PARIS (Reuters) -The spectator who sent cyclist Tony Martin and, consequently, a large part of the Tour de France peloton, crashing in the opening stage of the race, has been arrested, BFM television reported on Wednesday, citing police sources.
BFM added that the spectator had been taken in custody in Brittany, the northwest French region where the Tour de France, the world’s biggest cycling event, held its first four stages.
On Saturday, Martin was sent tumbling when he rode straight into a cardboard sign being held out by a fan looking the other way at a television camera, creating chaos with 47 kilometres left of the stage.
Another huge pile-up occurred in a nervy finale on narrow roads on Monday, leading the Tour de France riders to put their collective foot down one kilometre into the fourth stage on Tuesday – literally – bringing the race to a halt for about a minute in a silent protest for safer racing conditions after the crashes.
This Wednesday’s fifth stage is a 27.2-km individual time trial from Change to Laval, and all eyes will be on the overall contenders.
(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Benoit Van Overstraeten)
