Ettix-Quick Step rider Zdenek Stybar used his speed to precision to win Stage 6 of the Tour de France 2015, ahead of Peter Sagan and Bryan Coquard.
The Czech won the 191.5km stage from Abbeville to Le Havre in France on the day after he launched a late solo attack on the uphill finish above the Normandy Port. He rode away solo in the last 500 metres and claimed his first stage victory at the Tour de France.
However, the celebrations for Stybar got marred as his team-mate and current yellow jersey holder Tony Martin suffered an unfortunate crash that might see him pull out of the race.
Martin went down heavily within the last kilometre and after eventually picking himself up, had to be nursed to the finish line by three of his team-mates.
He is suspected to have suffered a broken collarbone.
"Tony Martin will fly to BG Hospital in Hamburg immediately for surgery, and must withdraw from Le Tour de France," an Ettix-Quick Step spokesman told the BBC.
Team doctor Helge Riepenhof added: "The collarbone is in lots of pieces, so it was a major impact. One of the pieces came through the skin, which means it's an open fracture. Therefore, even if it was Tony's wish to start [in Stage 7], I have to say he is not allowed to. Riders always want to race. Tony especially."
Martin however did not rule out the possibility of starting in Stage 7 that will take place from Livarot to Fougères.
"I'm going to wait for the X-rays. I hope I can start. We'll have to wait and see what the damage is," the German said.
"I was extremely unlucky. I can't really remember what happened. I touched the wheel of the rider ahead of me. It's the Tour, luck and bad luck are very close together. It's often the way accidents happen. You're not going that fast and then you fall over each other with all your weight," he added.
Even Stage 6 winner Stybar admitted to having mixed feelings.
"I have mixed feelings after winning this stage because Tony Martin crashed. When I caught up with him at the award ceremony, he only congratulated me and told me to enjoy the moment but he didn't say how much he was injured," Cyclo-cross specialist Stybar said.
"It's an amazing feeling to win a stage at the Tour de France, probably on the same level as my first victory at the cyclo-cross world championship in Tabor. I've had a hard time changing from cyclo-cross to road cycling."
Meanwhile, MTN-Qhubeka rider Daniel Teklehaimanot made history after he became the first African rider to bag the polka dot jersey (awarded to the best climber) in the Tour de France.
Stage 7 is also believed to be another day in the office for bunch sprinters to make their mark, as the 190.5 KM stretch of the race starts at Livarot in rural France, and enters the scenic city of Fougères.
"After Normandy, the Tour enters Brittany with a first act that should honour the sprinters. But on the road to Fougères, like elsewhere, escapees can still count on favorable circumstances to keep hopes alive," said Christian Prudhomme, Directeor of Tour de France.
WHERE TO WATCH LIVE
In India, the Tour de France Stage 7 can be watched live on Ten Sports (7pm IST), with the option of live streaming on tensports.com
Viewers in the UK can catch it on Eurosport from 1:15pm BST. ITV4 will be broadcasting with programmes starting at 2pm BST while S4C's live coverage starts at 3pm.
Highlights: Eurosport2 6pm-7pm & 9pm-10:30pm; ITV4 7pm-8pm; S4C from 10pm
Live TV: British Eurosport, ITV4, S4C
Viewers in the US can catch it on NBC from 8am ET - broadcasting four to five hours of live coverage every stage on its NBC Sports channel.
NBC Sports will also air a slightly compressed three-hour broadcast of each stage in primetime, starting at 8pm ET each night.
