‘Wonderful day’ for Marianne Vos as she wins Stage 2 of women’s Tour de France

PROVINS, France: Dutch rider Marianne Vos took over the yellow jersey in the women’s Tour de France with victory in a three-way sprint to win the second stage from Meaux to Provins on Monday.

Team Jumbo-Visma’s Vos edged out Silvia Persico and Katarzyna Niewiadoma to claim the jersey from compatriot Lorena Wiebes who finished 29 seconds behind in sixth place.

“It’s not revenge, it’s an absolutely wonderful day,” said Vos who finished second behind Wiebes in Sunday’s opening stage on the Champs-Elysees.

Trek-Segafredo’s Elisa Longo Borghini, winner of Paris-Roubaix and a definite contender for the yellow jersey in France, finished fourth in the stage, two seconds back.

Less fortunate was her Italian compatriot Marta Cavalli, winner of this year of the Amstel Gold and the Fleche-Wallonne and a potential winner of the overall title here.

The 24-year-old was taken to hospital after suffering a head injury in one of three nasty crashes in a last 30 kilometers where the crosswinds and gusts of up to 45 km/h made the riders jumpy about the prospect of a break in the peloton.

“We don’t have much news from Marta, she is suffering from a head injury,” said team manager Stephen Delcourt on arrival in Provins.

“We remain in contact with the doctor. She has been sent to the hospital to carry out a CT scan as a priority.”

The FDJ-Suez-Futuroscope rider was already on the ground when she was hit by Australian champion Nicole Frain who came flying through without braking.

Cavalli, who was runner-up on this year’s Giro d’Italia, climbed back on her bike but failed to finish the stage with the team pulling her out and sending her to hospital.

“She suffered a big shock. We didn’t want to take any risks,” said Delcourt.

“She