Results and comments from around the world, including Hushovd, Sagan, Kwiatkowski, and Jungels
On a busy Sunday of racing, with men's national road race championships happening all over the world, VeloNation grabs the results and the comments from many of the winners. Peter Sagan won his third Slovak title in a row and Thor Hushovd got his third career Norwegian title, while André Greipel, Johnny Hoogerland, Jesus Herrada, Robert Kiserlovski, and Jan Barta were among the first-time winners. The brief results and comments begin below...
Germany:
1, André Greipel (Lotto-Belisol)
2, Gerald Ciolek (MTN-Qhubeka)
3, John Degenkolb (Argos-Shimano)
4, Marcel Meisen (BKCP-Powerplus)
5, Paul Voss (NetApp-Endura)
Greipel: “I am very satisfied with this title. At the beginning of the race, the smaller teams were controlling, and on the last lap there was a split in the peloton on the first of the course’s two climbs. Together with Marcel Sieberg I made it over, in a group of 18 riders. Marcel Kittel was behind the group. ‘Sibi’ attacked two kilometres from the finish, but 700 metres before the finish he was caught. I put in the sprint at 250 metres and won. Everything went according to plan today, especially the attack by Sieberg. I am very proud of my first national title. This is what I’ve always wanted. It doesn’t change much for me for the Tour because the motivation was already there, but of course I’m very happy that I can wear this beautiful jersey.” (Lotto-Belisol website)
The Netherlands:
1, Johnny Hoogerland (Vacansoleil-DCM)
2, Tom Dumoulin (Argos-Shimano)
3, Sebastian Langeveld (Orica-GreenEdge)
4, Pim Ligthart (Vacansoleil-DCM)
5, Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma-Quick Step)
Hoogerland: “Just before the finish, the team car drove up and I got tears in my eyes. After all the misery of the past two years, this is just fantastic. It’s been a long road. But I might come back better than ever. Nothing is more beautiful than to ride in the Dutch red, white, and blue jersey in the Tour. That’s a dream. I did not win much in recent years, but I was always there. Also as a team, we’ve had a lot of setbacks this year, but finally everything went well. I have always had confidence, but my spring was lost, but that does not make my whole season. Hopefully I can show even better things in the near future. I’m glad I’ve gotten to come back.” (Vacansoleil-DCM press release)
Spain:
1, Jesus Herrada (Movistar)
2, Jon Izagirre (Euskaltel-Euskadi)
3, Luis Leon Sanchez (Blanco)
4, Jose Joaquin Rojas (Movistar)
5, Eduard Prades (OFM-Quinta da Lixa)
Herrada: “[Our small group] decided to risk our necks and make it as hard as possible in the rolling hills to the finish. On the final climb I went with Izagirre, and the truth is we got it right. At one kilometre to go, I attacked him because I knew he would be a tough match for me in a sprint, and it worked out.” (Movistar website)
Switzerland:
1, Michael Schär (BMC Racing)
2, Martin Elmiger (IAM)
3, Martin Kohler (BMC Racing)
4, Reto Hollenstein (IAM)
5, Gregory Rast (Radioshack-Leopard)
Schär: “I knew I would have to do a long sprint. I trained a lot for the sprint this week because I knew I would need a strong sprint. I think that helped me a little bit. This will always be the one I remember. I'm happy – but what makes me happier is there are so many people who are happy for me, too. I'm usually the guy who helps. But now I finally have my own victory.” (BMC press release)
Russia:
1, Vladimir Isaychev (Katusha)
2, Vladimir Gusev (Katusha)
3, Andrey Solomennikov (RusVelo)
4, Pavel Kochetkov (RusVelo)
5, Ivan Rovny (Cermica Flaminia-Fondriest)
Isaychev: “I am very happy today! I can’t really describe it. This is the most important victory in my career. To win the Russian championship in such a great race, in such a strong fight, in my home city of Samara – it’s something special! I thank all my team for the great support and help they provided me today during the whole race. It was a hard race, so the team’s work was crucial for my success. In the final part of the race I tried to stay calm and to save some energy for the decisive attack. On the last climb I gave my all. This victory is very special for me, so I want to dedicate it to my brother Alexander, who tragically died last year.” (Katusha website)
Denmark:
1, Michael Mørkøv (Saxo-Tinkoff)
2, Morten Ollegaard (Blue Water Cycling)
3, Casper Von Folsach (Team Tre-For)
4, Matti Breschel (Saxo-Tinkoff)
5, Kristian Haugaard Jensen (Leopard-Trek Continental)
Mørkøv: “Actually, I felt kind of rusty at first, and I was one step behind everyone else all day. It really annoyed me that the first break went away without me, as it seemed to be the crucial one. But suddenly, having been forced to be one step behind turned out to be my advantage, because I wasn’t as tired in the bunch sprint as many others were after the demanding finale. I’m immensely proud of this title and I’m pleased to be able to wear the Danish flag on my back the coming year. It will particularly be an honour during my next race, which is the Tour of Denmark.” (Saxo-Tinkoff website)
Norway:
1, Thor Hushovd (BMC Racing)
2, Alexander Kristoff (Katusha)
3, Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky Procycling)
Hushovd: “There were thousands of people, a massive crowd, and that gave me a lot of motivation and helped me dig a bit deeper. I can't remember when I have been this strong in the past. So it's a bit sad that I was not selected to the Tour de France team. But like I have always said in the past, I respect the team's decision.” (BMC press release)
Luxembourg:
1, Bob Jungels (Radioshack-Leopard)
2, Pit Schlechter (Leopard-Trek Continental)
3, Jempy Drucker (Accent Jobs-Wanty)
Jungels: “It was really hard because we said we would go for Andy (Schleck). Laurent (Didier) and I were there to help him. I was pulling from the first lap to control the race. The break was composed of local riders so we actually caught them a bit too early. With the rain and everything, Andy didn’t feel good enough so we changed tactics. Laurent and I were also tired so we had to see what was possible. He attacked with 20km to go but was brought back after 5km. I counterattacked straight away and rode the last 15km alone. Everyone was looking at us to control the race so that was a lot of pressure. I can wear the Lux flag in every single race now, having won both the time trial and the road race. It’s my first year as a pro so these two wins are so awesome and I’m really happy!” (Radioshack-Leopard website)
Poland:
1, Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quick Step)
2, Adrian Honkisz (CCC Polsat Polkowice)
3, Lukasz Bodnar (Bank BGZ)
4, Robert Radosz (BDC-Marcpol)
5, Michael Olejnik
Kwiatkowski: “It was an amazing day for me. First of all I want to say thanks to my teammate Golas, who really gave me a great hand today, and also to the staff here at the race. They were amazing the entire week! Today it was an hilly course — not an easy parcour. We tried to control the race in the first part, and then in the middle of the race we started to attack but nobody let us go. I don't know how many attacks I did without succeeding. Then in a flat part I surprised the group. I attacked and I managed to bridge to the breakaway. At that point with about 10km to go I made an acceleration and I was left with only two other guys. We collaborated very well and I won the sprint. I'm really happy, as it's a dream for me. I want to dedicate this victory to my family, my girlfriend, and all my supporters. They deserve it, because they are always with me. It will be a kind of honour to ride with this jersey at the Tour de France. I can't wait to show it next Saturday at the start!” (Omega Pharma-Quick Step website)
Slovakia:
1, Peter Sagan (Cannondale)
2, Maros Kovac (Dukla Trencin-Trek)
3, Patrik Tybor (Dukla Trencin-Trek)
Sagan: “I’m really proud to be the national champion. Fans in Slovakia are really warm to me and to take a win in front of them is a way to say thanks. Today I finished in the best way, in terms of my road to the Tour de France. The feelings are good - better than Tour de Suisse - and the form is how I wanted. I had no chance [in the nationals race] to test myself in the massive sprint like what will happen in France, but for sure I know I’ll be stronger on the climbs. I’ll try to take advantage of this in my challenge for the green jersey with Cavendish, Greipel, and the other contenders.” (Cannondale website)
Czech Republic:
1, Jan Barta (NetApp-Endura)
2, Martin Bina
3, Petr Lechner (Arbö Gebrüder Weiss-Oberndorger)
4, Jaroslav Kulhavy
5, Martin Hunal (AC Sparta Praha)
Barta: “The race wasn’t easy for me today. I had thought I could get a result, but I was an individual starter today and had to beat a lot of teams. In the end it was a pretty close thing. Right now I’m just happy that I’m able to wear the jersey for a whole year – not just in the time trials but in every race.” (NetApp-Endura website)
Croatia:
1, Robert Kiserlovski (Radioshack-Leopard)
2, Radoslav Rogina (Adria Mobil)
3, Emanuel Kiserlovski (Meridiana-Kamen)
R. Kiserlovski: “This is my first title as an elite rider, so better late than never. For me it is always hard to win a championship as all riders look at me and control my movements. This was the case today, also. The course was not really my favorite type of course either. There were no long climbs, but it was very tough. It was constantly up and down and the wind made it very hard. Rogina tried to chase me down, but I need to thank my brother Emanuel for helping me a lot in the final and for disrupting the chase. This is nice.” (Radioshack-Leopard website)
Lithuania:
1, Tomas Vaitkus (Orica-GreenEdge)
2, Ignatas Konovalovas (MTN-Qhubeka)
3, Evaldas Siskevicius (Sojasun)
Vaitkus: “It’s a good feeling to win the race and wear the national jersey. It’s always special. I feel better and more confident with my condition. I think this is a good time for me to have this performance and show improvements. It wasn’t so easy today even when we got away from the peloton. Ignatas Konovalovas attacked on the last lap. He was really strong today. Maybe he was the strongest opponent for me. I really needed to work hard not to let him go to the line alone. I’m happy to get back to my national colours. I feel proud when I can race in it.” (Orica-GreenEdge website)
Belarus:
1, Andrei Krasilnikau
2, Siarhei Papok
3, Ihar Mytsko
Sweden:
1, Michael Olsson (People4you-Unaas)
2, Petter Persson
3, Hakan-Bo Nilsson
Slovenia:
1, Luka Pibernik (Radenska)
2, Matej Mugerli (Adria Mobil)
3, Jure Golcer (Tirol)
4, Matej Mohoric (Sava)
5, Kristjan Fajt (Adria Mobil)
Portugal:
1, Joni Brandao (Efapel-Glassdrive)
2, Tiago Machado (Radioshack-Leopard)
3, Helder Oliveira (OFM-Quinta da Lixa)
Austria:
1, Riccardo Zoidl (Gourmetfein-Simplon)
2, Stefan Denifl (IAM)
3, Harald Totschnig (Tirol)
4, Georg Preidler (Argos-Shimano)
5, Lukas Pöstlberger (Gourmetfein-Simplon)
Japan:
1, Yukiya Arashiro (Europcar)
2, Miyataka Shimizu