Tour Méditerranéen: Stage 3: Greasque - Six Fours: 107.5km
Despite some climbs, the third stage of the Tour Méditerranéen should come down to a bunch sprint. Given the terrain, a breakaway may have a chance, but Saur-Sojasun will work hard to protect the leader's jersey, worn by Cyril Lemoine after his great solo victory yesterday.
After several groups unsuccessfully tried to escape, the peloton, and specifically Saur-Sojasun, let a group of 13 riders loose. There was no one really of note, and the highest placed rider was Freddy Bichot (Bbox Bouygues Télécom) who was 20th at +54".
The break moving up the Côte de Mazaugues.
When the break reached the top of the the Côte de Mazaugues, they only had a lead of 1'14". Saur-Sojasun was keeping a tight leash on the break.
4 Saur-Sojasun riders working to protect Lemoine's jersey.
45km from the finish, Anthony Charteau (Bbox Bouygues Télécom), Paolo Longo Borghini (ISD - Neri), and Ronan Van Zandbeek (Van Vliet EBH Elshof) attacked from the peloton, trying to bridge to the break. They were able to do this, and at the final KOM point, 36km from the finish, had an advantage of 1'01" over the peloton.
An aggressive attack was launched by these three riders.
Ultimately, all the riders were brought together with 14.8km remaining. The flat finish of the stage did not allow the break riders to maintain their advantage. Barring a crash or a mechanical, Lemoine would wear his leader's jersey another day.
In the sprint finish, Japan's Yukiya Arashiro (Bbox Bouygues Télécom) bested the field to take the stage victory. Jens Keukeleire (Cofidis) was coming up fast, but mistimed his final move.
Tour Méditerranéen: Stage 4: La Londe les Maures - Biot: 149.7km
For the penultimate stage, the peloton moves into more rugged terrain, dealing with 3 categorized climbs and various other rises in the road. Almost from the start, the riders will have to deal with the Col de Pas de Cerf and the Col de la Taillude. Neither are overly difficult, but will certainly test who is on form early. After some respite, the peloton will tackle the Col de Bagnol en Forêt. From here, the peloton will navigate several smaller climbs, before finishing in the hilltop village of Biot. The last rise should certainly see some attacks.
Once again, it was Saur-Sojasun's goal to help Cyril Lemoine retain his leader's jersey. Fearful of a breakaway getting away, the team set a high pace up the first two climbs of the day. Given the ending terrain of the day, a strong break would have a chance at surviving.
The only rider who didn't seem to be under pressure by the high pace was Christophe Le Mével (FDJ) who attacked at the top of both climbs in order to get full KOM points.
Le Mével going for KOM points while Yannick Talabardon and Julien Simon set the pace.
After summitting the Col de la Taillude, Saur-Sojasun eased up on the pace. The pace set had shed many riders, and the team felt confident they had caused enough damage to prevent a breakaway from being able to make it. Even still, 3 riders went off, trying to prove this theory was wrong. Iker Camaño (Endura Racing), Jempy Drucker (Continental Team Differdange), and young Romain Hardy (Bretagne - Schuller) were the brave souls.
The break, with Drucker nearly being hit by the neutral service car...
On the flat before the Col de Bagnol en Forêt, the breakaway riders quickly built up a large lead. With 70km remaining, they were 6'10" ahead.
Saur-Sojasun wasn't worried, because none of these riders had the pedigree to complete a move like this. Nonetheless, the team began to work, and the lead slowly came down.
The Col de Bagnol en Forêt saw no action, but on the next small hill Paolo Longo Borghini (ISD - Neri) took off on a solo ride. At this point, FDJ had joined Saur-Sojasun on the front, and it would take a superhuman effort from Longo Borghini to succeed.
To his credit, the Italian connected with the 3 leaders with 24km remaining. The group of 4 was 1'14" ahead of the charging peloton.
With only a couple of climbs left on the docket, attention needed to turn to the impending attacks. As the breakaway came into sight with 15km left, Karsten Kroon (BMC Racing Team), David Moncoutié (Cofidis), and Le Mével attacked. Camaño was able to go with them.
The contenders began to emerge on the second to last climb.
Lemoine and Saur-Sojasun team decided not to react. With nearly 12km of flat or downhill riding before the last climb to Biot, they banked on the peloton bringing everything back together. To ensure this, they sent Simon and Jean-Marc Marino to the front to work.
Everything came back together with 7km left.
Feeling strong, Lemoine took the fight to his competitors with 5km remaining, attacking the peloton. Kroon immediately got on his wheel, while Le Mével reacted a bit too late.
Lemoine surprises the field in the closing kilometers.
Lemoine had created a gap with Kroon, but couldn't hold his attack all the way up the hill. He was soon passed by both Kroon and Le Mével. Shortly, he found himself back in the peloton.
Kroon however would use Lemoine's attack to make the decisive move, winning the stage ahead of Le Mével who could never get up to his wheel. Lemoine would finish 30" back in the remnants of the peloton. He would end the day 4 seconds ahead of Kroon in GC.
Tour Méditerranéen: Stage 5: La Ciotat - Toulon (Mt. Faron): 126.4km
The final stage of the Tour Méditerranéen will be decisive, as the peloton will be in the mountains, dealing with 4 climbs on the day. Like yesterday, there will be little waiting, as once the peloton are 30km into the stage, they will have already climbed the Col de Ceyreste and the Col de l'Espigoulier. The latter has already been climbed by any rider who took place in the Gran Prix de la Marseillaise. Both climbs are similar, being 8.9km and 9.6km in length, with gradients of 6.9% and 6.3% respectively. After the peloton will move towards Toulon climbing the Col du Corps de Garde 20km from the finish.
However all of this is just an appetizer for the main course on the day, Mt. Faron. Only 5.5km in length, it makes up for shortness with steep slopes, averaging 8.6%.
Cyril Lemoine of Saur-Sojasun has worn the leader's jersey since Stage 2, but it unlikely he will be able to make it over the terrain holding onto it. Even still, the team would give its all to try to protect his lead.
The race started out fast like yesterday, although this time, it wasn't Saur-Sojasun setting the pace. John Gadret (AG2R La Mondiale) went to the front of the group on the Col de Ceyreste and Col de l'Espigoulier.
The high pace put many riders, including Lemoine under pressure/
Only one rider, João Cabreira (Centro Ciclismo de Loulé - Louletano), dared to venture out on a breakaway.
Cabreira, head down and pedaling away.
Back in the peloton, Lemoine was recovering and being supported by his teammates. Rony Martias and Anthony Delaplace were nearly dropped on the first climbs, but rallied to support the race leader. However, it became very clear that Lemoine would most likely not being to go with the leaders on the last two climbs. Therefore, Saur-Sojasun would allow Jonathan Hivert or Sébastien Joly to go on the attack if an opportunity presented itself.
Approaching the Col du Corps Garde, Cabreira had a 2 minute lead on the peloton. The Portuguese rider was riding well, and it would take a good effort to bring him back in.
Then, the first attacks came. David Moncoutié (Cofidis), Christophe Le Mével (FDJ), Rinaldo Nocentini (AG2R La Mondiale), and Thomas Voeckler (Bbox Bouygues Télécom) went. With Lemoine laboring in the rear, Hivert tried to follow.
The riders fighting their way up the Col du Corps Garde.
However, the riders left their move too late, and were easily caught on the downhill. Lemoine was still present, but on his last legs. Either way, the race would be decided on the slopes of Mt. Faron.
The attacks did benefit one rider. Up ahead, Cabreira still had a lead of 1'33" at the bottom of the final climb. A decent enough climber, the peloton would need to reorganize. Another effect of the attacks, was that Hivert was spent. The only Saur-Sojasun rider with any energy was Joly.
Française des Jeux took the front, with Jérémy Roy, Rémy Di Gregorio, and Jussi Veikkanen working hard. They were clearly setting up an attack from Le Mével.
FDJ sets a high pace with Joly, Kroon and Le Mével waiting.
3.5km from the top, Lemoine finally was dropped. He would not win the Tour Méditerranéen and now, knowing this, had to just grit his teeth and finish.
The FDJ riders did a fantastic job, dropping most of the peloton. Finally, Le Mével went. Only Moncoutié and Voeckler could go with him. The three would catch Cabreira with 900m to go.
Le Mével pushes the pace in the final kilometer.
Cabreira almost made it, but he could not keep up with the 3 Frenchman. He would fall back, but still finish 4th.
However no one could keep up with Le Mével, who would pull away in the final meters, to take the stage and overall victory.
Joly would finish 6th, 37" back. Lemoine would come in 37th, 2'36" behind the winner.
Le Mével was the strongest on the climbs and deserved the win.
Results:
1
Christophe Le Mével
Française des Jeux
3h34'35
2
David Moncoutié
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
+ 10
3
Thomas Voeckler
Bbox Bouygues Télécom
+ 28
4
João Cabreira
Centro Ciclismo de Loulé - Louletano
+ 37
5
Amaël Moinard
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
6
Sébastien Joly
Saur - Sojasun
s.t.
7
Rinaldo Nocentini
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
8
Stefano Garzelli
Acqua & Sapone - D'Angelo & Antenucci
s.t.
9
Alexander Efimkin
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
10
Rémi Pauriol
Cofidis, le crédit en ligne
s.t.
Spoiler
11 John Gadret AG2R La Mondiale s.t.
12 Clément Lhotellerie Roubaix Lille Métropole s.t.
With the Tour Méditerranéen over, attention returns to the Arabian peninsula and the Tour of Oman. A new event on the UCI calendar, the 2.1 race is organized by Amaury Sport Organization, A.S.O., the very same group that runs the Tour de France. Saur-Sojasun, participating with the same squad from the Tour of Qatar, will be hoping to showcase their talents with a wild card bid for Le Tour in mind. Much like the Tour of Qatar, the Tour of Oman is 6 stages, the first five being pan flat. Wind could play a factor, but the real decider in the race will be Stage 6, a 26.4km individual time trial.
The quality of riders in the start list is deep, with many PT teams bringing their main sprints. Mark Cavendish, André Greipel, Mark Renshaw, and Bernhard Eisel make up the power HTC - Columbia sprint train. Garmin bring their main man, Tyler Farrar, along with lead-out specialist Julian Dean. Not to mention, sprinters such as Allan Davis (Astana), Juan José Haedo (Saxobank), Alessandro Petacchi (Lampre - Farnese Vini), and Daniele Bennati (Liquigas - Doimo) have all made the trip. However, given the composition of the race, the man to beat in the GC competition will be strongman Fabian Cancellara (Saxobank).
As Saur-Sojasun brings the same squad, they will be working for sprinter Jimmy Casper. Casper had a very successful Tour of Qatar, with a stage win and the overall points jersey. It will be hard to replicate those results given the quality of riders, but Saur-Sojasun management has faith and high hopes.
Quite easily, a break of 10 riders formed in the early parts of the stage. Given the flat nature of the stage, the peloton would give them a wide margin to work with. No Saur-Sojasun rider took place in the break, deciding to stay with Casper and protect his interests.
A Skil - Shimano rider leads the break.
At the only sprint point, near the middle of the stage, the break had an advantage of 4'41" over the field. Liquigas and Lampre took to the front to begin to whittle down the gap.
This would be accomplished rather easily, as the last break riders were caught with 16.7km remaining.
As focus shifted towards the impending sprint finish, the dark skies finally opened up. The harsh conditions were not welcomed by the peloton.
HTC leads the peloton. Saur-Sojasun is coming up on the right as the 5km banner approaches.
The slick roads would lead to a crash with 9.6km remaining. Greg Henderson (Sky) and Tomasz Kiendys (CCC Polstat Polkowise) got tangled going around a corner.
In the sprint, Saur-Sojasun did a good job setting up Casper for the final burst, however he could not keep up with the fastest men on the day. Even still, he came in 4th.
Set up brilliantly by Dean, Farrar dominated the field, finishing 2 bike lengths ahead of his nearest competitor. Haedo was able to edge out Kenny De Haes (Omega Pharma - Lotto) for 2nd.
Stage 2's racing would see the peloton travelling in the Ad Dakhiliyah (Interior Region) of Oman. Starting in the largest city in the region, Nizwa, and heading north to the smaller, picturesque Samail.
Most of the riders seemed to want to take it easy today, with only 4 adventurous souls participating in the breakaway. They were Michael Schär (BMC Racing Team), Andriy Grivko (Astana), Stijn Neirynck (Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator), and Matic Strgar (Vorarlberg - Corratec).
Ocean in the Interior Region? Strgar leads the break.
Throughout the day, HTC - Columbia would pace the peloton. Their control over the race did not come as a surprise, given their poor performance in the first stage with their first rider coming in 24th. Given their strength, this can only be classed as a failure.
HTC would not let the break get away, and would catch the break with 11.9km left.
The winds were a bit higher today, and caused havoc in the creation of the sprint trains. Nevertheless, Jimmy Engoulvent worked hard to get Jimmy Casper highly placed before the sprint started. Quite noticeably, Romain Matheou failed in his duties.
Casper in the middle of a chaotic peloton approaching the last turn.
Casper would not be able to repeat last stage's placing, finishing in a disappointing 18th. Because of Matheou's poor job, Engoulvent and Casper had to do too much work.
HTC would be able to make amends for yesterday, with André Greipel taking the hotly contested sprint finish. Interestingly, rival Mark Cavendish did not sprint, finishing in 34th.
No one could beat the "Gorilla" today. Not even the three-headed monster of Farrar, Burghardt, and Flecha...
Tour of Oman: Stage 3: Saifat Ash Shiekh - Qurayy: 139.5km
Again, flat.
Today, Saur-Sojasun would try to take place in the breakaway. After two days of staying in the peloton, it was time for some of the riders to test their legs.
Cyril Bessy and Laurent Mangel would both try to make the move.
Bessy and Mangel attacking with an Omega rider.
Both of the riders would successfully make the break with 9 other riders. The 11 riders took a while to start working together, making their prospects bleak.
Bernado Riccio of CDC - Cavaliere drives the break on.
As predicted the break would be reeled in. Mangel, the last rider ahead on the road, was wrapped up with 9.3km remaining.
Hoping to rebound after a disappointing result yesterday, Saur-Sojasun worked to set the pace at the end of the stage. Unlike yesterday, their sprint train was at the head of the group.
Saur-Sojasun and Omega Pharma - Lotto next and next, leading the field.
However, once again, Romain Matheou failed to carry out his duties. The hard work to place the sprint train had drained him, and again, Jimmy Engoulvent and Jimmy Casper had to do too much work. Casper would finish in 12th.
HTC would again be in the thick of things, with Mark Renshaw and André Greipel both closing extremely fast. However, unlike yesterday, they would have to settle for the podium places.
The other sprint train battling with Saur-Sojasun on the run-in did a great job launching sprinter Kenny De Haes, who would take the win just ahead of the HTC riders and Tyler Farrar.
De Haes would take the overall race lead with the win.
Nothing new, another mass sprint finish should be expected.
7 riders would form an early breakaway. They were Michael Schär (BMC), Tomasz Kiendys (CCC Polstat), Christoph Sokoll (Vorarlberg - Corratec), Volodymyr Rybin (ISD CT), Pieter Vanspeybroeck (Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator), David Kemp (Fly V), and Tomáš Buchácek (PSK Whirpool).
The BOTD
The break would get a maximum lead of 5'02" with 86km remaining before Omega Pharma - Lotto began to work in order to protect Kenny De Haes' lead.
The run-in to the finish was not without some action, as with 45km left, Hayden Roulston (HTC), Johan Van Summeren (Garmin), and Chris Sutton (Sky) would jump out of the peloton.
Three attacking riders jump out of the main field.
Roulston would get a better jump than the other two, and eventually bridge to the slowing break. However, it was futile move, as ever rider was closed down before the 10km banner was passed.
The sprint was a bit unorganized, and no real trains formed. This would certainly benefit some, but who?
Bernhard Eisel (HTC), JJ Haedo (Saxobank), and Allan Davis (Astana) all were well positioned as the sprint started. It looked as though the winner would come from these three.
Jimmy Casper was a bit further back, with Mark Cavendish and Mark Renshaw, the former being conspicuously absent thus far in the race.
Casper is too far back as the line approaches. But can Cav do anything?
Casper would do better today, coming in 9th.
The winner would come from that leading group of 3 in the form of Davis, who used Eisel's wheel to propel himself to victory.
However, the story of the day was Cavendish's awakening from his winter slumber, closing extremely fast to finish 4th. Surely if he opened up his sprint a bit earlier he would've won. Perhaps the Manx Missile is just now finding form.
Tour of Oman: Stage 5: Wattayat - Sultan Qaboos Stadium: 139.5km
The last flat stage and last chance for a Saur-Sojasun victory.
Because of the this, the team did not send any riders in the breakaway. Given the sprint trains' poor performance setting up Jimmy Casper, team management wanted extra riders on hand in case reinforcements were needed.
A break of 11 riders formed including white jersey wearer Steven Van Vooren (Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator).
Another doomed break travelling through Oman.
As expected, the peloton easily reeled in the breakaway with 15.4km left in the stage.
When the sprint trains were forming, Romain Matheou lost control of his bike, and fell. Thankfully, no other Saur riders were affected, but many other riders could not avoid the fallen Frenchman.
Matheou picks up his bike as other riders start to lick their wounds.
Several riders would abandon due to injuries, but no notable riders were caught up by the mess.
Perhaps by coincidence, or perhaps not, but with Matheou, the Saur-Sojasun sprint train worked much more effectively today, launching Casper on the left. On the right side of the road Alessandro Petacchi and JJ Haedo were level with Mark Cavendish in Petacchi's wheel.
Cavendish emerging from Petacchi's slipstream, with all pushing for the win.
Casper would record his best result of the race, coming in 3rd. He would just edge out the Argentinian Haedo, who had previously beaten Casper in all but one stage during the Tour of Oman.
Cavendish was clearly regaining his famous finishing burst, but on this day, he did not have enough to pass Ale-Jet. Petacchi would claim the last sprinter's stage in the Tour of Oman.
Interestingly, with such a strong field of sprinters, every sprint stage saw a unique winner. However, Kenny De Haes would go into the final time trial leading.
Tour of Oman: Stage 6: Al Jissah - Muscat Corniche: 26.2km
The final stage of the Tour of Oman would likely decide the overall GC. A 26.2km individual time trial would surely separate the riders after 5 pan flat stages. With no major climbs, this stage seems tailor made for Swiss machine Fabian Cancellara, who lies 40" off the lead.
Saur - Sojasun's team, to put it lightly, is very suspect in this discipline and the team management is expecting very little.
Jimmy Engoulvent was the best placed Saur - Sojasun rider, finishing 20th in 37'59". A pleasant surprise for the team.
The sun was shining as Polish champion Maciej Bodnar (Liquigas) sets the early time to beat, 37'47".
Bodnar held this time for a while, until Leif Hoste, seen pushing for the line, beat him by 9 seconds.
The very next rider, Svein Tuft, would come in at 37'35", lowering the best time further by 3 seconds.
Straight out of a Terminator movie, Stephen Cummings would have an excellent time trial, finishing 5th.
A bit long in the tooth, Bert Grabsch shows he still has ability, finishing 1 second better than Cummings for 4th.
George Hincapie rounded off a good time trial for BMC with a 3rd place finish.
3-time WC ITT Champion Cancellara is on the course. Can anyone beat him?
David Zabriskie getting out of his saddle, giving everything he had. He would finish in 37'04". Would that time hold up?
Not even close. Cancellara crossing the line in 35'57" to take the stage and the overall victory.
Results:
1
Fabian Cancellara
Team Saxo Bank
35'57
2
David Zabriskie
Garmin - Transitions
+ 1'07
3
George Hincapie
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'11
4
Bert Grabsch
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 1'16
5
Stephen Cummings
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 1'17
6
Daniele Bennati
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 1'30
7
Alessandro Ballan
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'37
8
Svein Tuft
Garmin - Transitions
+ 1'38
9
Leif Hoste
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 1'41
10
Philippe Gilbert
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 1'43
Spoiler
11
Piet Rooijakkers
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
12
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 1'48
13
Marcus Burghardt
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'49
14
Maciej Bodnar
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 1'50
15
Tyler Farrar
Garmin - Transitions
+ 1'55
16
Luca Ascani
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 1'57
17
Johan Van Summeren
Garmin - Transitions
+ 2'00
18
Travis Meyer
Garmin - Transitions
+ 2'01
19
Ian Stannard
Sky Professional Cycling Team
s.t.
20
Jimmy Engoulvent
Saur - Sojasun
+ 2'02
21
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'05
22
Alfredo Balloni
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'08
23
Alex Rasmussen
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'09
24
Ben Day
Fly V Australia
+ 2'10
25
Greg Van Avermaet
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
26
Kristof Vandewalle
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'12
27
Kenny De Ketele
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'14
28
Adriano Malori
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
29
Martijn Maaskant
Garmin - Transitions
+ 2'17
30
Thomas De Gendt
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'18
31
Steve Houanard
Skil - Shimano
+ 2'20
32
Christopher Sutton
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'22
33
Tomasz Kiendys
CCC Polsat Polkowice
s.t.
34
Stuart O'Grady
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'25
35
Hayden Roulston
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'26
36
Andriy Grivko
Astana
s.t.
37
René Weissinger
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 2'28
38
Matti Breschel
Team Saxo Bank
s.t.
39
Mauro Finetto
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 2'30
40
Rasmus Guldhammer
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'34
41
Grega Bole
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
42
Nicolas Portal
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'35
43
Alessandro Petacchi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
44
Mark Cavendish
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'39
45
Cyril Bessy
Saur - Sojasun
+ 2'40
46
Tom Veelers
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
47
Lorenzo Bernucci
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'42
48
Matthew Wilson
Garmin - Transitions
s.t.
49
Greg Henderson
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'44
50
Silvère Ackermann
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 2'45
51
Michael Schär
BMC Racing Team
+ 2'46
52
Leopold König
PSK Whirlpool - Author
+ 2'48
53
Reto Hollenstein
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 2'49
54
Darren Lill
Fly V Australia
s.t.
55
Pieter Vanspeybroeck
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'51
56
Michael Mørkøv
Team Saxo Bank
s.t.
57
Olivier Kaisen
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 2'52
58
Hubert Schwab
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 2'53
59
Nikita Novikov
Itera - Katusha
+ 2'54
60
Yevgeniy Nepomnyachshiy
Astana
s.t.
61
Jay Thomson
Fly V Australia
s.t.
62
Daniele Pietropolli
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
63
Petr Ignatenko
Itera - Katusha
+ 2'55
64
Staf Scheirlinckx
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
65
Jeff Louder
BMC Racing Team
+ 2'56
66
Lars Petter Nordhaug
Sky Professional Cycling Team
s.t.
67
Zoltan Madaras
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 2'57
68
David Jai Crawford
Fly V Australia
s.t.
69
Kenny De Haes
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
70
Alexander Porsev
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
71
Daniele Callegarin
CDC - Cavaliere
s.t.
72
Davide Bonuccelli
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 2'58
73
Francesco Gavazzi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
74
Bernhard Eisel
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'59
75
Stijn Neirynck
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
76
Floris Goesinnen
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
77
Alexander Kristoff
BMC Racing Team
+ 3'00
78
Adam Sznitko
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 3'01
79
Péter Simon
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 3'02
80
Evgueni Popov
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
81
Laurent Mangel
Saur - Sojasun
+ 3'03
82
Frederik Willems
Liquigas - Doimo
s.t.
83
Tomáš Buchácek
PSK Whirlpool - Author
s.t.
84
Ben Kersten
Fly V Australia
+ 3'04
85
Mark Renshaw
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 3'07
86
Allan Davis
Astana
s.t.
87
Jaroslaw Rebiewski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 3'09
88
Sergey Rudaskov
Itera - Katusha
+ 3'10
89
Volodymyr Rybin
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'11
90
Juan José Haedo
Team Saxo Bank
+ 3'12
91
Krisztian Lovassy
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
s.t.
92
Luca Zanasca
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 3'13
93
Tomasz Marczynski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
s.t.
94
Arkimedes Arguelyes
Itera - Katusha
+ 3'14
95
Chris Barton
BMC Racing Team
+ 3'17
96
Jonathan Cantwell
Fly V Australia
s.t.
97
André Greipel
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 3'18
98
Anatoliy Pakthusov
ISD Continental Team
s.t.
99
Grégory Joseph
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
100
Julian Dean
Garmin - Transitions
s.t.
101
Jakub Danacík
PSK Whirlpool - Author
+ 3'19
102
Gianluca Coletta
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
s.t.
103
David Kemp
Fly V Australia
+ 3'20
104
Mickaël Delage
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 3'21
105
Vicente Reynès
Team HTC - Columbia
s.t.
106
Lucas Sebastián Haedo
Team Saxo Bank
s.t.
107
Davide Cimolai
Liquigas - Doimo
s.t.
108
Simone Ponzi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
109
Jonas Ljungblad
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 3'22
110
Eugenio Loria
CDC - Cavaliere
s.t.
111
Jaroslaw Marycz
Team Saxo Bank
s.t.
112
Mirko Selvaggi
Astana
+ 3'23
113
Romain Matheou
Saur - Sojasun
s.t.
114
Igor Abakoumov
ISD Continental Team
s.t.
115
Domenico Agosta
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 3'25
116
Jérôme Baugnies
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 3'26
117
Sebastian Siedler
Vorarlberg - Corratec
s.t.
118
Steven Van Vooren
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 3'27
119
Scott Nydam
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
120
Sylwester Janiszewski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
s.t.
121
Denis Flahaut
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'30
122
Alexandre Usov
ISD Continental Team
s.t.
123
Walter Proch
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 3'32
124
Petr Bencík
PSK Whirlpool - Author
s.t.
125
Robert Wagner
Skil - Shimano
+ 3'33
126
Maciej Paterski
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 3'34
127
Fabrice Jeandesboz
Saur - Sojasun
s.t.
128
Bernard Sulzberger
Fly V Australia
+ 3'35
129
Artem Topchanyuk
ISD Continental Team
s.t.
130
Maksym Vasilyev
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'36
131
Marcin Tomaszewski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
s.t.
132
Stéphane Poulhiès
Saur - Sojasun
+ 3'37
133
Valeriy Dmitriyev
Astana
+ 3'38
134
Alexander Gufler
Vorarlberg - Corratec
s.t.
135
Bolat Raimbekov
Astana
s.t.
136
Tomasz Repinski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 3'41
137
Danilo Andrenacci
CDC - Cavaliere
s.t.
138
Christoph Sokoll
Vorarlberg - Corratec
s.t.
139
Sergey Renev
Astana
s.t.
140
Jacopo Guarnieri
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 3'42
141
Jin Long
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
142
Roberto Antonio Richeze
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
s.t.
143
Bernardo Riccio
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 3'43
144
David Deroo
Skil - Shimano
+ 3'45
145
Alexander Mironov
Itera - Katusha
+ 3'47
146
Rostislav Mykhaylov
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'48
147
Matic Strgar
Vorarlberg - Corratec
s.t.
148
Davide Viganò
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 3'50
149
Tomas Danacik
PSK Whirlpool - Author
s.t.
150
Adrian Honkisz
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 3'58
151
David Puskas
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 4'01
152
Job Vissers
Skil - Shimano
+ 4'07
153
Adriano Angeloni
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 4'08
154
Cédric Coutouly
Saur - Sojasun
+ 4'12
155
Jimmy Casper
Saur - Sojasun
+ 4'15
GC:
1
Fabian Cancellara
Team Saxo Bank
15h19'43
2
David Zabriskie
Garmin - Transitions
+ 1'07
3
George Hincapie
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'11
4
Bert Grabsch
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 1'16
5
Stephen Cummings
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 1'17
6
Daniele Bennati
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 1'30
7
Tyler Farrar
Garmin - Transitions
+ 1'35
8
Philippe Gilbert
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
9
Alessandro Ballan
BMC Racing Team
+ 1'37
10
Svein Tuft
Garmin - Transitions
+ 1'38
11
Leif Hoste
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 1'41
12
Piet Rooijakkers
Skil - Shimano
+ 1'43
13
Maciej Bodnar
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 1'50
14
Luca Ascani
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 1'57
15
Johan Van Summeren
Garmin - Transitions
+ 2'00
16
Travis Meyer
Garmin - Transitions
+ 2'01
17
Ian Stannard
Sky Professional Cycling Team
s.t.
18
Jimmy Engoulvent
Saur - Sojasun
+ 2'02
19
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'05
20
Alfredo Balloni
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'08
21
Alex Rasmussen
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'09
22
Greg Van Avermaet
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 2'10
23
Ben Day
Fly V Australia
s.t.
24
Kristof Vandewalle
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'12
25
Adriano Malori
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'14
26
Kenny De Ketele
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
27
Alessandro Petacchi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'15
28
Kenny De Haes
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 2'17
29
Martijn Maaskant
Garmin - Transitions
s.t.
30
Thomas De Gendt
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'18
31
Steve Houanard
Skil - Shimano
+ 2'20
32
Christopher Sutton
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'22
33
Stuart O'Grady
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'25
34
Hayden Roulston
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'26
35
Mark Cavendish
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'27
36
Matti Breschel
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'28
37
René Weissinger
Vorarlberg - Corratec
s.t.
38
Mauro Finetto
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 2'30
39
Grega Bole
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'34
40
Rasmus Guldhammer
Team HTC - Columbia
s.t.
41
Nicolas Portal
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'35
42
Tom Veelers
Skil - Shimano
+ 2'40
43
Cyril Bessy
Saur - Sojasun
s.t.
44
Matthew Wilson
Garmin - Transitions
+ 2'42
45
Lorenzo Bernucci
Lampre - Farnese Vini
s.t.
46
Silvère Ackermann
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 2'45
47
Bernhard Eisel
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'47
48
Allan Davis
Astana
s.t.
49
Pieter Vanspeybroeck
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
50
Leopold König
PSK Whirlpool - Author
+ 2'48
51
Darren Lill
Fly V Australia
+ 2'49
52
André Greipel
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'50
53
Michael Mørkøv
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'51
54
Juan José Haedo
Team Saxo Bank
+ 2'52
55
Olivier Kaisen
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
56
Hubert Schwab
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 2'53
57
Yevgeniy Nepomnyachshiy
Astana
+ 2'54
58
Jay Thomson
Fly V Australia
s.t.
59
Nikita Novikov
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
60
Mark Renshaw
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 2'55
61
Staf Scheirlinckx
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
62
Daniele Callegarin
CDC - Cavaliere
s.t.
63
Lars Petter Nordhaug
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 2'56
64
Jeff Louder
BMC Racing Team
s.t.
65
Zoltan Madaras
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 2'57
66
Tomáš Buchácek
PSK Whirlpool - Author
s.t.
67
Francesco Gavazzi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'58
68
Davide Bonuccelli
CDC - Cavaliere
s.t.
69
Frederik Willems
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 2'59
70
Floris Goesinnen
Skil - Shimano
s.t.
71
Alexander Kristoff
BMC Racing Team
+ 3'00
72
Laurent Mangel
Saur - Sojasun
+ 3'01
73
Evgueni Popov
Itera - Katusha
+ 3'02
74
Ben Kersten
Fly V Australia
+ 3'04
75
Volodymyr Rybin
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'05
76
Krisztian Lovassy
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 3'10
77
Sergey Rudaskov
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
78
Gianluca Coletta
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 3'13
79
Jakub Danacík
PSK Whirlpool - Author
s.t.
80
Arkimedes Arguelyes
Itera - Katusha
+ 3'14
81
Julian Dean
Garmin - Transitions
+ 3'18
82
Anatoliy Pakthusov
ISD Continental Team
s.t.
83
Grégory Joseph
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
84
Mirko Selvaggi
Astana
+ 3'19
85
Davide Cimolai
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 3'21
86
Vicente Reynès
Team HTC - Columbia
s.t.
87
Mickaël Delage
Omega Pharma - Lotto
s.t.
88
Lucas Sebastián Haedo
Team Saxo Bank
s.t.
89
Steven Van Vooren
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
90
Jonas Ljungblad
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 3'22
91
Sebastian Siedler
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 3'26
92
Jérôme Baugnies
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
93
Alexandre Usov
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'30
94
Denis Flahaut
ISD Continental Team
s.t.
95
Walter Proch
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 3'32
96
Petr Bencík
PSK Whirlpool - Author
s.t.
97
Robert Wagner
Skil - Shimano
+ 3'33
98
Maciej Paterski
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 3'34
99
Fabrice Jeandesboz
Saur - Sojasun
s.t.
100
Artem Topchanyuk
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'35
101
Bernard Sulzberger
Fly V Australia
s.t.
102
Maksym Vasilyev
ISD Continental Team
+ 3'36
103
Stéphane Poulhiès
Saur - Sojasun
+ 3'37
104
Bernardo Riccio
CDC - Cavaliere
s.t.
105
Bolat Raimbekov
Astana
+ 3'38
106
Alexander Gufler
Vorarlberg - Corratec
s.t.
107
Valeriy Dmitriyev
Astana
s.t.
108
Christoph Sokoll
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 3'41
109
Sergey Renev
Astana
s.t.
110
Jacopo Guarnieri
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 3'42
111
David Deroo
Skil - Shimano
+ 3'45
112
Davide Viganò
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 3'50
113
Job Vissers
Skil - Shimano
+ 3'57
114
Michael Schär
BMC Racing Team
+ 4'05
115
Jimmy Casper
Saur - Sojasun
+ 4'07
116
Cédric Coutouly
Saur - Sojasun
+ 4'12
117
Stijn Neirynck
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 4'22
118
Reto Hollenstein
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 4'26
119
Alexander Porsev
Itera - Katusha
+ 4'30
120
Péter Simon
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 4'31
121
Jonathan Cantwell
Fly V Australia
+ 4'46
122
Scott Nydam
BMC Racing Team
+ 4'56
123
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 5'04
124
Marcus Burghardt
BMC Racing Team
+ 5'05
125
Matic Strgar
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 5'15
126
Rostislav Mykhaylov
ISD Continental Team
+ 5'17
127
Adriano Angeloni
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 5'37
128
Romain Matheou
Saur - Sojasun
+ 5'53
129
Daniele Pietropolli
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 6'10
130
Petr Ignatenko
Itera - Katusha
+ 6'11
131
Greg Henderson
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 6'13
132
David Jai Crawford
Fly V Australia
s.t.
133
Adam Sznitko
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 6'30
134
Igor Abakoumov
ISD Continental Team
+ 6'31
135
Chris Barton
BMC Racing Team
+ 6'33
136
Simone Ponzi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 6'37
137
Jaroslaw Marycz
Team Saxo Bank
+ 6'38
138
Jaroslaw Rebiewski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
s.t.
139
Domenico Agosta
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 6'41
140
Tomasz Marczynski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 6'42
141
Sylwester Janiszewski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 6'56
142
Danilo Andrenacci
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 6'57
143
David Kemp
Fly V Australia
+ 6'59
144
Andriy Grivko
Astana
+ 7'03
145
Alexander Mironov
Itera - Katusha
s.t.
146
Tomasz Repinski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 7'10
147
David Puskas
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 7'17
148
Tomasz Kiendys
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 7'20
149
Adrian Honkisz
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 7'27
150
Eugenio Loria
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 8'20
151
Jin Long
Skil - Shimano
+ 8'27
152
Tomas Danacik
PSK Whirlpool - Author
+ 9'12
153
Marcin Tomaszewski
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 11'50
154
Luca Zanasca
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 13'27
155
Roberto Antonio Richeze
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 15'49
Points:
1
Kenny De Haes
Omega Pharma - Lotto
61
2
Juan José Haedo
Team Saxo Bank
60
3
Tyler Farrar
Garmin - Transitions
54
4
Mark Renshaw
Team HTC - Columbia
49
5
André Greipel
Team HTC - Columbia
41
6
Jimmy Casper
Saur - Sojasun
41
7
Mark Cavendish
Team HTC - Columbia
34
8
Alexandre Usov
ISD Continental Team
34
9
Bernhard Eisel
Team HTC - Columbia
32
10
Allan Davis
Astana
30
11
Sebastian Siedler
Vorarlberg - Corratec
30
12
Alessandro Petacchi
Lampre - Farnese Vini
25
13
Fabian Cancellara
Team Saxo Bank
25
14
Matti Breschel
Team Saxo Bank
23
15
Philippe Gilbert
Omega Pharma - Lotto
22
16
Daniele Pietropolli
Lampre - Farnese Vini
22
17
David Zabriskie
Garmin - Transitions
20
18
Greg Henderson
Sky Professional Cycling Team
19
19
Jacopo Guarnieri
Liquigas - Doimo
16
20
George Hincapie
BMC Racing Team
16
21
Juan Antonio Flecha
Sky Professional Cycling Team
15
22
Alessandro Ballan
BMC Racing Team
15
23
Marcus Burghardt
BMC Racing Team
15
24
Bert Grabsch
Team HTC - Columbia
14
25
Stephen Cummings
Sky Professional Cycling Team
12
26
Greg Van Avermaet
Omega Pharma - Lotto
11
27
Job Vissers
Skil - Shimano
10
28
Denis Flahaut
ISD Continental Team
10
29
Grega Bole
Lampre - Farnese Vini
10
30
Daniele Bennati
Liquigas - Doimo
10
31
Michael Schär
BMC Racing Team
10
32
Christopher Sutton
Sky Professional Cycling Team
9
33
Stuart O'Grady
Team Saxo Bank
9
34
Julian Dean
Garmin - Transitions
8
35
Travis Meyer
Garmin - Transitions
8
36
Svein Tuft
Garmin - Transitions
8
37
Igor Abakoumov
ISD Continental Team
8
38
Andriy Grivko
Astana
8
39
Volodymyr Rybin
ISD Continental Team
7
40
Leif Hoste
Omega Pharma - Lotto
7
41
Bernardo Riccio
CDC - Cavaliere
6
42
Gianluca Coletta
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
6
43
Jakub Danacík
PSK Whirlpool - Author
6
44
Steven Van Vooren
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
6
45
Tomáš Buchácek
PSK Whirlpool - Author
6
46
Stijn Neirynck
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
6
47
David Kemp
Fly V Australia
6
48
Matthew Wilson
Garmin - Transitions
5
49
Piet Rooijakkers
Skil - Shimano
5
50
Reto Hollenstein
Vorarlberg - Corratec
5
51
Mirko Selvaggi
Astana
4
52
Frederik Willems
Liquigas - Doimo
4
53
Pieter Vanspeybroeck
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
4
54
Alex Rasmussen
Team Saxo Bank
4
55
Mickaël Delage
Omega Pharma - Lotto
4
56
Alexander Porsev
Itera - Katusha
4
57
Peter Sagan
Liquigas - Doimo
4
58
Mauro Finetto
Liquigas - Doimo
3
59
Laurent Mangel
Saur - Sojasun
2
60
Krisztian Lovassy
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
2
61
Daniele Callegarin
CDC - Cavaliere
2
62
Jimmy Engoulvent
Saur - Sojasun
2
63
René Weissinger
Vorarlberg - Corratec
2
64
Maciej Bodnar
Liquigas - Doimo
2
65
Matic Strgar
Vorarlberg - Corratec
2
U25:
1
Maciej Bodnar
Liquigas - Doimo
15h21'33
2
Travis Meyer
Garmin - Transitions
+ 11
3
Ian Stannard
Sky Professional Cycling Team
s.t.
4
Alfredo Balloni
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 18
5
Greg Van Avermaet
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 20
6
Kristof Vandewalle
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 22
7
Adriano Malori
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 24
8
Kenny De Ketele
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
s.t.
9
Thomas De Gendt
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 28
10
Steve Houanard
Skil - Shimano
+ 30
Team:
1
Team Saxo Bank
46h03'43
2
BMC Racing Team
+ 3
3
Garmin - Transitions
+ 6
4
Liquigas - Doimo
+ 34
5
Sky Professional Cycling Team
+ 49
6
Omega Pharma - Lotto
+ 1'00
7
Team HTC - Columbia
+ 1'42
8
Skil - Shimano
+ 2'09
9
Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator
+ 2'10
10
Lampre - Farnese Vini
+ 2'22
11
Saur - Sojasun
+ 3'11
12
CDC - Cavaliere
+ 3'18
13
Fly V Australia
+ 3'19
14
Vorarlberg - Corratec
+ 3'28
15
Astana
+ 3'53
16
Itera - Katusha
+ 4'12
17
PSK Whirlpool - Author
+ 4'36
18
Tecnofilm - Betonexpressz 2000
+ 4'37
19
ISD Continental Team
+ 5'18
20
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 14'25
Unfortunately, after the race, we were disappointed to be informed our wildcard entry to Paris-Nice was rejected. Androni Giocattoli, Cervelo, Cofidis, and Bbox Bouygues Télécom were deemed more worthy of entry.
A last ditch effort to get into the Tirreno-Adriatico, which was always likely to fail, did. Androni, Acqua & Sapone, CarmioOro NGC, Cervelo, and Miche were given the 5 open spots.
Quietly, Saur - Sojasun team management is unsure why Androni deserve two wildcard berths in concurrent races. Lack of entry will leave the team with no racing for a long period in the middle of March. Nevertheless, adjustments will be made to rider calendars and Air France will be disappointed and may pull their sponsorship, as they expected the team to win the KOM competition in Paris-Nice.
The next race on the Saur-Sojasun calendar is the two-day race, the Tour du Haut Var. This race covers some rugged terrain in Southern France. Additionally, given the time of year, bad weather will also likely be a factor.
The start list contains many familiar faces from the French racing circuit this year. Bbox Bouygues Télécom bring Thomas Voeckler and Nicolas Vogondy, while Cofidis have Samuel Dumoulin and Christophe Kern. Voeckler and Dumoulin have already shown their strength this season. AG2R will led by foreigners Vladimir Efimkin and Rinaldo Nocentini. Lastly, Emanuele Sella and Domenico Pozzovivo will lead CarmioOro NGC and Colgano - CSF respectively.
After the disappointment of being rejected from Paris-Nice, the Saur - Sojasun team has extra motivation to perform well and show the cycling world they are worthy of inclusion into the big races. They will be using the same line-up from the Tour Méditerranéen with Sébastien Joly leading the team.
The first stage would likely be one for the sprinters, but, it take a strong rider to survive the climbs on the day. The very first climb of the day, the Col de Gassin, was short, but quite steep with a 7.9% gradient. It would not be a pleasant start. The biggest climb on the day was the Col de la Garde Freinet would test the riders fitness. The 5.5km climb, with an average gradient of 4.1% has the potential to break up the group.
Saur - Sojasun did not send any riders into the breakaway today, which initially was made up of these 9 riders: Marcello Pavarin (Colnago), Nadir Haddou (Big Mat - Auber 93), Gaël Malacarne (Bretagne - Schuller), Steven Tronet (Roubaix Lille Métropole), Christoph Pfingsten (Van Vliet EBH Elshof), Laurent Beuret (CarmioOro NGC), Tjarco Cuppens (Continental Team Differdange), Boy Van Poppel (Rabobank CT), and Dimitri Kryvtsov (ISD - Neri).
The break riding through the rain.
Several kilometers later, 5 more riders jumped from the peloton in an effort to bridge to the break. Again, no Saur - Sojasun riders were involved. This time, Bruno Saraiva (Centro Ciclismo de Loulé - Louletano), Brian Ligneel (Jong Vlaanderen - Bauknecht), Roman Maikin (Itera - Katusha), Julien Bérard (AG2R), and Saïd Haddou (Bbox), made the move.
A small chase group formed on the Col de la Garde Freinet.
The chasers were able to make the connection with the break on the descent of the Col de la Garde Freinet, at that time, they had an advantage of 3'13" over the main field.
Back in the peloton, while travelling through the commune of Le Luc, the narrowing roads caused the peloton to split. Only 66 riders made it through in the main group. All of Saur - Sojasun's riders were safe, but GC contenders Nocentini and Pozzovivo weren't so lucky.
The split forms as the road narrows.
The peloton was able to maintain its advantage over those who lost contact on the flat group between Le Luc and the next climb, the Col du Revest.
At the bottom of the Col du Revest, Saur - Sojasun leader Joly, surprised everyone, by attacking, 68km from the line.
Joly leaves the peloton behind.
Joly quickly began to eat into the break's lead on the Col du Revest. However the climb wasn't long enough for him to bridge.
Joly summits the Col du Revest alone, still behind the leading 14 riders.
There was around 35km of flat between the Revest and the next small climb, the Col du Bougnon. It would take a great effort by Joly to bridge in this terrain. With 40km left in the race, Joly was 1'08" behind the leaders, and 1'05" ahead of the peloton.
Initially, Joly continued to eat into the lead of the break, but he was never going to win a 14 vs. 1 battle. Joly put in a great effort, but sat up with 30km left in the stage, only 48" behind the break. The peloton would caught Joly just before the Col du Bougnon.
Joly is caught by the peloton.
The breakaway would hold on over the Bougnon, and through Sainte Maxime, but would be caught before the final rise to Grimaud.
At this point, Saur - Sojasun had their best sprinter Cyril Lemoine positioned up front. However, he would have no benefit of a sprint train. He would have to find his own way to the line.
The final kilometer of the road was slightly uphill and very narrow. Knowing this, the sprinters opened up early, hoping to gain the best position. Heading into the last corners, Kenny Van Hummel (Skil - Shimano) and Dumoulin headed the field.
Van Hummel and Dumoulin race around the final bend.
Van Hummel was able to hold off the field, thanks to his strength and the narrow roads. Dumoulin would settle for second, while Lemoine grabbed 12th.
Tour du Haut Var: Stage 2: Draguignan - Montaroux: 197.4km
The second, and final stage of the Tour du Haut Var would be decisive, as well as very difficult. The peloton would navigate 5 climbs on the day, ending with the difficult Mur de Montaroux (Wall of Montaroux), a 2.5km climb that averages 6.5%.
Before the finishing climb, the peloton would have to tackle the Côte de Tourtour, the Côte des Tuillières, the Col des Marjoris, and the Col de Mans. Seeing as the Tourtour and the Tuillières are early on, there is likely to be any action seen there. But the positioning of the Marjoris, a short climb with an average gradient of 7.7% and the Col de Mans, a 6.8km climb at 4.8% in the latter part of the stage should see a selection made.
On the first climb of the day, Domenico Pozzovivo (Colnago), Christophe Riblon (AG2R), and Florian Guillou (Bretagne - Schuller) moved out of the peloton. All three had lost time yesterday when the peloton split.
It was part of Saur - Sojasun's plan to get in the break, put given the worrying presence of Pozzovivo, this was urgently done. Julien Simon countered the initial move in hopes of joining the breakaway. He was joined by Renaud Dion (Roubaix Lille Métropole), Håkan Nilsson (Continental Team Differdange), and Davy Commeyne (Landbouwkrediet).
The break forming on the Côte de Tourtour.
The seven riders would work well together up the rest of the climb, edging out their lead. Given the pedigree of the breakaway riders, it would take a strong effort to contain them.
By the Côte des Tuillières, they were already ahead of the main field by 5'06". Sensing trouble, the peloton began to ride harder, and breaks already began to occur on the steep hills.
The ground was fairly flat for nearly 60km, which allowed the peloton to regain control of the race, as they let the breakaway's lead hover around 4 minutes.
The Col des Marjoris saw no action from the peloton, as it was probably too far out.
However, the breakaway would break up into 3 groups on its slopes. Pozzovivo and Riblon would move away from their companions. The second group would contain Nilsson and Commeyne. Julien Simon was in the last group with Dion and Guillou. Simon was in this group on team orders, as he had been told to sit up and conserve energy...
As the peloton began the ascent of the Col de Mans, Saur - Sojasun moved to the front to set a fast tempo. Jonathan Hivert's turn at the front shredded the field. Sébastien Joly sat second wheel.
Hivert and the Saur - Sojasun team blew the race apart on the Col de Mans.
Hivert pulled off the front and Joly unleashed a ferocious attack 7km from the summit, over 50km from the finish.
Joly has rode with a great attacking style thus far this season.
When Joly left the peloton, he was 3'14" behind the leaders, and 1'58" behind teammate Julien Simon.
Joly was able to connect with his waiting teammate several kilometers before the summit. Immediately, Julien Simon began to work for his team leader. The two riders would leave Dion and Guillou behind quickly, and would reach the top alone, 1'53" behind the leaders and 1'33" ahead of the peloton.
Simon leading Joly up the Col de Mans.
Simon, still with some energy, would lead the descent. The two would throw caution to the wind in an effort to make up more ground on the leaders. On the way, the would catch and pass Commeyne and Nilsson. Upon reaching flat ground, they were 1'30" behind the leaders. More impressively, they were now 2'40" ahead of the shrinking peloton.
Simon and Joly making a quick descent off the Col de Mans.
With 22km remaining, Simon was empty, and Joly would take off on the attack again. Thanks to Simon's great work, Joly was still very fresh.
Joly would reach Pozzovivo and Riblon with 10km remaining in the stage. He would immediately pass the two exhausted riders. However, at this stage, the peloton only lurked 56" back!
Joly catching the leaders on the road, with the peloton just around the bend.
However Joly was very strong, and able to maintain his advantage. It was coming down, but only slowly. With 5km left, he still had a lead of 40". This is when the attacks came. First was Samuel Dumoulin.
Dumoulin goes after Joly.
Next was Thomas Voeckler. Who would catch and pass Dumoulin.
Voeckler launches a strong attack.
Voeckler would continue his attack onto the Mur de Montaroux. Up ahead, Joly was desperately trying to hang on to his advantage.
Can Joly hold off a charging Voeckler?
Voeckler underestimated the difficulty of the Mur de Montaroux, and mistimed his attack. Having come so close to Joly, he would fall back in the final kilometer. Joly would hold on to complete a great ride and win the Tour du Haut Var!
valverde321 wrote:
Great win, both the stage and GC. But if this keeps up, you'll be hearing from me about the difficulty needing a raise. And you won't like that.
I may consider moving to extreme, but am hesitant. I don't think my results have been too unrealistic. Joly has either been a 1st or 2nd favorite on his two stage wins. Casper is a really good sprinter in the game that can't quite compete with the very elite. And Lemoine's win was pretty fluky.
I think a lot of my success has to do with PCM10's shortcomings in sprints and hilly stages though, combined with good early fitness from my riders.
roturn
Great win. So you would have deserved a wildcard obviously
But funniest result is Kenny Van Hummel as 6th. Didn`t lose much time.
I was shocked Androni would get it over me.
Yeah, I was shocked when I saw him still with the leading pack. He has a 67 for Hill, which probably needs to be lowered.
Omloop Het Nieuwsblad opens the Belgian cycling season and is the first cobbled race of the year. The peloton will deal with 9 cobbled sections, and numerous short steep climbs. Over a month before the big cobbled prizes of Paris-Roubaix and Ronde van Vlaanderen, the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad should be an entertaining start to the Spring classics season.
Most of the big guns are making their presence felt in this race. Fabian Cancellara and Matti Breschel lead Saxobank. They will contend with Tom Boonen (Quickstep), Juan Antonio Flecha (Sky), Filippo Pozzato (Katusha), Bjorn Leukemans (Vacansoleil), and Leif Hoste (Omega Pharma - Lotto). The only serious cobbled teams missing are Cervelo Test Team and Rabobank, both of whom have have decided to skip the race. Rabobank has sent their developmental team though.
Cobblestone racing is not one Saur - Sojasun's strongest aspects. However, it is a goal of team management to develop and gain experience in such races. Jimmy Casper is the team's best cobble rider, and even so, he is average. He will lead the team with Jimmy Engoulvent and Stéphane Poulhiès as his lieutenants. Overall, nothing is really expected from the team.
A breakaway formed several kilometers into the race. It did not feature any real threats as it was composed of 11 riders: Thomas Rohregger (Milram), Thierry Hupond (Skil - Shimano), Adriano Malori (Lampre), Dmitriy Fofonov (Astana), Brice Feillu (Vacansoleil), Benny De Schrooder (An Post - Sean Kelly), Christian Meier (Garmin), Tom Slagter (Rabobank CT), Laurent Didier (Saxobank), Cesare Benedetti (TeamNetApp), and Francis Mourey (FDJ). The break had a 2'20" lead when the reached the first cobbled section.
The break on the cobbles.
After the peloton got back onto smooth roads, three riders left the main field in an attempt to bridge to the break. They were Wouter Weylandt (Quickstep), Staf Scheirlinckx (Omega Pharma - Lotto), and Sep Vanmarcke (Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator). Unlike the breakaway riders, all three of these riders were cobbled specialists.
Despite this, they were allowed to get away, and would connect with the break before the second cobbled section.
The break reached the second section 4'26" ahead of the peloton. Here, Vanmarcke would not wait for the slower break riders, and used his talent to move away from those riders who could not keep up. Only Weylandt and Scheirlinckx had the strength to go with him.
Vanmarcke, Scheirlinckx, and Weylandt now lead on the road.
With 65km remaining, and beginning the 3rd cobbled section, the 3 leading riders had a lead of 44" over the original break riders, and 5'26" over the main field. A dangerous lead given the terrain left to cover.
Then, disaster struck for Sep Vanmarcke. He suffered a puncture on the cobbles.
Vanmarcke raises his hand to signal his team car.
As Scheirlinckx and Weylandt moved away, Vanmarcke remained calm and slowly clawed his way back. Soon enough, he was back with the leaders.
The 3rd to last cobbled section came with only 34km left in the race. The original breakaway had been caught, but the 3 leaders had a 3'50" lead. It now began to appear as if the peloton had made a mistake letting Scheirlinckx, Weylandt, and Vanmarcke escape.
The leaders in the peloton now realized they would need to react in order to catch the riders up the road. With 25km remaining, Cancellara, Boonen, and Flecha attacked.
The favorites begin attacking.
A small group of the elite riders formed, containing Cancellara, Boonen, Flecha, Pozzato, Johan Van Summeren, Leif Hoste, and Bernhard Eisel.
There was one cobbled section left.
Up the road, Sep Vanmarcke, who had made the initial move, and done the bulk of the work, fell back. Weylandt and Scheirlinckx would likely fight it out for the win.
But, here comes Cancellara!
The Swiss strongman was closing fast.
The other favorites tried to counter, but none could stay with Cancellara, who reached the leading two with 8.5km left. Strangely, despite looking extremely strong, Cancellara did not try to drop Scheirlinckx and Weylandt.
In the final kilometers, Cancellara led Scheirlinckx and Weylandt through the streets of Gent.
The leading three.
17" behind them was Johan Van Summeren, who was having a great ride, having left everyone else behind.
Could Van Summeren complete his great ride and reach the leaders...
The third group on the road contained Flecha, Pozzato, Eisel, Hoste, and Vanmarcke.
A strong third group.
Van Summeren began to fade, and it was clear one of the leading three would take the win. Even a strong, late attack from Hoste couldn't bring down the lead.
As the leaders rounded to final corner, Cancellara still lead and was looking strong.
Cancellara still in the lead around the final turn.
But as the round straightened out, it began very clear that Cancellara had made a mistake keeping Wouter Weylandt around, who easily sprinted past the Swiss favorite. Scheirlinckx would fall back a bit, but still finish 3rd.
Jimmy Casper was the highest finishing Saur rider in 38th. Oddly, the race judges gave the first 53 riders the same time, when that was clearly not the case.