Greipel Wins Tour De France Stage Six

Last updated : 10 July 2014 By Covsupport News Service

Lotto's Andrei Greipel has won the sixth stage of the Tour De France.

There were no further withdrawals following Chris Froome's exit on stage five and the race set off from Arras heading on a 194km stage to Reims, which hosts an impressive 120kms of cellars for the city's Champagne Houses.

Vincenzo Nibali has put in a brilliant ride to keep himself in the leaders jersey, as did Peter Sagan who kept his lead in the points competition.

Jerome Pineau (IAM), Tom Leezer (Belkin), Luis Mate Mardones (Cofidis) and Arnaud Gerard (Bretagne) were the first to attack and with 164kms left, they were 4.15 clear.

That had dropped to 3.10 with 125kms remaining on a windy day as the Tour paid a tribute to those who died in the Great War one hundred years ago.

Leezer took the sprint points as the rain came down as Xabier Zando of Team Sky and Egor Silin of Katusha abandoned due to a collarbone injury, following a crash which also saw Marcus Burghardt, Johan Van Summeren and Leo König go down.

Mate took the second climb as the gap went over to a minute with thirty kilometres to go. Ten kilometres later and Pineau and Mate jumped away as the peloton who breezed into view.

Pineau was caught with 15.1kms to go but Mate, stayed away with a 15 second lead but was caught as the Omega Pharma Quick Step led peloton surged past.

Into Reims and Peter Sagan was on the front with 1.4kms left. Kittel suffered a problem with a bike.

Under the flam rouge, Michael Kwiatkoswki jumped away but was caught a hundred metres or so to the line. Kevin Razza passed him but round them all came Lotto's Andrei Greipel to win in 4.11.32 ahead of Kristoff and Sam Domoulin, followed by Sagan, B Feillu , Veelers,  Coquard, Vanmarcke and Chavanel.

Nibali retains his leader's jersey.