The first 30km were encapsulated by Roompot's Senne Leysen's repeated attempts of making a break for it. All he can take from it however, is tarnished legs, 45 seconds and some intermediate sprint points. 20 kilometres later, he was caught with his companions. Peter Kennaugh lead a second revival, but this was to be in vain as he was caught 15 km out from the finish.
The sprint was messy for all teams not named Roompot. We laid down another excellent train and finished with 2 more top 10's. This stage was also notable for how early some of the sprinters went as Gaviria and others launched 1km before the normal sprint window, causing considerable confusion. Lammertink finished ahead of Van der Lijke surprisingly, showcasing his leadout ability (probably should have gone for him in hindsight). In doing so, Lammertink got out first top 5 of the race on the last stage.
The race for us was much better than expected. We earned a top 10 in the overall from a stellar ride by Nick van der Lijke. He beat the odds to finish up there with some of the best riders in the world. Lammertink also gave us our only top 5 in a stage which was well deserved. Riesebeek is another that must not be under-appreciated for his efforts in the train. All in all, it was a brilliant week for our boys in Argentina to kickstart the season.
The breakaway was wasted after 50 kilometres of it's initiation. The peloton had paced so ferociously during the first part of the stage that the break were simply lifeless heading up the first climb. The climb was a difficult obstacle for the team as only 3 of our team members managed to get over it with the first group: De Witte, Weening and Duyn. However, on the downhill, de Witte crashed and tumbled down into the 4th group on the road. On the other hand, Boom managed to re-join on the downhill. And soon after, the rest of the squad re-joined bar one, Sean de Bie, the sprinter was really feeling it.
As we headed up the first ramp before the climb, LottoNL were rampant putting the Roompot squad under pressure early as all of it's members were hanging on at the back, taken aback by the tempo. This saw Boom's and De Witte's demise as they could no longer follow. Lotto's climbing armada was too much for Reinders too as he could be seen departing the peloton 11 km's from the finish, leaving Duijn and Weening as the only remaining Roompot riders up front. Lotto's tempo at this point at wittled down the peloton to 30 riders, but it was to get even smaller...
Ben King's acceleration left the Roompot climbers gasping for breath. Weening and Duijn had just calmed down for a second seemingly in sync with the tempo, but the acceleration had changed that. The duo fell back to the second group soon after. 10 riders had distanced themselves from the rest.
Duijn's tempo was a strong one and the second group had dropped many of it's previous companions and caught many up front. It came to the point where only 5 riders were ahead of Weening and Duijn's group. This was the moment where Weening decided to go, as Duijn dropped off leaving only Goncalves to follow. In the meanwhile, Gesink had secured the stage win.
Weening managed a very good 6th, beating out superior climbers Howson and Goncalves. Duijn was also excellent rounding up in 13th. All in all, an excellent stage.
Stage Results
Spoiler
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15 riders went out on pursuit to make the days breakaway. J.Lea was first over the first climb.
The break established a 3 minute lead at most, but by the start of the final climb, it diminished to 38 seconds. The climb will make the difference on this day, featuring an especially steep section in the middle.
The climb was negotiated without much fuss however and we had Sean De Bie in the group of 38 after cresting the climb.
There was to be another small incline following the climb and it was here where Benjamin King decided to attack. Weening was eager to follow and stuck to his wheel.
This move succeeded initially, but was brought back by subsequent counter-attacks. De Bie in the midst of these moves was caught out of position for the final sprint.
Huub Duijn became our de facto leader for the sprint and managed a more than respectable 5th, with Weening leading out. De Bie's burst was all in vein, back in 14th. The finish could have been better, but it certainly wasn't bad.
Backert and Freiberg were the only known riders in the BOTD, heading into the 2 KOM's of the day with a comfortable lead of 4:30.
However, over the 2 climbs, the break had amassed 9 minutes. It was looking excellent for the break...
40km from the line, it was known, the break had won.
It had simmered down to the final 2km's and the gap was steady at around 6 minutes, no chance for the peloton. Freiberg launched early, but was wisely followed by Backaert and was eventually over-powered by the Belgian.
Walscheid won the pack sprint behind, as Roompot were uninterested in the finale.
The BOTD was the largest of the whole week containing 11 riders. 3 others were in a chase pack, but never managed to reach the front group.
The break managed a 2 minute lead over the penultimate climb. This steadily declined further to 1 minute as there were 20 kilometres to go. Suddenly, there is a big CRASH. Riders are scattered around in small groups, but it seems Roompot has done the best to avoid it. 5 of their riders stay up in the fall (De Bie and Weening included), whilst the peloton are in dire straits 1 minute back.
In the midst of such chaos, Roompot push on, but another variable is presented on this challenging day. Crosswinds! A 22 man group emerge from the peloton, but are still 35 seconds behind the "Roompot Train' who are chugging along. The break are a further half a minute in front of this train.
With 15 kilometres to go, Boom is pushed to set the pace as Van Staeyen and Reinders can do no more. The climb still has not begun.
Boom catches the break in a strong showing, but the pack(s) behind are quickly catching up.
The 3 groups combine at the foot of the final climb, as Weening and De Bie are positioned excellently. Many of the other contenders are trying to re-position themselves at this crucial time.
Weening and De Bie work in tandem to set a tough tempo up the climb, but aren't strong enough to drop the contenders... or are they? In a last ditch attempt, Weening goes for it over the top of the final KOM and establishes a small lead over the pack. Duuijn is there for the sprint if needed.
This attack lasts a couple kilometres, but is brought back by Toms Skujins.
Duuijn, the other Roompot rider in the group realises his moment after the lull in tempo following his team-mates' capture. He attacks just before the final sprint in a bid for glory.
We've done it! What a stage! Now, you may be thinking Duijn pulled off his escapee and managed to hold onto his lead, but no, that wasn't the case. It was in fact a fairytale story for Pieter Weening who takes home the gold.
Initially, it was Fredrik Backaert of Wanty who launched a savage attack along the final straight to catch up to Duijn. However, unbeknownst to him, a certain orange jersey was behind him of Pieter Weening; whom leapt off his wheel in the dying embers of the stage to win it. Sweet success! Duijn managed 2nd as Backaert fell off drastically towards the very end. A 1-2 for Roompot!
What a day it was for Roompot! On the final stage of an already successful tour, the boys produced their finest display yet. Duijn and Weening were simply outstanding and there helpers; De Bie and Boom should not be forgotten. They were the foundations to this success. Weening stays in 6th overall, a fine performance. Duijn hops up into the top 10 as well after an outstanding ride as his rivals finished in the 2nd group.
What a race! Weening and Duijn were in good form heading into this race, but we certainly didn't expect such sparkling outcomes. Stage 5 was easily the best race of the season for us as we converted the initial advantage we had gained after some crashes. De Bie was meant to be the leader for a couple of stages, but his chance never came and was back seat to the climbers. Even still, he will get more opportunities in the future and can almost treat this race like a warm-up.
Many riders attempted to make a breakaway attempt throughout the first 2/3s of the race. No group managed to get a lead more than a minute. In truth, the stage was a completely uneventful one and the break was caught as the sprinters were jockeying for position.
But this was to change. 2 distinct groups formed 1 minute from another as the pace accelerated near the finish. Unfortunately, Lammertink and Riesebeek were he only Roompot men left behind, our 2 leaders.
So, we set Senne Leysen to come back to the Lammertink group and pace, whilst Van Staeyen would lead the sprint.
Another crash occurred in the front group, reducing this group to 32 riders, but still containing the main GC contenders. A very messy sprint ensued due to this chaos.
Marcel Kittel edges out Magnus Cort Nielsen for the win. Van Staeyen was delivered nicely by Van Poppel and finished a very solid 5th. Van Poppel earned a 12th place too. Lammertink and Riesebeek never recovered.
Stage Results
1
Marcel Kittel
Team Katusha - Alpecin
3h47'19
2
Magnus Cort Nielsen
Astana Pro Team
s.t.
3
Sondre Holst Enger
Israel Cycling Academy
s.t.
4
Juan Sebastian Molano
UAE - Team Emirates
s.t.
5
Michael Van Staeyen
Roompot - Charles
s.t.
6
Kristian Sbaragli
Israel Cycling Academy
s.t.
7
Manuele Mori
UAE - Team Emirates
s.t.
8
Ion Izagirre
Astana Pro Team
s.t.
9
Vincenzo Nibali
Team Bahrain Merida
s.t.
10
Valerio Agnoli
Team Bahrain Merida
s.t.
...
38
Greg Van Avermaet
CCC Team
+ 1'36
42
Maurits Lammertink
Roompot - Charles
s.t.
A strange feeling for our boys as at one end Van Staeyen managed a top 5, but at the other, the GC aspirations are out the window due to Riesebeek and Lammertink's significant losses. The only contender who also lost time was Michal Kwiatkowski losing 2'17 overall.
Melbourne, 5 stages
Matthias de Witte
Lars Boom
Jose Goncalves
Silvan Dillier
Alessandro de Marchi
Al Musannah, 6 stages
Chris Froome
Michal Kwiatkowski
Ion Izagirre
Jakob Fuglsang
