The bookies seem to have the opinion that we will get a true run race in the wet and wild conditions, they seem to feel that the winner of this race will come from either Nikolas Maes Pieter Vanspeybrouck Adam Blythe Frederik Nolf
or Tom Veelers
It is really a big test ahead of the big one's the E3 Prijs and next months Profronde van Drenthe.
We have two wild card entries from the CDiv2 here today and both get riders into the break of the day, possibly justifying their place at this event. Jakub Kasidlo
and Charles Wegelius
are part of a break of 8 riders clear in the flat first half of the race.
These two are joined by Nevio Tirloni
Petr Ignatenko Mujtaba Hussein Egbert Reekers Jakub Novak Jens Debusschere
The latter rider the best cobbled rider of the eight though in truth he is the best of a bad bunch. Still it is good to get camara time and these eight are given plenty of lee-way, as with 90km to go their lead is 6.30.
The 'big three' cobbled outfits are getting their act together in the latter half of the race with Bpost, Pokerstars and Koppert very visable at the front of the pack.
The break reach the first nasty sector you can see on their faces that suddenly this move doesn't seem such a good idea and for Kenya's Hussein at the back this must seem some way away from home!
Roger Kluge
is much more at home on this sort of terrain and he leads the pack hard up this tough section.
Indeed he causes a massive selection already with the pack whittled down to just 27 riders.
By far the biggest name missing from this group is surprise Nokere Koerse winner Damien Gaudin
who has sent the best of his squad to the front of the dropped riders to try and get this back.
One of the Pokerstars riders slips back from the lead group in David Boucher
with 75km to go it is looking difficult for Focussed to get Gaudin back. The lead 8 look set to be caught by the rampaging Bpost heavy 26 man favourites group just 1.30 back whereas Focussed 18 man chase group are two minutes further back.
Riders like Thor Hushovd Aleksei Saramotins
and Sven Vanthourenhout
are refusing to do any work with Focussed.
Back up front Pokerstars are dropping off the lead as they realise the new kids on the block Koppert and particularly Bpost have more impressive numbers. Bpost don't mess about and sent cyclo-cross star Niels Albert
to the front on Sector 3 to cause more damage.
This catches Pokerstar's leader Frederick Nolf out!
Nolf's seeming weakness or lack of concentration has him dropped, with Bpost and Koppert dropping the hammer this could be a big moment. Indeed now misfortune befalls another big favourite, Adam Blythe goes down...
It takes Blythe a little while to remount, but for Bpost and Koppert the race is on as they catch and pass the breakaway they have pulled 14 riders clear.
The full list of the 14 leaders then: Vanspeybrouck, Maes, Albert, Broers and Vansummeren Veelers, Traksel, Taillefour and Langeveld Eichler and Coyot Matti Breschel
(Tinkoff) Dmitri Kozontchuk Kevin Van Impe
Advantage then to teams Koppert and Bpost, Rapha Condor find themselves leading the third group on the road. Pokerstars have Nolf at about a minute with Blythe down to 2 minutes back.
Bpost continue to pile it on through Albert who manages to reduce the Dutch Koppert team down by one on sector 4 as Traksel loses touch.
Bpost do burn one of their domestiques in the process though with Broers going backwards and into the last 35kms they have got the lead to 1.50.
The chasers are reducing in numbers but are still clear of Blythe with Giaux helping Pokerstars riders Kluge, Nolf and Ingels who have Traksel, Broers and Haussler for company.
Blythe manages to ease up to this seven man chase group by sector five however and when Nolf attacks is able to follow.
These two work hard and manage to get the gap down to about 1.30 as we enter the last 15 kilometers. However the two start to attack each other and lose a bit of momentum. The Pokerstars team car can see the writing on the wall and decide to put everything into their wildcard in the lead group as Van Impe attacks.
Koppert send Langeveld up with him and the Dutch rider proves to be the stronger as Van Impe drops back he leads onto the last sector.
Predictably though Neils Albert he is really proving the domestique superman today as he easily closes it down for Bpost.
One issue though is that the Bposts have bought eight riders with their 4 to the finish now, they have got to try and finish it off. They seem to be getting in a bit of a muddle as they line up the sprint with Albert ahead of Langeveld and Vanspeybrouck on the left hand side of the road. But Vansummeren is leading out Breschel and Coyot in the middle.
Indeed Breschel seemingly confident that he is the best sprinter launches hard and Albert looks around as if to say 'What is the plan guys?'!
Coyot, Kozontchuk and Eichler are alert to the fast finishing Dane, but Saab's poster boy has launched a little too early. Behind Van Impe and Veelers react....
Veelers storms up the inside as Matti Breschel begins to fade.
As the Dutch fans scream in delight, the disappointed Belgian look for the colours of their post service team. They do at least have the green colours of Van Impe to cheer on.
Vanspeybrouck launches a desperate late bid to claw things back into the last 500m.
He somehow manages to nip past all but Van Impe and Veelers, but cannot stop Koppert from winning race. A well timed sprint from the Dutchman there.
Van Impe rescues Pokerstars' race with second place, Vanspeybrouck is third with his teammates Albert, Maes and Vansummeren a rather embarressed 8th, 9th and 11th. Trilux take out 5th and 6th behind Breschel who was 4th, Kozuntchuk manages a decent 7th place.
Behind a frustrated Blythe manages to outsprint Nolf for 13th.
Red Bull's Giaux is 16th with Gaudin of Focussed will back in 27th.
