France's Bardet wins Tour de France opener as Cavendish suffers

Searing heat of 30C (86F) blighted the peloton as it set off from downtown Florence on the 21-day epic leaving many riders suffering, with British sprinter Mark Cavendish trailing by 30 minutes when Bardet crossed the finish line. All the main contenders for the Tour title crossed the line five seconds adrift in the first of four stages featuring racing in Italy. The 33-year-old Bardet's teammate Frank Van Den Broek was part of an early break and the pair survived a reel-in effort from a fast-closing...