The 104th edition of Tour de France only began on Saturday and already a massive crash has occurred.

While trying to defend his title, Chris Froome and Team Sky became entangled along with other riders when Katusha’s Reto Hollenstein came down with 22 kilometres to go to the end of Stage 2, reports Cycling News.

Froome was near the front, attempting to keep out of trouble, but when the Katusha rider slipped on the wet parcours Froome was left with no where to go. He was the first Team Sky rider to hit the deck, but Michal Kwiatkowski, Luke Rowe and Christian Knees were also left needing treatment.

The crash happened on the wet roads of Liège, Belgium, “at the front of the peloton on the exit from a roundabout shortly before the final short climb of the stage,” reports The Guardian.

At least 25 cyclists were involved in the mess.

Halting Froome and co.’s near-perfect start to this year’s race, check the first video below for the crash and the second one for a full view of the aftermath:

Eina.

According to Cycling News:

Froome wasn’t the only GC contender left to pick himself up off the tarmac, with AG2R’s Romain Bardet and BMC Racing’s Richie Porte also forced to follow suit and chase back to the bunch.

Geraint Thomas, Froome’s teammate and the race leader, was also involved in the fall but quickly remounted and avoided a long chase with Froome.

Thomas retained his five-second GC lead over Stefan Küng (BMC Racing), although stage winner Marcel Kittel (Quick-Step Floors) moved to within six seconds of the yellow jersey.

Froome eventually crossed the finish line in 37th place.

Here’s a summary of Stage 2, just to get you up to speed before today’s stage begins:

So, what can you expect today? Here’s info on Stage 3, from The Guardian:

Monday’s stage offers similar stresses but in a different context. The stage southwards runs initially through small towns familiar from the Liège-Bastogne-Liège classic, then through Luxembourg before finally entering France for an uphill finish on Côte des Religieuses, close to the Vauban citadel at Longwy.

At 212,5 km, anything could happen – stay tuned.

[source:heraldsun]