Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing) claimed the first yellow jersey of the 2015 Tour de France after blitzing the opening time trial stage in Utrecht, the Netherlands, on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Australian former Hour Record holder was the only rider to dip under the 15-minute mark on the fast 13.8-kilometre course run under clear skies and hot conditions.
Pre-stage favourites Tony Martin (Etixx-QuickStep) and Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing) could not beat Dennis's mark, placing second and third at five and six seconds respectively.
Dennis's ride was enough to set a new record for the fastest Tour de France time trial ever completed, averaging 55.446kmh and beating Chris Boardman's 1994 mark.
>>> Rohan Dennis beats Boardman’s Tour de France time trial speed record
Given the short course, the time differences between the main overall race contenders were kept relatively small. Tejay Van Garderen (BMC) fared best, finishing one second ahead of defending Tour champion Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), eight seconds in front of Chris Froome (Sky), 16 ahead of Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) and 19 better than Nairo Quintana (Movistar).
Top British finisher was Steve Cummings (MTN-Qhubeka), who put in a solid ride to finish in 10th place and 32 seconds behind Dennis. Cummings's MTN-Qhubeka team will be pleased with that result on their Tour de France debut.
British national champion Alex Dowsett (Movistar) finished the stage in 13th position, saying that he fell short of his expectations: "Disappointed, but not surprising," he said. "It was really hard, 56kph into headwinds. A level short for me. I struggled a bit."
On Sunday, the riders will tackle the first mass start stage of the 2015 Tour de France, starting from Utrecht and travelling 166 flat kilometres to Zeeland. It should be the first chance for the sprinters to stake their claim on the race.
Results
Tour de France 2015, stage one: Utrecht to Utrecht, 13.8km individual time trial
1. Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing in 14-56
2. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx-QuickStep at 5 secs
3. Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Trek Factory Racing at 6 secs
4. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Giant-Alpecin at 8 secs
5. Jos van Emden (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo at 15 secs
6. Jonathan Castroviejo (Spa) Movistar at 23 secs
7. Matthias Brändle (Aut) IAM Cycling at 23 secs
8. Adriano Malori (Ita) Movistar at 29 secs
9. Wilco Kelderman (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo at 30 secs
10. Steve Cummings (GBr) MTN-Qhubeka at 32 secs
Other
12. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky at 33 secs
13. Alex Dowsett (GBr) Movistar at 36 secs
17. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Eixx-QuickStep at 40 secs
18. Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ at 41 secs
20. Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing at 42 secs
22. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana at 43 secs
33. Simon Yates (GBr) Orica-GreenEdge at 46 secs
39. Chris Froome (GBr) Team Sky at 50 secs
46. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo at 58 secs
57. Narito Quintana (Col) Movistar at 1-01
Overall classification after stage one
1. Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing in 14-56
2. Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx-QuickStep at 5 secs
3. Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Trek Factory Racing at 6 secs
4. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Giant-Alpecin at 8 secs
5. Jos van Emden (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo at 15 secs
6. Jonathan Castroviejo (Spa) Movistar at 23 secs
7. Matthias Brändle (Aut) IAM Cycling at 23 secs
8. Adriano Malori (Ita) Movistar at 29 secs
9. Wilco Kelderman (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo at 30 secs
10. Steve Cummings (GBr) MTN-Qhubeka at 32 secs
Other
12. Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky at 33 secs
13. Alex Dowsett (GBr) Movistar at 36 secs
17. Rigoberto Uran (Col) Eixx-QuickStep at 40 secs
18. Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ at 41 secs
20. Tejay van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing at 42 secs
22. Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana at 43 secs
33. Simon Yates (GBr) Orica-GreenEdge at 46 secs
39. Chris Froome (GBr) Team Sky at 50 secs
46. Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo at 58 secs
Video: Tour de France Grand Depart
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