Sun awaits the riders on the start line today, I'll bet most of them are happy to see it, but cobblers like Vanspeybrouck Nolf
would probably have preferred worse conditions. Also, the wind is as good as non-existing, everything looks set for a big sprint at the end of the day. But luckily, it's the riders who makes the race, not the weather conditions.
The race is about to start, all 104 riders are set. Those dreaming of fighting for fame and glory should at least be aware of the run in to the finish line, as they're starting the race the very same place as they're ending it.
It doesn't take long before we get our first attack. In fact, it only take 600 meters. Someone is definitely hoping for a breakaway win here. Zenagui
leads the way. He's followed by Locatelli Li
Meaning both teams that sent their "hilly squads" here are looking for an early move. That's probably their only chance at a good result here.
Armstrong
decides that this is the move to be in, and goes solo after them when they've established a 1 minute advantage over the peloton. He quickly joins forces with the 3 up front.
Many teams recognized how easy Armstrong joined our first attackers, and they're sending their men up the road. We still have more than 200 kilometers left to race, but that doesn't mean anything to Perrett
He's after the 4 up front, and he's followed by a duo from Team Rothaus - Aegon; Schachmann & Koep
But Pokerstars are looking determined today, they're hitting the front, to chase down the attackers. They're using Kluge, Mohs, Degenkolb and Ingels at the front, meaning Nolf is their captain, as their best sprinter, Mohs, is doing work early on.
And indeed, they catch the 6 early attackers with 192km to the finish line. In other words, there's plenty of time for more attacks!
Armstrong
goes again, this time there are 4 riders following him. They are: Schachmann Teklit Stroetinga Zenagui
Locatelli
decided that this was the right move, and he joins the 5 others with 170 kilometers left. Their gap is decent, they've quickly built their lead to 1'40.
But Pokerstars shows no mercy today, and they keep the gap around 1'40. Tzortzakis McConvey Preidler
takes the opportunity, and attacks away from the bunch. It doesn't take long before they catch the 6 riders in front. This could be a good breakaway, consisting of 9 men, but will they be strong enough on the cobbles?
But there's this team named Pokerstars. They're continuing to push hard back in the peloton. With 140 kilometers left, the gap is no more than 2 minutes. Also, we're approaching the cobbles now.
Ouch! Just as we're about to hit the first cobbled section, one of today's biggest favourites, Vanspeybrouck
punctures. Luckily, he was close to the front before the puncture, meaning he's at the very back of the peloton after his puncture. But it might prove critical, the roads get narrow now, and it won't be an easy task to navigate to the front of the peloton again.
There's the overview of the peloton arriving the first cobbled section. Lots of work for Vanspeybrouck! And there's no doubt that positioning will be key on these narrow roads.
Up in front, it's Schachmann
who gets the honour to be the first rider taking on cobbles today. But you can see the peloton behind, it's looking more and more like a lost case for the 9 attackers.
On the second cobbled section, it's Kluge & Ingels
doing some strong work at the front of the peloton. They're definitely trying to take advantage of Vanspeybrouck's puncture, but are they strong enough?
And with 122 kilometers left of the race, the peloton led by Pokerstars storms past today's early breakaway. The race is wide open, will some of the big pre-race favourites try their luck now? Afterall, this is the hardest part of the course, the obvious problem is that there's more than 80 kilometers of flat roads to race after the last cobbled section.
Approaching the third cobbled section, Pokerstars' hard work pays off. They've created a split, a pretty big one too. Vanspeybrouck is in the first group, the same goes for all the other big favourites. The most notable rider missing is Jayco - Red Bull's captain for the race Giaux
Which is awful news for their team manager, as they're not having other riders that looks threatening on cobbles. They can only hope the two groups come together again. On the other hand, Cyclevox' manager should be relieved, Vaitkus
was the last rider on the right side of the split.
Kluge
really hammered it on the third cobbled section. The front group of 50 riders is on one long line, the riders at the back can only hope Pokerstars soon decide to slow down.
Kluge
seems to be superman today, he hits the front again, on the 5th cobbled section. Pokerstars are all in for their leader, Nolf, today.
With 98 kilometers to go, we finally see a new attack. It's Preidler
who pulls the trigger. Traksel
is the only one to follow. Interesting tactic from Koppert, Veelers is a strong captain for this race, and now they're putting on the other teams, attacking with Traksel.
But Kluge is having a great day today, he dominates the cobbles, and he catches Traksel on the 7th cobbled section, with 95 kilometers left of racing.
84 kilometers to go, and we've finished the cobbles. Pokerstars and Kluge still leads the peloton, but being honest, they didn't succeed on the cobbled sections. There's still 48 riders in the peloton, though, Giaux is still missing, and he will most likely not make contact. His group is more than 4 minutes behind, and it looks like they've given up. On the other hand, it has started to rain, will we see an epic battle in terrible weather, between the true fighters on the last third of the race?
We've fast forwarded a bit, now there's 50 kilometers left, and Pokerstars is continuing their determined work. One could ask why Mohs is relaying, he’s the best sprinter in the front group, and would have been a good bet for the win here. Pokerstars clearly has a different view on things, are they thinking the two hills will be too tough for Mohs? Speaking of sprinters, Vantomme
is still at the front. The same goes for Vaitkus Van Loocke Blythe Veelers
The last two are also great cobblers, meaning their legs should be relatively fresh for an eventual sprint, because this could very well go down to a big battle between the sprinters in the peloton!
With 25 kilometers to, we finally see why Pokerstars have worked the whole day. Their captain, Nolf
attacks! It should also be noted that we've been over the "King of the Mountain" sprint once now, and it wasn't much of a hill to speak about, 700 meters long, with an average gradient at about 4%. Meaning most riders in the front group will need to attack for the win, as the previously mentioned sprinters should be hard to beat in a sprint for the win.
But Nolf's try is suprisingly weak. With 19 kilometers he's caught. Vantomme is nicely placed at the front of the group. He's looking to improve his excellent 2nd place in Nokere - Koerse.
Only 16 kilometers to go now, and Maes
attacks! Finally we’re seeing something from Bpost today. They’ve been invisible the whole race, have they saved energy for a big show on the final 16 kilometers?
Quite surprisingly, Blythe
follows Maes' attack. Looks like he doesn't want to sprint head to head with Vantomme and the other fast men, hoping to decide the race in his favour with a late attack.
Coyot
puts in a strong effort at the fron of the chasing group, and catches them both. But the strong riders aren't done. Nolf
launches again. Coyot Blythe
follow him. But they're not able to get any gap at all. This looks set for a mass sprint.
But with 9 kilometers left, Boom
thunders past Nolf, into the race lead! The home crowd is yelling louder now, seeing one of their favourites in the race lead.
But it wasn't meant to be, and with 5000 meters left of the race, he's caught. But the home crowd is still making noise, as there's another Dutchman attacking. It's Veelers
who goes for it. Strange tactic from Veelers, who has a pretty good sprint, but there’s no sprint train behind him. Can he take advantage of that, surprising everyone with a late attack?
At least Gaudin De Maar
thinks Veelers is a dangerous rider to let go, and they're flying past him.
Veelers
manages to just hold on to Gaudin's wheel, and when the sprint starts, they're holding a decent gap. Have they fooled everyone here?
Behind, everyone is sprinting desperately to catch the trio in front. It's Boom
in the middle, trying to win this all by himself. On his left, Vantomme
is coming with high speed. He's followed by Blythe Coyot Vaitkus
On the right side of the road, Maes Vanspeybrouck Nolf
try their best.
Only 1500 meters to go, and De Maar
still leads. Behind, Vantomme
catches Veelers and Gaudin. But have they all misjudged the power of De Maar?
100 meters later, Vaitkus
makes his move. Blythe is still on Vantomme's wheel.
Blythe
somehow finds space for his sprint with 900 meters to go. Albert
is in his slipstream, Vantomme is fading, but Veelers
has found more power deep down, and he's suddenly holding the fastest bike, challenging Blythe on the right side of the road!
And with only 300 meters left, Veelers holds a clear lead. But here come's another rider from Koppert! Traksel comes from nowhere down the middle, and he's putting up a real fight for 2nd place here. Could Koppert do a 1-2?
And Veelers crosses the line first, a huge win for Koppert!
Blythe
barely holds on to 2nd, ahead of Traksel in 3rd. De Maar
concludes his aggressive racing on the final kilometers with well-earned a 4th place.
All spectators thought Vaitkus
was 5th, but the judges give the 5th place to Vantomme
Top 10 is rounded off by Haussler Albert Coyot Vanspeybrouck
But Veelers was the winner of today's race, and with Traksel in 3rd, I'll bet Koppert celebrates big times.
