Australia's Orica-GreenEdge team bus in Tour de France farce GreenEDGE team bus gets stuck under the overpass. TOUR de France riders are up in arms after an Aussie team bus got wedged under the arch at the finish line, causing farcical scenes with organisers. Mark Cavendish was among the most outspoken in his criticism after lastn night's opening stage was marred by a series of crashes. The 213-kilometre ride from Porto-Vecchio to Bastia, the first stage ever to be held on the Mediterranean island of Corsica, was won in a sprint finish by Germany's Marcel Kittel of the Argos-Shimano team. Kittel grabs Stage 1 victory in sprint But his victory became something of a footnote at the end of a chaotic final 20 kilometres as the peloton flew along the narrow roads leading in to Bastia. The best of the Australians was Simon Gerrans of GreenEdge, in 15th place. The confusion was caused when the bus of Australian team the Orica-GreenEdge became stuck under the gantry at the finish line, forcing organisers to propose moving the line forward three kilometres before it was eventually moved into a safe position. As the peloton approached the finish, they began to up the pace in preparation for the new conclusion to the stage, only to be caught out by the decision to revert to the original plan. Tthe GreenEDGE team bus crosses the line first and gets stuck under the overpass causing mayhem on the finish line as riders approached. A whole host of riders, including Spain's two-time Tour winner Alberto Contador, last year's green jersey winner Peter Sagan of Slovakia, and former world time trial champion Tony Martin went down in a mass crash six kilometres from the line, with the latter coming off by far the worst. The German fainted and was later put on a stretcher and taken to hospital in Bastia, fears that he had fractured his shoulder later proving unfounded, leaving his Omega Pharma-Quick Step teammate Mark Cavendish furious. "What caused the problems was changing the finish," he told reporters. We heard on the radio with literally five kilometres to go that the sprint was in two kilometres, and then one kilometre later they were like 'No, it's at the original finish.' It's just carnage. Cavendish had good reason to be unhappy, with the confusion putting paid to his chances of winning the stage and getting his hands on the overall leader's yellow jersey for the first time in his career. Germany's Tony Martin is taken to an ambulance at the finish line after crashing in the first stage of the Tour de France. Contador insisted that he would be OK, while Team Sky duo Geraint Thomas and Ian Stannard were declared fit to continue after undergoing tests following their falls, with the British team just happy to see their race favourite Chris Froome come home unscathed. "Obviously, this was a really unfortunate situation," explained Matt White, the sporting director of the Orica-GreenEdge team at the centre of the controversy. The bus was led under the finish gantry, and we took it for granted that there was enough clearance. The frantic efforts to clear the bus proved successful, and we had a few minutes notice that the finish line had been moved to its original place. Murilo Antoniobil Fischer of Brazil, center left, Tony Martin of Germany, center right, and Tony Gallopin of France, right, wait for medical assistance after crashing in the last kilometers of the first stage of the Tour de France. AP Photo/Joel Saget, The team was later fined 2000 Swiss Francs ($A2,290) by the organisers, who blamed them for their late arrival at the finish and insisted they had made the right decisions. Despite that, there was widespread criticism from elsewhere, including from Marc Madiot, the manager of French outfit FDJ, who launched a stinging attack on the organisers. The organisers have not done their job properly. The Spanish president of the organising committee, who I don't know, has made a big mistake. He should face the consequences. He is Spanish, he can go home," he said. Kittel was one of the lucky ones who avoided the crash and came through to pip Norway's Alexander Kristoff in a sprint for the line, although all riders were later awarded the same time. Alberto Contador of Spain, center with number 91, sits on the road after a group of riders crashed during the first stage of the Tour de France cycling race over 213 kilometers (133 miles) with start in Porto Vecchio and finish in Bastia, Corsica island, France, Saturday June 29, 2013. AFP PHOTO /Stephane Mantey Attention now turns to Sunday's second stage, when more drama could be in the offing as the peloton set off into Corsica's rugged interior for a 156-kilometre ride from Bastia to Ajaccio. Twice world time-trial champion Martin was one of many riders to fall, but escaped without any fractures, his Omega Pharma-Quick Step team confirmed. Despite that, he was suffering from concussion, a contusion on his left lung, widespread bruising, and a deep cut on his left elbow. As a result, the team admitted doubt surrounds his chances of being at the start of Sunday's second stage. "Any decision on his participation at the second stage of the Tour de France will be taken after considering how the clinical situation evolves during the night," the team said in a statement. A host of riders, among them Alberto Contador, went to ground as the finish of the first stage, a 213km ride from Porto-Vecchio to Bastia on Corsica, was marred by a series of crashes. Martin, world time trial champion in 2011 and 2012, came off the worst of all, with reports that he fainted twice before he was carried away on a stretcher to be taken to hospital in Bastia. A total of 10 riders were hurt in the same fall six kilometres from the line, including US rider Edward King of the Cannondale team, who injured his left shoulder, and Team Sky duo Geraint Thomas and Ian Stannard. However, Sky later confirmed that both riders have been cleared to race Sunday's second stage. Losing a teammate of Martin's calibre would be a big blow to Mark Cavendish's prospects of enjoying a successful Tour, as the Isle of Man sprint specialist seeks to regain the green jersey for the best sprinter that he won in 2011 before losing out to Peter Sagan last year.