Gilbert laments gear glitch at end of Tour stage

CAP FREHEL, France (AP)—Belgian rider Phillippe Gilbert was left to lament a gear problem after he narrowly lost Wednesday’s fifth stage of the Tour de France to British sprint ace Mark Cavendish.
Gilbert had carved a gap through the pack and looked certain to clinch his second
 stage win of the this year’s Tour when Cavendish suddenly went past on the outside to just beat him at the line.
Gilbert credited Cavendish for his performance but felt things might have been different if he had not encountered a technical glitch that prevented him going into a harder gear that generates more speed.
“I’m not saying I would win against Cavendish because he’s the fastest guy in the world,” Gilbert said. “I came in from the back, pretty fast, but somebody touched my back wheel and I had to sprint on (gear) 12 and not 11 … If I would have been lucky (able) to get the 11 on I could have won.”
The 29-year-old Gilbert has been in great form all year.
He dazzled fans by winning three classic races in April, and then took the opening stage of this year’s Tour with a dashing late break that left his rivals in his wake Saturday.
As riders entered the last stretch of Wednesday’s crash-marred 164.5-kilometer stage from Carhaix to Cap Frehel, Gilbert took his chance and thought he had done enough—only to make a tactical mistake that led to another rider going into the back of him.
“All the doors were open for me in the sprint, it was like a path had been traced for me through the peloton,” Gilbert said. “I should never have put the brakes on in the last 700 meters. Unfortunately someone touched my rear wheel at six or 700 meters from the line.”
Gilbert drew lavish praise from Cavendish for his attacking panache.
“I didn’t think I was going to beat him. I thought he was going to come back on me,” Cavendish said. “His performance all year has been pretty awe-inspiring. I’ve got massive respect for that guy.”
Gilbert will wear the sprint leader’s green jersey for Thursday’s sixth stage, after officials docked Spanish rider Jose Joaquin Rojas his points from the intermediate stage for blocking Tom Boonen and thus obstructing Cavendish.
Gilbert leads with 120 points, eight more than Rojas.