The 101st Tour de France rolled out of Leeds, England on Saturday (July 5) for the start of the first stage of the grueling competition, with hundreds of thousands of fans lining the route across the Yorkshire Dales to Harrogate.
Catherine The Duchess of Cambridge and her brother-in-law Prince Harry performed the ceremonial launch, cutting the ribbon for the 21-stage, 1,865-miles (3,664-km) race that will take place over three days in Britain before working its way down eastern France to the Alps.
An immediate break saw two Frenchmen, Benoit Jarrier (Bretagne Seche Environnement) and Nicolas Edet (Cofidis) join veteran German Jens Voigt (Trek) in a three-man break that established a three-minute lead by the 35-km mark.
Huge crowds lined the roads through picturesque market towns and rolling country lanes flanked by traditional stone walls.
The main contenders for the race, Britain's Christopher Froome, Alberto Contador of
