting in 119th place overall Martin’s performance will be of little significance to Froome’s status at the top of the general classification.

But as Martin is among the early starters he will be an important reference point for Froome, who is the last to start. Froome will be able to measure his performance against Martin in his bid to extend his lead on his nearest rivals.

And barring a rumour inducing miracle he will extend his overall lead.

When Froome last raced Alejandro Valverde and Alberto Contador in a time trial, at the beginning of June over a comparable course and distance to the stage 11 test, he was more than two minutes faster than the Spaniards.

SKY Procycling riders Ian Stannard, race leader Chris Froome, Peter Kennaugh and Richie Porte in action during stage ten of the 2013 Tour de France.

His gains tomorrow are likely to be of a similar margin.

One of the more intriguing battles will be at Contador’s SaxoTinkoff team.

In both the Pyrenean stages Roman Kreuziger was the strongest rider on the team but rode to instruction to support Contador.

Kreuziger clearly had to wait for the former Tour winner on the mountain top finish at Ax 3 Domaines.

If Kreuziger had ridden his own race, instead of being fifth at one minute and 51 seconds behind, it’s possible he’d be sitting in second place overall, at little more than a minute down.

In addition to limiting his loses to Froome tomorrow, Contador will be hoping that he at least betters the time of Krueziger to ensure there’s no discussion about dual leadership at the SaxoTinkoff team.

Krueziger vs Contador, fifth and sixth overall, teammates. It will be an interesting sideshow.

For Richie Porte and Evans a top five finish on the stage is well within their grasp.

For Porte, who sits in 33rd place, it’s irrelevant for the general classification but, after the disaster of losing almost 18 minutes on stage nine, a morale boosting ride before the race heads back to the mountains would be a welcome tonic.

And an on par performance for Evans will move head back towards the top-10 overall, which seems to be an ambition for the 2011 Tour champion.

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