Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe won the first stage of the Tour de France, a 197.8-km from Brest, to take the inaugural leader’s yellow jersey on Saturday.
The world champion burst away from the main pack with 2.3-km left of a brutal climb up to the Cote de la Fosse aux Loups, and none of his rivals could match his power.
Australian Michael Matthews took second place, with Slovenian Primoz Roglic coming home third.
The stage was marred by two massive crashes that brought down numerous riders.
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