Belgian Thomas de Gendt (Vacansoleil) pulled off victory in the 154.5 kilometer opening stage of Paris-Nice today, outsprinting his breakaway companion in what was a surprise success over the sprinters in Houdan. Jeremy Roy (FDJ) crossed the line in second, with Garmin-Cervelo's Heinrich Haussler taking the field sprint to round out the podium in third.
Everyone expected the day's short effort to come down to a bunch sprint, and it very nearly did so. De Gendt and Roy just about held on while another from the break, Jens Voigt, was swamped by four riders just before the line. "We only had 30 seconds all of the time and I thought we could be caught in the last two kilometers," explained de Gendt.
"But we went full gas and they couldn't catch us," he said. The 24-year-old Vacansoleil rider credits the experience of his companions as a key factor in his win today: "Of course, it was great to be with Jens Voigt (Leopard-Trek). He was riding very hard and I knew that with him in the break, we had a chance. It was only a little chance, but we took it. It’s wonderful. I can’t believe it."
Unfortunately for the German, he was swallowed up in the closing meters and would have to settle for sixth place.
A slow start to a short day
The peloton began the day in Houdan without urgency, averaging just 31.5 kph during the first hour of racing. It took 15 kilometers for the first move to break free, which included Damien Gaudin (Europcar) and Gorka Izagirre Insausti (Euskaltel-Euskadi). The pair established a lead quickly, and Gaudin secured the first and only climb of the the day, the Cote de Septeuil, to earn the polka dot jersey of best climber.
The duo strecthed their advantage to more than 8 minutes before the American HTC-Highroad team began to reel them back. Eventually, Garmin-Cervelo and Team Sky joined in the chase, and the two were caught after nearly 100 kilometers in the lead.
A calculated risk
Less than a handful of kilometers after the catch a trio of riders broke free. Voigt, Roy and de Gendt worked well together as the peloton behind began to splinter as echelons formed while they worked to match the pace. By the time the threesome reached the second sprint of the day they had 50 seconds on the motivated field. As they approached the closing kilometers, the Astana and Quick Step teams joined in the chase to see their lead dip to 30 seconds with 20 kilometers to race.
The escape remained defiant despite the closing gap, and with just 5 kilometers remaining they still had 20 seconds on the charging field. It was 17 seconds with three kilometers, then under the flamme rouge the advantage was little more than ten seconds. The bunch was closing rapidly but it was the Belgian who was able to deliver a winning surge to the line to mark the biggest victory of his career. Roy was second, while Haussler was quickest in the field sprint ahead of the young Peter Sagan (Liquigas) and Greg Henderson (Team Sky), confirming his successful journey back from knee injury.