Stage 4

The road

At the start

The cobbles counted, now Champagne

Cancellara has the jersey back, twenty-three seconds up on Geraint Thomas and thirty-nine on the world champion Cadel Evans, with Andy Schleck sixth at 1:09 — and without his brother, who crashed out on the pavé. Today is the easiest day on the route: 153 kilometres into Champagne to Reims, nothing on it to trouble a sprinter, and barely enough road for a breakaway to be worth the effort.

How it was won

1. 113 km to go

   Lampre come forward

   The five-man break has been dead for an hour and with thirteen kilometres left Lampre-Farnese Vini move up, Bole and Hondo drilling a lead-out for a 36-year-old who won nothing here for six years.

2. 2At the line

   Ale-Jet, again

   Hondo hits out early and disrupts the yellow train at the flamme rouge; Renshaw restores order with Hushovd on Cavendish's wheel at 200 metres. Then Petacchi goes long from behind them all and wins by half a bike length in Reims.

The result