Alberto Contador crashed twice during today's fifth stage of the Tour de France, held between Carhaix and Cap Fréhel. The Spaniard was able to continue without suffering major injuries and did not lose any time, unlike in stage one. Contador was less concerned about his minor bruises, but voiced his dissatisfaction about the crash of Saxo Bank teammate Nicki Sørensen. The Danish rider was brought down by a photographer's motorbike driver.
Given the circumstances, Contador was happy by finishing with the bunch. "I've saved the day without serious problems and my teammates have done an excellent job," he said. Like everyone else, Contador tried to stay reasonably close to the front without having to fight the wind. "The first fall happened when I was riding more or less in twentieth position." The pace had picked up for a reason. "It happened right in front of me, before the intermediate sprint."
The spill wasn't too bad, despite the high pace at the time. "I got up right away, and my brakes were fine. But my derailleur or something wasn't right." He went to change his bike, a maneuver with consequences. "My chain jumped and I crashed again." Contador overcame that problem, too. "In the end, what matters is rising, but the hits are not good because the body suffers."
Contador was less happy about Sørensen's crash. "I'll give my thanks to that photographer who brought down my teammate," Contador said sarcastically. "I don't know how you can stay in the race after a coup like that." Contador does not need to worry, the photographer's driver and his bike has been expelled from the race.
The incident happened on the right hand side of the road. "I was riding safely on the side of the road, when a motor bike knocked me off my bike," Sørensen said after the race. "He was going so close that my bike was caught by the motorbike and dragged with it for over 200 meters!" Sørensen went down hard but like Contador is ok. "Luckily, I am able to ride again tomorrow," he said.
Contador was also tense during the race after crash number two. "At that moment I was really annoyed, because I had just avoided another crash, some two kilometers earlier," the Spaniard explained. It was the one that brought down Robert Gesink. "It was incredibly stressful."
Fortunately for the Tour favorite, he suffered no major consequences. "My right side from the shoulder to the knee is affected, but it is nothing serious." He added that he had to check again once he had cooled down. Despite knowing what to do going into the stage, Contador was not able to prevent all the mishaps. "Today I knew it was a very important day and to be alert at all times, because in these stages you can lose the Tour. It may be more dangerous than a day in the mountains. "