Marcel Kittel claimed victory in the fourth stage of the Tour de France from Le Touquet-Paris-Plage to Lille Metropole.
Chris Froome fell early on but recovered to finish among the peloton as Kittel earned his third stage win.
The British rider suffered a wrist injury and had to wear a splint for the rest of the race.
Giant-Shimano rider Kittel pipped Norway’s Alexander Kristoff in a sprint finish, but Italy’s Vincenzo Nibali retains a two-second overall race lead.
Reacting to Froome’s fall, Team Sky sports director Nicolas Portal said: “We were scared out of our wits, like everyone else, but after talking with him, everything seems okay.”
Frenchman Arnaud Demare was third, with Slovakia’s Peter Sagan – who retained the green jersey – recovering from a fall with 8km left to take fourth.
Froome began the day in fifth overall, but fell just six kilometres into the first stage on French soil after a touch of wheels in the peloton. – BBC Sport
View the results here.
