Andre Greipel edged out Alessandro Petacchi in a photo finish to win stage one of the Tour Down Under. Here’s how it happened…
Race report – Tour Down Under stage one: Greipel wins in photo finish
After a three-month break the WorldTour season kicked off with a 149km stage from Prospect to Clare in South Australia
Temperatures approaching 40c and strong winds made for a tough day in the saddle
Eduard Vorganov, Martin Kohler, Marcello Pavarin and Dennis Rohan formed the day’s break; the group gained a lead of more than 11 minutes by the midway point but were reeled in as the sprinters’ teams took hold of the race
Greipel was unhappy with Petacchi’s line in the bunch sprint, which was contested by a select group after a crash in the final kilometre which left Frédéric Guesdon, Jürgen Roelandts and Matteo Montaguti hospitalised
Greipel’s victory was confirmed after a photo finish. The German starts the 2012 season in red-hot form after previously winning the Tour Down Under’s pre-race criterium in Sunday
Petacchi’s Lampre-ISD squad compare notes after being edged out in the bunch gallop
This could be a familiar sight in 2012. RCUK columnist Matt Brammeier (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) identified Greipel as Mark Cavendish’s biggest rival this season
Greipel’s earned a 10 second time bonus to wear the ochre leader’s jersey
