At the end of the first stage of the Tour de Romandie, Liberty Seguros' Angel Vicioso crashed into Fassa Bortolo's Fabio Baldato, who was leading out the sprint for Alessandro Petacchi. Vicioso could not avoid the Italian, who swerved to the left after giving Petacchi his final lift to stage victory. The Spanish rider was also sprinting hard behind Petacchi and limited to the side by the Belgian Tom Steels, who later got second.
Vicioso managed not to crash, but his wheels were damaged and he finished in 20th position. Tomorrow's stage of the Tour de Romandie will be less prone to a bunch finish, as the peloton will have to tackle three climbs on the course from Fleurier to Fleurier, totaling 171,9 km. "The race will be difficult to control on this parcours," Liberty Seguros' directeur sportif Manolo Saiz said.
