The organizers of the Tour de France came up with something special at the end of the season and invited the stars of the peloton to Japan specifically to bring the sport closer to the fans in Saitama. But not only they should get an impressive show. On the eve of the race, a number of riders were treated to the art of sumo at a local dojo.
The earthquake, which had a magnitude of 7,5 and woke the drivers from their sleep after midnight, was certainly far less pleasant. However, the effects of the earthquake were limited.
The event began with a sprint race, in which a 2,6-kilometer course through downtown Saitama had to be completed six times. In front of a large number of spectators, two Japanese drivers broke away from the field relatively early. Yasuhara Nakajima (Aisan) finally had the better end for himself and prevailed against Kohei Uchima (Nippo-De Rosa) in the final sprint. French champion Artur Vichot (FDJ.fr) took third place.
The stars around Chris Froome (Sky), dressed in yellow, initially held back elegantly. In the main race, however, they showed why the organizers had invited them to Japan. First of all, the Japanese Fumiyuki Beppu determined what happened in his last race for Orica-GreenEdge. He stayed in front of the field for quite a while, to the delight of the home fans. However, when Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) countered, it was all over for the Japanese. The decisive group formed two laps before the end. Froome was initially able to break away from the field with Peter Sagan (Cannondale) and World Champion Rui Costa (Movistar) before shaking off his two companions on the final lap. In the sprint for second place, Sagan had little trouble with Costa.
//Result
1. Chris Froome (Sky)
2. Peter Sagan (Cannondale)
3. Rui Costa (Movistar)