Nibali and Quintana lose time as Greipel wins Tour de France stage two

Strong wind at the Tour de France sees Nairo Quintana and Vincenzo Nibali lose over a minute to their rivals as Andre Greipel wins stage two

Andre Greipel wins stage two of the 2015 Tour de France

(Image credit: Watson)

Tour de France favourites Nairo Quintana and Vincenzo Nibali suffered an early blow to their general classification hopes, losing over a minute to Chris Froome and Alberto Contador on a windy stage in the Netherlands.

Racing in close proximity to the North Sea for much of the stage, strong winds caused several splits in the peloton, leaving Nibali, Quintana, Thibaut Pinot and other contenders struggling to catch up as Andre Greipel took the stage.

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Stuart Clarke is a News Associates trained journalist who has worked for the likes of the British Olympic Associate, British Rowing and the England and Wales Cricket Board, and of course Cycling Weekly. His work at Cycling Weekly has focused upon professional racing, following the World Tour races and its characters.