I've never been great at playing Name That Tune but I have a knack for playing Name That Rider. Ahead of the stage start, riders warmed up and tested the course one final time but there was no rhyme or reason as to the order. How many of these riders can you name?
Possibly the most over asked question lately has been, “What do you think about this heat? One rider who probably didn't mind was Daniel Teklehaimanot. The Eritrean time trial champion was the first rider to baptize the 13.8 kilometer course, thereby starting stage 1 of the 102nd Tour de France.
While Jack Bauer rode a respectable TT, the kiwi's strengths lie in fulfilling his domestique duties.
Laurent Didier.
The first Dutch rider to cross the finish line, Jos Van Emden, received huge cheers and set the early best time.
Australia's Luke Durbridge, a former national TT champion, couldn't top Van Emden.
Days like today were just about finishing and not about expending too much energy for sprinters like Mark Cavendish.
Svein Tuft won the Canadian road race and time trial championships in 2014 but did not defend either title this season.
A former swimmer who kept his cycling habit from his swim coach, Rohan Dennis's career has suddenly exploded since he left Garmin in the middle of the 2014 season in order to focus on improving his TT skills with BMC. He helped the team win its first ever TTT world championships, was second in this season's Australian TT championships, won the GC in the Tour Down Under, and held the Hour World Record for a time. He made no secret of targeting the Tour's opening TT but knew he'd face stiff competition from the likes of Alex Dowsett, Tony Martin, Fabian Cancellara, and Dutch favorite Tom Dumoulin for starters. After nearly half an hour in the hot seat, Van Emden was bumped by Dennis who bested his time by 15 seconds.
The next rider to finish was Spanish TT champion, Jonathan Castroviejo, who fell short of Dennis by 23 seconds.
It will be interesting to watch Richie Porte over the next 3 weeks. The Aussie had a tremendous start to his season, winning the ntiinak TT championship, Paris-Nice, Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, and Giro deal Trentino-Melinda. Since late April, he has struggled to produce any results, having slowly come apart at the seams during the Giro d'Italia as Sky's leader. He will no doubt be disappointed with his 65th place ride today but can take comfort in knowing his sole task until Paris is to look after Chris Froome.
Wilco Kelderman, a talented young Dutch rider with GC potential, ultimately slotted in 9th place today, a respectable 30 seconds back.
Colombian TT champion Rigoberto Uran also had a lackluster Giro and, like Porte, is at the Tour to support his team leader.
While a clear GC favorite, Nairo Quintana's time trialing typically leaves something to be desired. The Colombian now sits in 57th place, 1:01 down.
Nathan Haas.
Ryder Hesjedal placed the highest of Cannondale Garmin's 3 leaders. Unfortunately that leaves him 1:15 behind and in 87th place.
South African TT champion Daryl Impey.
Ending up in 16th place, Dutch rider Dylan Van Baarle was Cannondale Garmin's highest ranked rider.
Dan Martin.
Bauke Mollema finished just ahead of his compatriot in 14th place.
Grabbing the final spot in the TT World Championships podium in 2014, Tom Dumoulin was the clear favorite for the stage but was behind at the intermediate checkpoint. Despote having passed his minute man, he failed to bump Dennis by 8 seconds.
Alex Dowsett recently said he was surprised to have made Movistar's Tour team. After taking the Hour World Record from Dennis this spring, the English rider has struggled to shed the extra weight he put on for the Hour attempt and recently recorded a DNF at the Dauphiné. However, barely a week ago, he earned the right to wear the British TT national champion's kit for the 4th time in his career. Though his time trialing is undeniably strong, Dowsett found himself in 13th place by 36 seconds.
The bosses at MTN Qhubeka will be pleased that Britain's Stephan Cummings rounded out the top 10 in stage 1 of the African team's first Tour appearance.
Matthias Brändle finished in 7th place at the same time as Castroviejo.
Lithuanian TT champion Ramunas Navardauskas.
Donning the kit of the German TT champ rather than the rainbow stripes of the World TT champion for the first time in years, Tony Martin was generally considered to be the man to spoil Tom Dumoulin's party. While the Dutch rider hadn't even posted the fasted time to date, Martin, too, fell short and placed second, just 5 seconds slower than Dennis.
Two time Italian TT champion Adriano Malori finished 8th by 29 seconds.
Not a TT specialist, Peter Sagan, the Slovakian champion, treated the finish line like a sprint and threw his bike to finish 41 seconds back and in 19th.
Jerome Coppel, French TT champion.
Despite being motivated as the American TT champion riding in the opening stage if the Tour de France on Independence Day, Andrew Talansky's ride landed him in 90th overall and 1:15 behind.
While Rui Costa was the next rider to leave the start ramp after Talansky, Fabian Cancellara, the one rider left on the course with a legitimate shot at beating Dennis's time, had passed the former a World Champion. It was not enough in the end and the man known as Spartacus was third on the stage at 6 seconds down.
Michal Kwiatkowski, road race World Champion.
The last of the 3 Americans in this year's Tour to start, GC contender Tejay Van Garderen had a mediocre-to-decent performance by finishing 42 seconds back and in 20th place.
Coming off an overall win at the Route du Sud, Alberto Contador stopped the clock 58 seconds after Dennis had, resulting in 46th place for el pistolero.
Chris Froome, looking to make amends for abandoning during stage 5 in 2014 after winning the race the year before, found himself in 39th overall and 50 seconds behind.
Finishing second at the 2014 Tour, the best result for a Frenchman in years, 38 year old Jean Christophe Peraud wound up in 50th and nearly a minute back.
The defending champion was the final rider to take to the crowded streets of Utrecht. Vincenzo Nibali knows he has a long way to get to Paris and will start that journey 43 seconds down on stage winner Rohan Dennis.
Winning the first stage meant a podium sweep for 25 year old Dennis, claiming the stage win, the coveted race leader's yellow jersey, the sprinter's green jersey, and the young rider's white jersey.
While tomorrow's stage is relatively short at 166 kilometers, the teams with GC riders will look to avoid getting caught out in the expected crosswinds, making the front of the race a very crowded and presumably nervous place to be.