Eritrean Biniam Girmay (Intermarché–Wanty) made history on stage three of the 111th Tour de France, becoming the first black African to win a stage of cycling’s biggest race, as a huge crash with just over 2km to go cost Mark Cavendish any chance of claiming a record 35th win.
All eyes had been on Cavendish’s bid for glory in Turin, a city where he has tasted success in the past, having won Milano-Torino two years ago. But a massive crash with 2.1km to go caused a split in the bunch, and the 39-year-old, racing in his final Tour, was not present in the final.
Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) was the first to launch his sprint, but Girmay squeezed past the Dane on the barriers, with Fernando Gaviria (Movistar) second and Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Dstny) third.
Girmay becomes the first black African to win a stage of the Tour, having become the first black African to win a grand tour stage at the Giro d’Italia in 2022. The 24-year-old was hugely emotional at the finish as fans chanted “Bini, Bini.”
Girmay said: “Ever since I started cycling, I’ve always been dreaming to be part of the Tour de France – but now, I can’t believe it, to win the Tour de France in my second year in a big bunch sprint, for me it is unbelievable.
“I just want to thank my family, my wife, all the Eritreans, and Africans, we must be proud, now we are really part of the big races, now it’s our moment, our time. I just want to say congrats to all my whole team, because we didn’t have a victory yet [in the Tour de France]. But now is our moment, I’m super-happy. This win is for all Africans, congrats, I’m just super happy today.”
Alpecin-Deceuninck’s Jasper Philipsen also failed to make the sprint. The Belgian, who won four stages of the Tour last year, had already lost his main leadout man, Mathieu van der Poel to a puncture in what was a hectic run-in.
On a day of firsts, Richard Carapaz (EF Education First) became the first Ecuadorian to claim the yellow leader’s jersey, taking it from Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates). The Slovenian sat up after the general classification times were taken at 5km, allowing Carapaz the chance to take it on countback.
Stage three: As it happened . . .
05:07 PM BST
More thoughts from Biniam Girmay
05:01 PM BST
Yellow for Carapaz
05:00 PM BST
Stage win for Girmay
04:58 PM BST
General classification after stage three
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Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) 15hrs 20mins 18secs
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Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) Same time
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Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step) “
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Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) “
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Romain Bardet (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) +6secs
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Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) +21secs
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Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) Same time
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Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) “
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Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe)
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Aleksandr Vlasov (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe)
04:49 PM BST
Mark Cavendish speaking to ITV
04:48 PM BST
Stage three results
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Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) 5hrs 26mins 48secs
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Fernando Gaviria (Movistar) Same time
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Arnaud de Lie (Lotto Dstny) “
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Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) “
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Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-Alula) “
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Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious) “
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Fabio Jakobsen (DSM-Firmenich-PostNL) “
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Davide Ballerini (Astana-Qazaqstan) “
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Sam Bennett (Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) “
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Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) “
04:39 PM BST
Provisional top five overall in general classification
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Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost)
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Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates)
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Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step)
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Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike)
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Romain Bardet (Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL) +6”
04:29 PM BST
An emotional Biniam Girmay after winning stage three
04:28 PM BST
The final kilometre
If you want to take another look at the final stages of stage three, here you go:
04:22 PM BST
Carapaz in yellow
Despite all of the peloton getting the same time due to the crash with 2kms to go, we have news that Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) has taken the yellow jersey from Tadej Pogacar due to his position on the stage.
04:18 PM BST
Emotional scenes for Girmay
He has become the first black African to win a stage at the Tour de France and the weight of achievement will be hitting him.
04:13 PM BST
Cav and Philipsen not in the fight
Neither Mark Cavendish nor Jasper Philipsen finished in the top ten, so perhaps they were caught up in some way by the crash with 2kms to go.
04:11 PM BST
Top five across the line
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Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty)
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Fernando Gaviria (Movistar)
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Arnaud De Lie (Lotto Dstny)
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Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek)
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Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-Alula)
04:09 PM BST
Small front group
With the safe zone extended to 5kms today, that crash has meant that all the main general classification riders are safe and will be given the same time despite arriving in drips and drabs.
04:05 PM BST
Girmay wins
Intermarché-Wanty’s Biniam Girmay wins it! That is his first victory at the Tour de France and the first time an Eritrean has ever done so. He finishes ahead of Fernando Gaviria, Arnaud De Lie and Mads Pedersen.
04:04 PM BST
1km to go
We go under the flamme rouge and the peloton has massively shrunk due to the crash. I cannot see Mark Cavendish.
04:03 PM BST
2km to go
There is a crash with just over 2kms to go.
04:02 PM BST
3km to go
Astana Qazaqstan are struggling to fight their way to the front as EF Education-EasyPost are at the front now.
04:01 PM BST
4km to go
Fabio Jakobsen’s team DSM-Firmenich PostNL hit the front with Lidl-Trek right behind them.
04:00 PM BST
5km to go
We are into the last 5kms. van der Poel will not be getting back on with the pace of the peloton.
03:59 PM BST
6km to go
Big moment for Alpecin-Deceuninck as Mathieu van der Poel has a mechanical so Jasper Philipsen looks like he has lot his leadout man.
03:58 PM BST
7km to go
UAE Team Emirates and Visma-Lease a Bike are right at the front protecting Pogacar and Vingegaard respectively. Astana Qazaqstan are trying to move up the left-hand side.
We have a second faller as Bruno Armirail is down.
03:55 PM BST
9km to go
With the pace ramping up, the peloton is being strung out.
03:54 PM BST
10km to go
Astana Qazaqstan have given the order over the team radio for the riders to move up ahead of UAE Team Emirates and Visma-Lease a Bike with six roundabouts coming up. Into the final 10km we go.
03:52 PM BST
11km to go
We are having a lot of heart-in-mouth moments as they go through a number of roundabouts. Pedersen is finally back on his feet and ready to get back on the bike.
03:52 PM BST
13km to go
There are plenty of roundabouts for the peloton to navigate and you can sense the tension as everyone is scrapping for position.
As I talk about tension we have a faller as Casper Pedersen (Soudal-Quick Step) goes down. He looks in a little bit of pain as he is not up quickly.
03:45 PM BST
18km to go
As well as the sprinters teams getting their affairs in order, the general classification teams are also making sure their leaders are taken care of as the pace ramps up.
03:43 PM BST
20km to go
We are now inside the final 20kms and I suspect there are some nerves in the peloton ahead of the first bunch sprint of the 2024 Tour.
Of course, today’s stage is all about the sprint. But an interesting sub-plot to Cavendish: Project 35 is the race for yellow. Pogacar has the maillot jaune after that stage into Bologna yesterday. But who will be wearing it tonight? The likelihood is it will be Remco Evenepoel or Richard Carapaz.
That is because Pogacar and Vingegaard are likely to sit up at 5km and drift back (they don’t really want yellow at this stage as it’s a hassle), whereas Carapaz and Evenepoel, who are both level on time with Pogacar, are likely to try to finish further forward in an effort to take the jersey. It will come down to how many places in front of Pogacar and Vingegaard they finish.
Incidentally, today’s stage is the first to test the extension of ‘the 3km rule’ to 5km. This means times will be taken at 5km, allowing the GC riders to sit up and relax and leave the sprinters to it on the run-in. Extending this to 5km ‘should’ make the final less stressful.
03:38 PM BST
25km to go
Positioning will be everything for the sprinters and their leadouts as it is a technical finish in Turin.
03:34 PM BST
28km to go
There we go, the peloton has now caught Grellier.
03:32 PM BST
30km to go
The peloton seem quite happy to leave Grellier out there for the moment, knowing that he will not be able stay out in front. The gap sits at ten seconds currently. We are now into the final 30kms.
03:27 PM BST
35km to go
Grellier knows the game is up as he looks back and the peloton are just keeping him out there by a few seconds to prolong his pain.
03:18 PM BST
43km to go
The peloton are closing the gap to Grellier, with it now down to around 20 seconds. Grellier’s team, TotalEnergies, have been telling him over the team radio that they believe he will win the combativity award.
The UAE Team Emirates’ riders have been told that the wind might be slightly stronger than first anticipated.
03:11 PM BST
49km to go
Grellier has got over the top of the Côte de Sommariva Perno to take the one point available in the king of the mountains classification. His lead currently stands at 45 seconds.
There are no more climbs today so it is a steady downhill all the way into Turin.
03:09 PM BST
50km to go
03:06 PM BST
52km to go
Grelllier has hit the Côte de Sommariva Perno, which is 3.1km in length. The peloton are a further 50 seconds back.
03:01 PM BST
56km to go
Grellier now has a 47 second advantage over the peloton but there is absolutely no panic. We have another category four climb to come up the Côte de Sommariva Perno, which is in a few kilometres time.
02:55 PM BST
60km to go
Grellier’s lead is now out to over 30 seconds as the peloton seem satisfied to allow a sole rider to be out in front for the time being.
One man who could be in contention for the stage win today is Wout van Aert. He left the Tour last year ahead of stage 18 as his wife was about to give birth. He has won nine stages at the Tour and might be looking to make it ten today in Turin.
02:49 PM BST
66km to go
We have a rider off the front as Fabien Grellier (TotalEnergies) attacks! He nearly makes a mess of one corner as he goes in a little deep but he is ok.
02:48 PM BST
67km to go
Let us hear from Jasper Philipsen, who is one of the main favourites for today’s stage and won four stages last year at the Tour:
“Out of cycling we are just normal humans, but in the race we do everything to get a stage win”
Daniel asked Jasper Philipsen about his quotes in the media about ‘trying to be a nice guy, but it’s difficult at the Tour’ and his admiration for Mark Cavendish 🇧🇪🚀#TDF2024 pic.twitter.com/jiETxVxwdR
— ITV Cycling (@itvcycling) July 1, 2024
02:38 PM BST
74km to go
The pace up the Côte de Barbaresco is fairly steady and there is just one point available in the king of the mountains classification (polka dot jersey). The man who holds the green and polka dot jerseys (Uno-X Mobility), Jonas Abrahamsen, tries to go for the one point but Red-Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe’s Matteo Sobrero beats him to it. He is from Alba so these are home roads for him and his family and friends were on the climb to cheer him on.
02:33 PM BST
76km to go
We have just begun the short climb up the Côte de Barbaresco.
02:29 PM BST
79km to go
We are approaching the category four climb up the Côte de Barbaresco, which is a short 1.5km climb with a gradient of 6.5%. There should not be any trouble for any of the sprinters but after two tough days, you never know.
02:24 PM BST
83km to go
Cavendish has made his way back into the peloton after his double wheel change. He did not need to use too much energy to get back as the peloton is taking it easy at the moment.
02:16 PM BST
88km to go
Ahead of the stage, Mark Cavendish spoke about the difficulty of the first two days and how it would have taken a lot out of everyone, so it will be intriguing to see how the sprinters’ bodies are feeling. He also mentioned that they had to wake up at ten past six this morning as they had to travel 180km for the start. Not an ideal start to the day for the riders! He has just had a change of wheels and, because the pace in the peloton is so steady, the wheel changes were done very calmly.
02:06 PM BST
95km to go
For Alpecin-Deceuninck, they will be hoping that Mathieu van der Poel can give a great leadout at the finish to Jasper Philipsen. van der Poel won the elite men’s road race at the 2023 UCI Road World Championships and led out Philipsen brilliantly last year as Philipsen won four stages.
01:59 PM BST
100km to go
01:50 PM BST
105km to go
There is a chance of rain on today’s stage which could make the finish interesting if it comes. The riders will be relieved after two hot days that it is slightly cooler today.
01:44 PM BST
110km to go
Here is the current points classification after the intermediate sprint in Alexandrie:
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Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility), 76 pts
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Kevin Vauquelin (Arkea-B&B Hotels), 60 pts
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Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), 41 pts
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Quentin Pacher (Groupama-FDJ), 35 pts
01:35 PM BST
115km to go
Here is Visma-Lease a Bike’s Matteo Jorgenson getting a little medical attention with the pace steady. The American made the move from Movistar to Visma-Lease a Bike for this season and he has had a strong year so far. He won Paris-Nice and also nearly won the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he nearly pipped Primoz Roglic to the overall victory.
01:28 PM BST
120km to go
Mark Cavendish is back to try and “finish the most incredible dream” with that 35th stage victory. He said ahead of last year’s Tour that it would be his last before retirement but after an innocuous crash on stage eight last year to Limoges where he broke his collarbone, he is back. He was so close to winning stave seven into Bordeaux, where he won in 2010. He thought he was going to win but he was pipped by Jasper Philipsen. He could not change gears, an issue he said had never happened to him before, and he believed he would have won the stage without the issue.
If you have been watching the Netflix series ‘Tour de France: Unchained’, you will have heard Cav talking about how being a good sprinter is different to being a good sprinter at the Tour de France. It is more than just going quickly on the pedals.
01:17 PM BST
127km to go
As well as the form of the sprinters themselves, the finish will also be shaped by the leadouts the sprinters get. Mark Cavendish will have a strong leadout available to him for the sprints at the Tour this year. He has been reunited with Michael Morkov, regarded as one of the best leadout men in the world, who joined Astana Qazaqstan this season from Soudal-Quick Step. Former Quick Step teammate Davide Ballerini will also form part of Cavendish’s leadout. Alpecin-Deceuninck’s Jasper Philipsen, who took second over the line at the intermediate sprint, won four stages last year at the Tour and will be piloted to the line by Mathieu van der Poel. So today it will not only be a battle between Cavendish and Philipsen, but also Morkov and van der Poel.
01:04 PM BST
136km to go
As everyone has taken the stage steadily so far, plenty of fresh legs for the leadouts. Unsurprisingly Alpecin-Deceuninck are right out at the front but it is Lidl-Trek’s Mads Pedersen who takes the 20 points on the line in the points classification. Jasper Philipsen was quite far back as his teammates were looking around and comes across in second.
01:01 PM BST
138km to go
Here comes the intermediate sprint in Alexandrie. Who will go for it to gain points in the contest for the green jersey (points classification) and who might save their legs for the finish? The pace is stepping up and the leadouts begin.
12:55 PM BST
142km to go
Spoke to Mark Renshaw, Cavendish’s old leadout man and now DS, outside the Astana bus this morning. He was saying there are a lot of sprint teams at this Tour but probably not many who can match Astana’s depth in terms of leadout. That really is Cav’s trump card. Morkov especially. Renshaw said Cavendish was ready. Nervous, yes, but he has been here so many times. Can he get it done? It’s going to be fascinating watching things unfold in Turin later on.
12:46 PM BST
147km to go
We have an intermediate sprint coming up in just 10km’s time in Alexandrie so a chance for the sprinters to not only get some points in the green jersey contest but also to test their legs ahead of the sprint in Turin at the finish.
12:43 PM BST
150km to go
One of the sprinters who could be in contention today is Fabio Jakobsen, who switched in the off-season from Soudal Quick-Step to Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL. He did not complete the 2023 Tour after a crash on stage four and he abandoned ahead of stage 12. Jakobsen has only won one stage at the Tour to date, which came in 2022. Will he be able to make it two today?
12:33 PM BST
158km to go
Alpecin-Deceuninck are currently at the front of the peloton and one of Cavendish’s main rivals today for the stage victory will be Jasper Philipsen, who won two stages at the Tour in 2022 and four last year. On his way to four stage wins last year, he certainly caused some drama as he avoided relegation for a potential squeeze on Wout van Aert on stage three into Bayonne. On stage seven into Bordeaux Philipsen pipped Cavendish after the Manx missile was stuck in gear. His win was challenged for swerving in the closing stages but his win was upheld. Philipsen was then left disappointed on the final stage in Paris, where he won in 2022 but was beaten by Bora-Hansgrohe’s Jordi Meeus in a photo finish.
We have just had a short climb up the category four climb of Côte de Tortone – Fausto Coppi but there have been no attacks. Uno-X Mobility’s Jonas Abrahamsen, who is currently in the green and polka-dot jerseys, takes the one king of the mountain point available.
12:22 PM BST
164km to go
Today could be the day that we see Mark Cavendish win his 35th stage at the Tour de France. Let us hear from Cav now, who was speaking to ITV before the start of the stage:
“I’ve got the best group of guys for this final and hopefully we can deliver”
Mark Cavendish was tired but confident at the start this morning 🇮🇲🚀#TDF2024 pic.twitter.com/bN9m9n6lap
— ITV Cycling (@itvcycling) July 1, 2024
12:16 PM BST
168 km to go
It has been a very sedate start to stage three, perhaps in part due to the difficulty of the first two stages and that it is almost certain to be a sprint finish. The average speed is just under 39km/h.
12:13 PM BST
Stage three profile
12:07 PM BST
Is today the day for number 35?
Welcome to coverage of stage three at the 2024 Tour de France. Yesterday was a stage for the breakaway as Arkea-B&B Hotels’s Kevin Vauquelin won stage two into Bologna. That was his first Grand Tour victory and means the 2024 Tour has begun with back-to-back French victories after Romain Bardet’s (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) victory in Rimini on stage one on Saturday.
Over the final climb, Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) attacked and it was only defending champion Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) who stayed with him. Despite suffering a collapsed lung and fractured ribs and collarbones just a few months ago, Vingegaard showed great form in his quest to become a three-time winner at the Tour and Pogacar may have been a little surprised with that considering how little time in the saddle Vingegaard has had in recent months.
The rest of the GC contenders that includes the likes of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step) managed to catch up just before the finish but Pogacar now holds the yellow jersey, taking it from Bardet. Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe’s Primoz Roglic was arguably the biggest loser of the day, dropping 21 seconds to the likes of Pogacar and Vingegaard.
After two hilly days, stage three represents the first chance for the sprinters in this year’s Tour. The stage goes from Plaisance to Turin over the course of 230.8km. Could today be the day where Mark Cavendish seals his 35th stage win? He thought he had it last year in Bordeaux, only to get stuck in gear and be pipped by Jasper Philipsen. Last year was supposed to be Cavendish’s last before retirement, but a crash on stage eight means he is back this year to break his share of the record with the great Eddy Merckx. His leadout now includes the Dane Michael Morkov, who was a key part of Cavendish’s success in winning four stages at the 2021 Tour de France and has moved across from Soudal-Quick Step to Astana Qazaqstan.
With today the first opportunity for the sprinters, it is set to be one hell of a tussle for the stage victory. Alpecin-Deceuninck’s Philipsen won four stages at the Tour last year and will be gunning for this one today with the help of Mathieu van der Poel. Will Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) fancy this one? You would imagine so. We may also see the likes of Fabio Jakobsen (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) and Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-Alula) in contention.
Strap yourselves for a gripping ride into Turin.
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