Steegmans misses stage win, and Boonen touch

CHATEAUROUX, France (AFP) — Quick Step sprinter Gert Steegmans admitted the absence of teammate Tom Boonen is adding to his woes on what he labelled a "strange" Tour de France.

Steegmans' plan to battle to his second career win on the race were ended by a tactical error near the end of the 232km stage which was won by British sprint sensation Mark Cavendish.

Cavendish, who hails from the Isle of Man, grabbed his maiden Tour win after outgunning some of the fastest men in the pack after his Columbia team had set up a textbook 'train' to help lead him to the line.

Steegmans could only finish 12th, having blown all his hopes of grabbing his team's first stage win this year due to a tactical error.

"I'm a little bit disappointed because I had really good legs," Steegmans told AFP, claiming that one of his rivals had ...