This is one of our goals for the season. We want a top 10 here. We have brought a number of riders who could make an attack for the win and Danny Van Poppel, who could do allright in a sprint.

And finally we are in the starting area. It is almost 2 o'clock, all riders have signed in by now and they are eagerly waiting for the organisators to shoot the pistol. Hamburg is full of spectators today and while a certain amount of people will not like the road closures, we are having a feast for all the German cycling fans today. Sadly, the weather conditions are surely not to the riders’ liking as they will tackle the 220km in heavy rain. Perhaps, it won’t take long until the rain jackets are soaked.


Off we go! Still in the neutralized area, we have a good shot of two main contenders for the win today: André Greipel (LTB) and Alexander Kristoff (KAT) in his Norwegian national champion’s jersey.


It took some time, but after almost 10km of real racing, Berard (ALM) is the first one to get a good gap.


Le Bon (FDJ) is the next one to give it a go!


Dall’Antnonia (CAN) also wants to join the party. Will those three come together and build our breakaway of the day? We don’t know yet, but one thing is for sure: Whoever is driving the red car, should get his ass out of there.


Well, that was a boring opening part. With 20km covered now, the three attackers have a gap of more than 2 minutes and nobody in the pack seems to be willing to join them. The speed is so slow at the moment, even I would be able to follow the pack. In the rear, we have a good view on Llanet (MOV) in his national champion’s jersey.


Until now, the race can be described by only one word: Boring. We have seen 50km of racing so far and although the numerous spectators on the sides of the road (not so much in this picture) defy the rain, they get nothing interesting to see. Under this tempo, the gap to the break has grown to 5 minutes already, while Verboven (EUS) has a rear wheel puncture. But it should not take him long to get back into the peloton.


I do not really have news for you other than that we are back to Hamburg after 100km and the gap has reached its maximum point with 9 minutes perhaps as now the pace in the pack is slowly increasing. This is mainly due to the work of Lotto Belisol. They are helped by Argos-Shimano and Katusha as well. Pulling the peloton at the moment is, guess who: Richard Löwenherz of Katusha.


Oh, bad news for Sky! Their leader Hanzen has hit the deck. And it does not look too good at the moment. He just lost control over his bike in a tight right-hander when his rear wheel slipped away. Will he be able to continue?


We are now in the countryside of Schleswig-Hostein and the gap is being reduced more and more. 6 and a half minutes tells us the GPS. More and more riders are caught in crashes now as the heat is turning up slowly. The number of technical is also increasing, but no big names were included anymore. In advance, I have some good news for all the Sky fans out there: Hanzen has been talking with the race doctor and his team car and he is now safely back in the peloton. Though he has lost some skin, it looks like he really wants to finish the race. Riding more than 100km with injuries is probably not the most joyful thing, but he is a fighter. And here is some TV-time for the break again:


There are less than 6 minutes left for the breakaway and it won’t take long until we tackle the Waseberg for the first time. Meanwhile, CCC has joined Argos, Lotto and Katusha with the work in the peloton.


Oh, you just see how steep the Waseberg is. The break is going over it now and, on paper, Berard should be the one of the three having the least problems with the gradient. Right in the heart of Hamburg-Blankenese (and not just at the side of the Elbe ), this climb basically just pulls the strength out of your legs.


Roughly 5 minutes behind the breakaway, de Vries (LTB) leads the peloton on the Waseberg.


The Waseberg was ridden quite easily and we are now on the little loop through the city until we enter the decisive Waseberg loop. So that is the last time to get a little rest for the riders. With 70km to go, the break’s advantage is down to 4 minutes already.


Being 3 minutes in arrears, the peloton now enters the Waseberg loop. They will have to go over it three more times from now and I am very thrilled to see the racing as the Vattenfall Cyclassics are finally entering the crucial phase.


While the three riders up front made it over the Waseberg together, Löwenherz pulls the pack on a high, but steady pace. Surely he is trying to make the pure sprinters suffer, while his captain Kristoff should have no major trouble right now.


We have an attack! Vansummeren (GRS) gives is a go, but not on the climb, as I expected. Just right after the pack went back to normal pursuit, he decides now to go solo. Meanwhile, I have bad news for BMC: Hushovd was caught in a crash and I seriously doubt that he will get back to the front.


Well, that lead to a major chase now! We have 40km of racing left, the gap to the front is at 2:30 now and the teams of Lotto and Katusha are working hard to bring Vansummeren back. Argos however is not working as Kittel struggles to make his way through the peloton.


The breakaway is on the penultimate passage of the Waseberg now and you can really feel how they suffer. Their lead of 1:40 won’t be enough to make it to the finish, but they made a big effort to attract the race, for which we have to thank them.


Being led by Löwenherz just again, the pack has almost reeled in Vansummeren. All the favourites are in the front rows, only Hushovd is still far back after his crash. Hanzen though looks like he recovered well from his get-together with the street.


28km from the finish, we have the same old picture again. Dall’Antonio is struggling to stay in the wheels of his two companions, but the breakaway still has a lead of more than a minute. However, you can already see the pack in the far background. Due to the lack of attacks so far, the peloton has thinned out just a bit over the three passages of the Waseberg. I truly hope somebody feels like taking over the race on the last one.


Just as I said it, Rast (RLT) gives it a go! What a weird point for an attack, just before we enter the descent from which Waseberg is tackled, but probably he wants some gap so he can team up with the guys that probably will attack on the climb. We will see how this tactics work out. Meanwhile the breakaway is maintaining its gap.


Damn, that is risky! Westra (VCD) shows his excellent bike handling skills by attacking on the descent – don’t forget, the roads are all slippery. Now things are heating up!


Westra has been reeled in on the foot of the climb already. The three original breakaway riders made it to the top altogether, which seems to be the smartest option as there are still 25km of flat roads for them to ride. Let us have a short look on the positioning of the big names: The Garmin guys pulling the peloton is Farrar himself, Greipel and Kristoff are among the first 20 riders, while Kittel and Goss (OGE) are just a bit behind. Brouwer (BEL) and Hanzen are riding side by side – but in position 80 roughly. Viviani (CAN) is just slightly in front of them. Nizzolo (RLT) is some positions behind Goss by the looks of things. Bennati (SAX) and Abundi (CCC) are also in the mix, around his position. The only ones without any more chances are Hushovd , Verboven and Hutarovich (ALM) who won’t make it in the front group for sure.


The first guys are on the top now and I seriously don’t believe it! No attacks from the pack at all! Perhaps everybody is working for his sprinter or has a teammate in front already, but that is not what I expected. However, we will see who can hold on to the peloton in the end.


Oh, that hurts. Dall’Antonio is suffering heavily and bounces on and off the back of the other two in front. The latter, Le Bon and Berard have an advantage of 30 seconds on Rast who is just 20 seconds in front of the pack. That should not be enough. (Please, PCM AI, I beg you.)


Due to the hard chase on Rast, more and more riders are falling off the back of the peloton. We have no idea on how many guys are still in contention, but the pack has been thinned out. Meanwhile, the front group is increasing its lead again, because the sprinter teams have some disagreements after pulling Rast back. (I warn you, AI!) The peloton has 20km left now and our helicopter has a great picture where you can spot some more gaps opening.


That is what I was waiting for! More attacks! Nuyens (GRS) and Leukemans (VCD) try to get away. Vandenbergh (OPQ) also wants to fool the pack. Will they be allowed to get a gap?


Meanwhile in the front, Berard attacks and none of the other two can hold his wheel. Is this the winning move from the early break?


We see attacks all over the place now and the sprinter teams are failing to control them. Lotto Belisol’s domestiques seem pretty done for today and so it is the Katusha phalanx who try to follow the attack by Cancellara (RLT). Some way up the road you may also spot the three men in front.


And Berard wins the Vattenfall Cyclassics! No, just the same old joke… There is still one more lap to go through the inner city and this one is about 11km long. Berard has only a narrow gap to the next group left, where Dall’Antonio and Le Bon have teamed up with Leukemans and Nuyens, while Vandenbergh and Cancellara both were not able to stay away. In the pack, the sprinters are already taking positions and we finally have some information on who is still up there in the big pack. No more than 80 riders are counted there and the names missing are those we expected on the Waseberg already: Hushovd, Verboven and Hutarovich.


With 8km to go, the race is back together and it looks like we will have the bunch sprint we all expected. Nuyens is the last one to be reeled in. And guess who is the Katusha guy closing the last bit of the gap: Right, it is Löwenherz. Very strong ride by him today working all the way.


I thought we were done with the attacks, but obviously we are not! Vanmarcke (BEL) and Stybar (OPQ) give it a go. The lack of riders still being able to work made the pace drop a bit, so these two want to take advante from this.


And its Leukemans again who wants to join them! Remember, there are only 5km left to chase them down.


With 2.5km to go, Stybar goes again and now he gets rid of Leukemans who made the junction only a few seconds ago. In the pack, Lodewyck (BMC) is leading and all the big sprinters are already in the first positions. They seriously lack leadout men.


Unbelievable! With just another attack, Stybar distances Vanmarcke as well. That is the winning move! I am sure as there won’t be much in his way with only 2km to go. The peloton is done meanwhile as the sprinters waited for help from their teammates and wasted some seconds by doing so.


Kittel goes early! Stunning, absolutely stunning! Kittel is so pissed off they threw away the win, he goes with 1.2km left. Probably that is some kind of anger management for a pro sprinter.


Passing under the flame rouge, the win looks pretty certain for Stybar. You may argue that the other riders are not too far behind, but don’t forget the camera is narrowing the gaps in your mind from that view.


In a very wild sprint, about 400m from the finish, we see how Kittel is passing Leukemans, but he seems pretty exhausted himself. He surely won’t be able to stand the sprint of Goss, Greipel and Kristoff behind him. However, Goss and Greipel were in the wind pretty early as well, only Kristoff had a proper leadout in Greipel’s slipstream. The guy in the front is Vanmarcke who will have to give it all he has in order to keep the 2nd place.


Stybar and Vanmarcke seem save in front as they have only a few meters until the finish line (of course Vanmarcke has some more meters left). So let us concentrate on the wild sprint behind. Kristoff should be save in 3rd as he is powering his way to the finish. Greipel will probably pass the fading Kittel. The question is whether Boasson Hagen (Sky) and Kruopis (OGE) on the left side will be able to pass the fading top-sprinter. Two guys, they will surely pass, are Goss and Leukemans who are both totally done. Swedish champion Stromberg (GRS), Bennati (SAX) and Petacchi (OPQ) are coming fast on the right, while Ballan (BMC), Cancellara, Hayman (SKY) and Nizzolo in the middle will have problems making their way through. Brouwer and Viviani are also coming fast on the far left, but they are still a bit behind.


Zdenek Stybar wins the Vattenfall Cyclassics 2013! What a great attack and some stunning power it was going all the way to the line. Vanmarcke gets a good 2nd place while Kristoff in third is the first of the sprinters to cross the line.


Greipel then comes in as fourth, surely an unsatisfying result. Kittel in fifth should not be happier, however, he should get an award for the longest sprint I’ve seen in my entire lifetime. Stromberg, Bennati, Kruopis, Breschel and Boassson Hagen will be happier with their Top10 result.

Rank	Name	Team	Time
1	Zdenek Stybar	Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team	4h58'27
2	Sep Vanmarcke	Belkin Pro Cycling Team	s.t.
3	Alexander Kristoff	Katusha Team	s.t.
4	André Greipel	Lotto Belisol	s.t.
5	Marcel Kittel	Team Argos - Shimano	s.t.
6	Nicklas Stromberg	Garmin - Sharp	s.t.
7	Daniele Bennati	Team Saxo - Tinkoff	s.t.
8	Aidis Kruopis	Orica - GreenEdge	s.t.
9	Matti Breschel	Team Saxo - Tinkoff	s.t.
10	Edvald Boasson Hagen	Sky Procycling	s.t.
11	Matthew Hayman	Sky Procycling	s.t.
12	Willem Brouwer	Belkin Pro Cycling Team	s.t.
13	Alessandro Petacchi	Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team	s.t.
14	Alessandro Ballan	BMC Racing Team	s.t.
15	Matthew Goss	Orica - GreenEdge	s.t.
16	Fabian Cancellara	RadioShack - Leopard	s.t.
17	Elia Viviani	Cannondale Pro Cycling	s.t.
18	Giacomo Nizzolo	RadioShack - Leopard	s.t.
19	Matthieu Ladagnous	FDJ.fr	s.t.
20	Filippo Pozzato	Lampre - Merida	s.t.

We were very unlucky to miss out on the top 10 today. Well done to Luekmans and Westra for attacking. Luekmans was so close. We would also like to congratulate Stybar (a transfer target for us) and De Vries (who will riding with us next season) for his great work chasing for Gripel.


Thanks to Sergio Hernadez for the report as well.

Ollfardh wrote:
And Bole and Poels

brewers90 wrote:
Conclusion: You can't read.