BASTIA, France — The Tour de France’s first visit to Corsica started uneventfully Saturday, as riders rode calmly out of a picture-perfect harbor town under sunny skies.
But as the peloton arrived in Bastia nearly five hours later, the race became unglued: a team bus stuck at the finish line threatened the opening stage’s conclusion, then a massive crash involving contenders like Alberto Contador spoiled a much-anticipated sprint finish.
Out of the chaos, an up-and-coming sprinter named Marcel Kittel of Germany became the surprise winner of Stage 1.
Most expected the final yards of the 132-mile to feature the first of many battles in this Tour between Peter Sagan of Cannondale, last year’s green jersey winner as the best sprinter, and Mark Cavendish of Omega Pharma-Quick Step.
But they and André Greipel of Lotto-Belisol were caught up in a crash about two and a half miles from the finish, leaving Kittel, 25, and his Argos-Shimano teammates to take control.
“It’s unbelievable,” he said. “I feel like I have gold on my shoulders.”
He might have had Teflon on them during the stage. The crash that caught his sprint rivals also took down a number of general classification contenders, including Tejay van Garderen and Contador.
Contador and his SaxoBank team were seen soft-pedaling to the finish and French television reported that he might have broken his collarbone.
“I feel O.K., but we’ll see,” Contador said. “The Tour is the Tour. You never know what’s going to happen.”
Others were not as fortunate. Tony Martin, Cavendish’s teammate, was said to have a broken shoulder and was seen being taken off his team bus by a stretcher after the stage.
The Tour’s adventure in Corsica continues Sunday with a 96.9-mile stage from Bastia to Ajaccio.
Opening Sprint on Corsica Culminates in Chaotic Finish In Tour de France’s First Stage
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