Tour de France:‘A number of falls with broken bones’ - Jens Voigt assess 'dramatic' second stage course

Jens Voigt has expressed concern about the second stage course at the Tour de France, with the bridge over the Great Belt in particular causing a lot of discussion. The former German cyclist believes that the conditions could cause problems for some of the current favourites, and could re-shape the start of the tour.

Ad/> Voigt expects a lot of drama, but also thinks the course at the second stage is borderline dangerous. Tour de France'The major difference' — Wiggins on big change which makes Ganna favourite for stage 17 HOURS AGO “The course already zigzags along the coast before the final, so no matter where the wind comes from that day, there will be sections with edge wind situations,” he told Eurosport Germany.

“Almost exactly 20 kilometres before the finish line, it's on to the bridge over the Great Belt — dead straight out onto the open water. The windbreak wall on the bridge is only about 1.5 metres high, so it doesn't completely protect the drivers.

“Depending on the wind direction, the Danish safety authorities will decide whether to drive on the right or left of the two lanes: This way, a driver caught in the wind will at least not end up in the water, but in the oncoming lane.” ‘Rider off the side’ — Hajkova falls off starting podium at Giro Donne 'The major difference' — Wiggins on big change which makes Ganna favourite for stage 1 ‘Never experienced an atmosphere quite like this’ – Froome relishing Tour de France The 50-year-old German record starter of the Tour of France has even suggested there could be “broken bones” due to the nature of the course. “The tour boss actually wanted the finish line to be on the bridge, but that's not possible with all the trucks and the podium, he said.