Belgian favourite Tom Boonen rocketed to his third Ronde Van Vlaanderen finish in Oudenaarde today, winning a three man sprint at the end of reinvented Classic. The Omega Pharma Quick Step rider continued his superb season by outsprinting Filippo Pozzato (Farnese Vini-Selle Italia) and Alessandro Ballan (BMC Racing Team), with the three going clear of a big group inside the final twenty kilometres.
The decisive move came on the climb of the Oude Kwaremont, where Ballan jumped clear of the lead group. Pozzato – who is clearly back to his best – floored it in pursuit, Boonen latched to his wheel, and bridged across.
The three raced on to the final big climb, the Paterberg, where Pozzato flexed his muscles and put the other two under pressure. Boonen went over the summit a length or two back, but quickly got back on. Behind, Liquigas Cannondale rider Peter Sagan realized that he had missed the decisive move, and tried to bridge across alone.
He was unsuccessful in this bid, and went back to the chase group, which was similarly unable to get back on terms.
Heading into the final five kilometres, the leading trio were well clear and had scope to scrap it out tactically. Ballan was the weakest sprinter of three and attacked repeatedly to try to lose the other two. He went with three kilometres to go, then again just before the two kilometre banner and, finally, under the kite.
Each time, Pozzato left it for Boonen to chase; each time the Belgian did so, willing to bet on his sprint.
Ballan led from the front and was quickly distanced when Boonen jumped. Pozzato pulled alongside his rival’s back wheel and tried to come past, but the Omega Pharma Quick Step rider was simply too quick and won the sprint without problems.
“It is amazing…I wasn’t expecting it. I wasn’t even feeling super today, I don’t know why but I was feeling a bit tired,” he said after the finish. “But as the race went on, I kept the same feeling and the others got tired.
“In the final, I had to count on my sprint…I wasn’t strong enough to get away. It was an amazing race.”
Pozzato showed much better form and focus than in recent years, but appeared to make a tactical error in thinking he would be able to out-gallop Boonen. In retrospect he may regret not countering Ballan’s moves with an attack of his own; instead, he’ll have to be satisfied with the runner-up slot, plus the knowledge that he should be a very strong contender for Paris-Roubaix.
Ballan is also back to his top form, posting his best showing since winning the race five years ago. It was his fifth time to finish in the top ten in the race, and he played a key role in forming the final break with his move on the Oude Kwaremont.
"The race was really hard and the first 100 kilometers were very fast," he said. "I tried to attack several times in the final kilometers, but Boonen was too strong. For me, it was a good performance."
The Italian has effectively taken over leadership of the BMC Racing Team from Philippe Gilbert and Thor Hushovd, who are both currently far from their best. Their team-mate Greg Van Avermaet picked up fourth out of the chase group, with Sagan netting fifth and Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma Quick Step) sixth.
BMC Racing Team directeur sportif John Lelangue had hoped one of his riders could win the Classic, but said that he was satisfied with third and fourth.
"We knew we would have to stay quiet in the first part, make the numbers and then be a strong team in the final," he explained. "Once we had Ballan in the front, of course we had to ride with Boonen and Pozzato. Having Ballan there and Greg in the second group means we were ready for a sprint with Greg if it came back together."
Pre-race favourite Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack Nissan) crashed out of the race in the feedzone and so was unable to fight for what he hoped would be his second Flanders title. His team has confirmed that he sustained a triple fracture to his right collarbone, spelling an end to his Classics season. Ditto for GreenEdge rider Sebastian Langeveld, who also broke his clavicle in a separate incident.
How the race played out:
There were huge crowds at the race start in Brugge, with a good pre-race atmosphere and bright sun to add to the mood. The course was very different to previous years, but the controversial exclusion of the Muur van Geraardsbergen didn’t appear to diminish interest in the event.
As expected, the attacks came right away. After just over ten kilometres of aggression, a fifteen-man move was established and set about building time.
Present was American rider Tyler Farrar (Garmin Barracuda), sent up the road to take pressure off the team and its designated leader Sep Vanmarcke, Gert Dockx (Lotto-Belisol), Peio Bilbao (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Vladimir Isaichev (Katusha) and Tom Veelers (Argos-Shimano), Pablo Lastras Garcia (Movistar), Manuel Belletti (AG2R La Mondiale), Sven Vandousselaere (Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator), David Boucher (FDJ-Big Mat), Anders Lund (Saxo Bank), Maarten Tjallingii (Rabobank), Baptiste Planckaert (Landbouwkrediet-Euphony), Massimo Graziato (Lampre-ISD) and the NetApp duo of Daniel Schorn and Andreas Schillinger.
These built a lead of almost six minutes, but this had dropped closer to the five minute mark after 100 kilometres. The peloton was largely remaining together, although a temporary split featuring Aliaksandr Kyuschinski (Katusha), Alexandre Pichot (Europcar), Matthew Hayman (Sky Procycling), Tomas Vaitkus (GreenEdge), Lars Boom (Rabobank) and Kris Boeckmans (Vacansoleil-DCM) did occur between the Molenberg and the Rekelberg.
Riders such as former world champion Thor Hushovd (BMC Racing Team), 2011 Paris-Roubaix winner Johan Vansummeren (Garmin Barracuda) and Hayman then ramped up the speed and helped soften up the peloton.
Heading onto the first climb of the Oude Kwaremont, 77 kilometres from the finish, the gap between break and bunch was just under one minute 50 seconds. Farrar led the fragmenting break up the climb, with Lund also going well. Back in the peloton, the Sky team were active in the chase, while Boonen and Cancellara were close together, approximately fifteen riders back from the front.
Once over the top, Gilbert moved towards the front with 74 kilometres to go, but it remained to be seen if he would have the legs of last year or not.
Up front, the break moved onto the Paterberg, with Farrar again keen to ride at the front. The gap to the chasers was one minute 27 seconds and it seemed inevitable that they would be caught, but he wanted to delay that as long as possible.
Boonen was prominent as the chasers headed onto the climb, but it seemed more about keeping out of trouble than initiating anything. Breschel also rode at the front. Marco Marcato (Vacansoleil DCM) accelerated clear going over the summit, but was reeled in soon afterwards.
Next up was the Koppenberg, 66 kilometres from the finish, and there Lastras and Lund were strongest. The gradient and cobbles took their toll on the break, with the riders clawing the pedals around and lugging their shoulders about as they inched their way up the slopes.
Gilbert rode at the front heading onto the climb, but the fact that he had been riding beforehand made it clear that he had slotted into a team role rather than that of leadership. Ballan and Van Avermaet would be the protected riders today.
The action ramps up a notch:
Cresting the summit of the climb, Belgian favourite Boonen was sitting a long way back. It was not immediately clear if he had had a problem, but his placing wasn’t ideal. Very soon afterwards his Omega Pharma Quick Step team-mate Chavanel jumped hard, but was immediately covered by Daniele Bennati (RadioShack Nissan), and eased back.
Several kilometres later Oscar Gatto (Farnese Vini) had a bike problem and was forced to stop. Two of his team-mates waited to give him assistance, then helped him begin his pursuit of the peloton.
The incident would cost him energy, but it also ensured that he wasn’t involved in a crash which occurred several minutes later in the feedzone. Several riders were scattered, but the most badly affected was one of the top race favourites, Cancellara. A huddle of team-mates and spectators gathered around him as he received treatment from the race doctors.
He remained sprawled on the ground, practically motionless, as the race ambulance pulled up. His race was done, and the team would later confirm that he fractured his collarbone in three places.
Ahead, the Ronde continued without him. With sixty kilometres remaining the bunch was one minute 47 seconds behind the leaders, with the Omega Pharma Quick Step and Vacansoleil teams riding on the front. The pace was ticking along rather than hectic, but the dial moved up a notch when Hayman surged and brought clear a small group also containing George Hincapie (BMC Racing Team).
The bunch was quick to respond, but that acceleration had ignited the touchpaper and there was suddenly a new urgency in the peloton.
A few skirmishes followed, with one big move being launched by Tomas Voeckler (Europcar) 56 kilometres from the line. Hayman closed him down quickly, but the surge stretched things out and caused a temporary split on the peloton.
Undeterred, Voeckler tried again and this time the bunch let him go. He had a one minute twelve second cap to close at that point and those behind estimated that alone he wasn’t much of a threat.
The assessment was right and he was pulled back soon afterwards. Several other surges followed, but each was marked and the pace settled down again, albeit nervously.
The break continued to plug on ahead but with 52 kilometres to go, the gap was down to 50 seconds. On the straight sections those out front were visible, and this prompted Assan Bazayev (Astana) to jump clear. Anthony Geslin (FDJ BigMat) bridged across to him, and together they tried to cross the gulf.
With the Kruisberg approaching, position in the bunch was important. However Boonen was sitting down the back, prompting some concerns. Fears that he may have a physical problem were assuaged when he had some on-the-move adjustments to his bike, but it meant that he was far from the front when the attacks started to fire on the climb.
Gilbert moved to the fore and put the hammer down there, getting up to Bazayev and Geslin. Approximately ten others were also there, including Yaroslav Popovych (RadioShack Nissan), Voeckler, Christian Knees (Sky Procycling), Bjorn Leukemans (Vacansoleil) and Oscar Gatto (Farnese Vini Selle Italia).
The surge in pace didn’t result in a lasting gap, though, with the peloton getting back up to the Gilbert group. However it spelled the end for the break, which was absorbed 46 kilometres from the line. One exception was an impressive Boucher, who attacked before the junction and pulled out a fourteen second lead.
The big guns start to fire:
With the Oude Kwaremont fast approaching again, a lot of jostling for position was taking place. Sebastian Langevelt (GreenEdge) decided to swerve and take to the path to try to move up, but collided with a spectator and went down hard. He remained on the tarmac, clutching his collarbone. Like Cancellara, the fracture meant that his race was over.
Boucher continued out front, with his FDJ BigMat team-mates peculiarly leading the chase. They rolled past him soon afterwards, although they did have the decency to acknowledge the work of their team-mate with a pat on his back.
On the climb, Vanmarcke hit the front and stretched his legs. Ballan, Boonen and Pozzato were glued to his wheel, their strength starting to show. As they went over the summit Chavanel pushed through and opened up a slight gap, but the French champion wasn’t given much leeway. However the net effect was that the bunch was blown apart, with a group of approximately thirty moving clear.
Peter Sagan (Liquigas) had been the first to mark him, showing good sharpness, but wasn’t quick enough to grab a bottle held up by a team soigneur.
Luca Paolini (Katusha) then decided to make the most of his good legs, clipping clear with 36 kilometres to go. He was immediately covered by Juan Antonio Flecha (Sky Procycling) and Vincent Jerome (Europcar), and together they pulled several seconds ahead, really putting the hammer down to open a gap before the Paterberg.
Turning right onto the climb, Van Summeren (Garmin Barracuda) ran wide and ended up on the barriers. He came off, as did John Degenkolb (Team Argos Shimano), and several riders were delayed. One of those held up was Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky Procycling), who went over the top several seconds back and chasing hard.
The crash created an eleven man lead group, which hurtled along and built a decent lead en route to the Hoogberg. Boonen was there, along with Sagan, Vanmarcke, Chavanel, Ballan, Nicki Terpstra (Omaga Pharma Quick Step), Pozzato, Jerome, Paolini, Tosatto and Guarnieri. Boasson Hagen and Gatto chased behind, but were picked up by the next group on the road.
Inside the final 30 kilometres, Jerome attacked alone and opened a good lead. With 27 kilometres to go he had an eight second gap over the other ten, and was pedaling well. One kilometre later Terpstra clipped away in pursuit; Vanmarcke got up to him, then Paolini came across. Going under the 25 kilometre to go banner, the Boonen group were several seconds back but succeeded in getting back up to those riders soon after.
Jerome continued to plug away, holding a twenty second lead but grimacing with the effort. With the final ascent of the Oude Kwaremont fast approaching, he knew he needed a good buffer, and did everything he could to eke out a bigger lead.
Boonen became frustrated with a lack of pace in the chase, beckoning the others to come through. However with three Omega Pharma Quick Step riders in that group, the others felt that it was up to Boonen and his team-mates to do the bulk of the riding.
Terpstra decided to turn things around and jumped clear, just forcing the others to chase and giving Boonen and Chavanel a break. Behind, a very big chase group was being driven along by the Sky Procycling team, who were determined to get Boasson Hagen back up there.
Terpstra joined Jerome at the front with 21 kilometres to go. Almost immediately, the big chase joined up to make it a forty or fifty man bunch chasing the two leaders. With twenty kilometres remaining, they had an eight second lead as the climb began.
Marcus Burghardt (BMC Racing Team) edged slightly ahead and bridged across first.
The final act plays out:
Once onto the cobbles the road pitched up and things started to really happen. Terpstra pushed ahead, but was quickly joined and passed by Ballan. Sagan took up the chase, with Boonen taking his wheel and Pozzato also looking good.
Boonen moved to the front but appeared not to be going full gas in pursuit. That suited Ballan just fine, as he continued to try to build time. Pozzato sensed danger and surged hard, drawing Boonen clear in a stunning burst of speed and getting across to his compatriot. The others were left far behind of the three leaders.
Paolini was frustrated by the lack of cooperation behind and put in a big surge to try to bridge. Chavanel tried to get him back, but was unable to do so, and the Italian continued alone. He rode impressively to get close to the leaders, but was unable to do so before the start of the Paterberg, fourteen kilometres from the finish.
There, Pozzato pushed the pace on the climb, with Ballan digging very deep to hang on and Boonen doing likewise, albeit several lengths back. He managed to stay with them and recovered after the summit. Meanwhile Sagan jumped clear from the chase group and took up the position that Paolini had been in before the climb.
Conscious that he was chasing hard, with a big group slightly further back, the three leaders knuckled down and extended their lead. With twelve kilometres remaining Sagan was twenty seconds back, with the chase approximately ten seconds behind him again.
The Slovakian was reeled in eight kilometres from the line, at which point that group was forty seconds down. The three leaders were working well together, riding through and off to ensure that they would settle the race between them.
Heading into the final four kilometres, the gap was up to one minute and two seconds. Boonen was clearly the fastest sprinter on paper, making it likely that one or both of the two Italians would attack before the finish. Sure enough, Ballan accelerated hard going under the three kilometre banner, but didn’t have the strength to make the difference. Boonen closed him down; Pozzato waited.
The attack spelled an end to the smooth cooperation between the leaders. Ballan kicked again with two kilometres to go, and Boonen again brought him back. Pozzato was playing things coolly, letting the two do the racing.
Ballan knew he had no chance in the sprint and jumped once again going under the kite. Boonen was straight onto him; Pozzato again waited, sitting at the back, rather than seizing the moment to try his own jump.
Into the final 500 metres, the pace had dropped considerably as Ballan rolled on the front. The Italian opened up the gallop but was quickly distanced; Boonen accelerated and try as he did, Pozzato couldn’t get by.
Paolini jumped clear in search of fourth, but Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing Team) led in the chase group, swamping him at the line. The Italian had ridden very hard but, like several others, didn’t use his strength at the right time. Ultimately, the victory went to the rider who got his tactics just right.