Branch hits camel, loses lead

It was an eventful 631km for the local lad after he survived two crashes while he also had an accident involving a camel. “I had a bit of a crash this morning at kilometre 40, bent the tower a little bit, so I am just trying to stay in the conservation until the end. We regrouped well and just about 20km before the finish I hit a camel I didn’t see and had another crash, and I broke bike, gave mechanics some work to do (sic). But I am okay and excited for tomorrow,” Branch reacted after today’s run.

The local biker has been in the lead for three days but the fourth place finish on stage four sees Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo ascend to the summit of the overall standings. The Chilean has proven to be Branch’s biggest challenge early in to the race as he bagged his second stage win to claim the top spot. Branch however trails by just a minute and 15 seconds and the two are set up for an interesting tussle in the marathon stage. Ricky Brabec of the USA is not far behind the two riders while Argentinian, Kevin Benavides is pushing for a spot in the podium places as he sits fourth in the general classification after coming third today.