Cavendish wins first stage at Tour of Missouri

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Mark Cavendish waited with the main group, then jumped from the wheel of one Columbia teammate to another, working his way toward the front for one final kick.

And what a kick it was.

Cavendish burst around American Tyler Farrar with less than 200 meters left to take the first stage of the Tour of Missouri on Monday, his first official win in the United States.

Cavendish of Great Britain finished the 90-mile first stage from St. Joseph to Kansas City in 3 hours, 15 minutes, 14 seconds to just beat Farrar, riding for Garmin/Chipotle. Italian rider Francesco Chicchi of team Liquigas finished third and defending champion George Hincapie, of team Columbia, also was in a group of 90 riders credited with the same time as Cavendish.

Stage 2 of the 623-mile race is today, a 125-mile ride from Clinton to Springfield. The weeklong race ends Sunday in St. Louis.

-- AP