Quick Step's Stijn Devolder came out on top in the Belgian road national championships today, beating a defiant Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto) into second place on the 234.6 kilometer route consisting of seventeen circuits of a 13.8 kilometer loop in Leuven. Frederick Veuchelen (Vacansoleil) rounded out the podium in third.
"I am incredibly happy," Devolder said after the race. "This is a dream come true. This is a very special jersey for me! After wearing this jersey in 2007 in Ronse I had, quite possibly, one of the best season in my career. I hope that will be the case again. This success, paired with the Tour of Belgium win I obtained a few weeks ago, really rewards me for all the hard work I've done. I am truly and deeply satisfied."
Devolder had been under a lot of criticism from Quick Step boss Patrick Lefevere earlier this year for his lack of results, and now after adding the tricolore jersey to his recent Tour of Belgium triumph, his stock will rise for 2011 where he's been linked to a possible move to RadioShack or Vacansoleil.
The race set off under sunny warm skies, with six riders forming the early breakaway. Niko Eeckhout (An Post-Sean Kelly), Wilfred Cretskens (Omega Pharma-Lotto ), Jurgen Van de Walle (Quick Step) , Tim Mertens (Topsport Vlaanderen-Mercator) and Crédit Agricole teammates Jonathan Bertrand and Tom Van Den Haute made up the front of the race. The gap was held at less than 2 minutes, with Omega Pharma-Lotto unhappy with the presence of Van de Walle out front and riding for a Gilbert victory.
With three laps remaining the race was back together, and Gilbert made his first attempt to ride away. Rival Quick Step team wouldn't let their compatriot break free, and he only gained a maximum of 17 seconds over the chasers before being re-absorbed. At the 50 kilometer to go mark Nick Nuyens forced split that created a select group of eleven that included pre-race favorites Maxime Monfort (HTC-Columbia), Johan Vansummeren (Garmin-Transitions), Devolder, Gilbert, Jürgen Roelandts and Greg Van Avermaet from Omega Pharma-Lotto, and Veuchelen and Björn Leukemans from Vacansoleil.
Gibert tried to escape with just over 12 kilometers remaining, but it was a motivated Devloder who powered off the front to a 30 second gap in the final lap. Behind, Veuchelen was tacked onto the back of Gilbert and left him with all the work. There were 30 seconds separating Devolder from the chasing pair, and 30 more to the third group on the road. By the time they reached the approach to the finish the group of favorites were dangling a tenuous 10 seconds off the chasing duo. In the end Devolder proved too strong and maintained his advantage to the line for victory.