When Peter Sagan saw his attack on stage three thwarted, it would have been obvious to those who observe professional cycling closely that the Slovak would not wait long before trying again.
A day later, and the Tourminator renewed his bid for victory, this time with Giro d’Italia champion, Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), and Omega Pharma-Quickstep’s new signing, Rigoberto Uran, for company.
When the road threatened (literally) to derail his progress, Sagan responded with a bunny hop onto the pavement to continue his momentum, while Nibali and Uran lost ground by following the longer way around a traffic island.
Having shed Nibali, Sagan was left only with Uran for company and a sprint finish to decide matters; perhaps only Uran’s mother would have backed the Colombian.
Photographer Bruno Bade was on hand to capture the action, and we bring you his best pictures of the stage with the kind permission of race organisers, the ASO.
