MONT VENTOUX, France — Fans celebrating Bastille Day created dramas at the Tour de France, causing a crash involving race leader Chris Froome that ensured it wasn’t until hours after the 12th stage concluded that organizers decided the British rider could keep the yellow jersey.
“Mont Ventoux always throws up something different and today was no exception,” Froome said. “You always have to expect the unexpected at the Tour.”
The problems at cycling’s most prestigious race were overshadowed in France hours later by the apparent terrorist attack in the resort city of Nice.
It was unclear immediately if tour organizers planned any changes to the race in the wake of the attack, which occurred at least a three-hour drive from the recently-finished stage.
The race’s first time trial comes Friday with a hilly 23-mile leg from Bourg-Saint-Andeol to La Caverne du Pont-D’Arc.
In Thursday’s racing drama, Richie Porte crashed headfirst into a motorbike carrying a TV camera, and Froome, who was right behind his former teammate, also hit the pavement in the final kilometer on the wind-shortened climb up legendary Mont Ventoux.
“The crowd was just all on the road, and a motorbike stopped right in front of us and we had nowhere to go,” Porte said. “The next minute, I went straight over the top of the motorbike. It was just a mess.”
The wind prevented organizers from erecting the barriers used at the end of most stages, Tour director Christian Prudhomme explained.
“We took an exceptional decision because of this exceptional situation, an incident that might have never happened before in 100 years,” Prudhomme said. “There will be an investigation to find out why the TV motorbike was blocked and the riders fell.”
After the crash, Froome threw his mangled bike aside and began running up the road. He eventually was given a small yellow race assistance bike before his team car was finally able to provide him with a suitable substitute.
All of Froome’s main rivals crossed ahead of him, and Froome shook his head in disbelief when he finally reached the finish.
“It’s really unfortunate what happened in the last couple of kilometers,” Froome said, “but ultimately common sense has prevailed and the commissaires have come to the right decision, so I would like to thank them for that.”
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