Marcello Pavarin takes mountain jersey, and three riders crash.

During stage 1 of the Tour Down Under, the temperature was over 40 degrees and the first break-away of the day lasted until 15km before the finish line. Four riders were in the break, among them was Pavarin of Vacansoleil-DCM who took the mountain jersey.

After the break-away riders were caught up, a bunch sprint was imminent. However, due to crashes, there was no opportunity for Michel Cornelisse's team to sprint. Romain Feillu crashed at the beginning of the race whilst in the First echelon: “I was at the back of that group and tried to eat something when I got to break and I suddenly crashed. I now have a headache but will be ok for tomorrow.”

The other Vacansoleil-DCM sprinter also crashed. With one kilometre to go Kenny van Hummel was dropped off by team mate Wouter Mol in the wheel of Alessandro Petacchi. Van Hummel crashed a few seconds after that. It was his second crash in three days: “We were going approximately 60km an hour and I saw riders coming from left to right. I was sitting in the wheel of Petacchi and had nowhere to go. Despite the crash I am confident I am fit. If the injuries are not too bad I will be able to compete in front later in the week. I 'm happy I've found the pace with my new team mates.”

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