Tour de France 2014: Mark Cavendish Out After Opening Day Crash in Yorkshire

Britain's Mark Cavendish is out of this year's Tour de France after dislocating his shoulder in a collision 200 metres from the finish line on day one of the race in Harrogate, Yorkshire – his mother's home town.

Cavendish says he blames himself for the accident, which happened when he collided with Simon Gerrans as they sprinted to the finish.

"It was my fault, I'll apologise to Simon," said Cavendish. "I tried to find a gap that was not there. I wanted to win."

With 25 stage wins, putting him joint third on the all-time list, the exit of Cavendish is a huge blow not just for the crowds lining the roads of Yorkshire, but for the Tour itself. With Bradley Wiggins dropped from Team Sky this year, Britain's hopes now rest with Chris Froome, who finished sixth.

Froome said the crowd were "second to none", adding: "As defending Tour champion, it doesn't get much better than this."

However teammate Simon Yates warned some spectators were putting riders in danger. "The only real complaint is people taking selfies in the middle of the bunch and having their back to the peloton.

"Everyone is out there having fun and a lot of people don't realise we're coming past at 60kph (37mph) and we use every inch of the roads."

Germany's Marcel Kittel, who won the stage, also paid tribute to the Yorkshire spectators. "It was incredible, like being in a tunnel, the crowd were so loud."

Up to two million people are expected to line the route of the Tour in Yorkshire this weekend. After yesterday's stage, started by Prince William and Kate Middleton in Leeds, today's race takes competitors through the stunning Pennine scenery around Haworth, Hebden Bridge and then the Peak District before finishing in Sheffield.

Tomorrow's race will be from Cambridge to London, after which the Tour will return to France.