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Elite Men:

Sørensen solos in Japan

By:
Cycling News
Published:
October 25, 2009, 13:27,
Updated:
October 26, 2009, 22:21

Dane closes season with victory ahead of Moreno and Santaromita

Chris Anker Sørensen (Saxo Bank)

Chris Anker Sørensen (Saxo Bank)

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Saxo Bank's Chris Anker Sørensen rode to his first win of the season at the last race of his season at the Japan Cup on Sunday. He finished 24 seconds ahead of Daniel Moreno (Caisse d'Epargne) and Ivan Santaromita (Liquigas).

Sørensen's solo victory came after repeated attacks in the final 40 kilometres of the race by the Dane and his Saxo Bank teammate Jens Voigt. With each of the race's ten circuits featuring a long climb, it was the young climber who broke the resolve of the remaining attackers.

"Chris and Jens opened the race with 40 kilometers to go, which suited Chris like a glove," said Saxo Bank sports director Torsten Schmidt after the race. "It's a great way to finish the season and it is rewarding to be the sports director for energetic and enthusiastic riders like these who are still motivated in the very last part of the season."

Despite the close attention of several Caisse d'Epargne riders, Sørensen was able to hold his advantage. Behind him Moreno, Santaromita and Spaniard Juan Jose Cobo (Fuji-Servetto) battled for the minor placings.

Sørensen crossed the line to become the first Danish winner of the race and the first non-Italian rider to claim the traditional end of season race in the past five editions. Moreno and Santaromita got the better of Cobo to fill the remaining podium spots.

Full results
1 Chris Anker Sörensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank 4:06:19  
2 Daniel Moreno Fernandez (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne 0:00:24  
3 Ivan Santaromita (Ita) Liquigas    
4 Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Spa) Fuji-Servetto    
5 Pablo Lastras Garcia (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne 0:00:41  
6 Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne 0:01:00  
7 Valerio Agnoli (Ita) Liquigas 0:01:26  
8 Giovanni Visconti (Ita) ISD    
9 Shinri Suzuki (Jpn) Shimano Racing Team 0:02:09  
10 Gustav Larsson (Swe) Team Saxo Bank    
11 Johann Tschopp (Swi) BBox Bouygues Telecom    
12 Taiji Nishitani (Jpn) Aisan Racing Team 0:02:21  
13 Takashi Miyazawa (Jpn) EQA - Meitan Hompo - Graphite Design    
14 Makoto Iijima (Jpn) Team Bridgestone Anchor    
15 Miyataka Shimizu (Jpn) EQA - Meitan Hompo - Graphite Design    
16 Masahiro Shinagawa (Jpn) Aisan Racing Team 0:02:24  
17 David De La Fuente Rasilla (Spa) Fuji-Servetto    
18 Shinichi Fukushima (Jpn) EQA - Meitan Hompo - Graphite Design 0:03:01  
19 Hidenori Nodera (Jpn) Shimano Racing Team    
20 Yukihiro Doi (Jpn) Japanese National Team    
21 Kenji Itami (Jpn) Team Bridgestone Anchor    
22 Tomoya Kano (Jpn) Shimano Racing Team 0:03:05  
23 Kjell Carlström (Fin) Liquigas 0:03:21  
24 Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas    
25 Alessandro Proni (Ita) ISD    
26 Fredrik Kessiakoff (Swe) Fuji-Servetto    
27 Imanol Erviti (Spa) Caisse d'Epargne    
28 Yukiya Arashiro (Jpn) BBox Bouygues Telecom 0:03:25  
29 Yasuharu Nakajima (Jpn) EQA - Meitan Hompo - Graphite Design 0:04:34  
30 Kazuhiro Mori (Jpn) Aisan Racing Team 0:04:38  
31 Jens Voigt (Ger) Team Saxo Bank 0:05:13  
32 Takayuki Naganuma (Jpn) Blitzen Utsunomiya Pro Racing 0:05:17  
33 Kenichi Suzuki (Jpn) Aisan Racing Team 0:05:22  
34 Masaru Fukuhara (Jpn) Team Bridgestone Anchor 0:07:59  
35 Yoshimitsu Hiratsuka (Jpn) Japanese National Team 0:08:49  
36 Andrea Tonti (Ita) Fuji-Servetto 0:12:12  
37 G. Luca Mirenda (Ita) ISD    
38 Yusuke Hatanaka (Jpn) Shimano Racing Team    
39 Guillaume Le Floch (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom    
40 Masaki Wakumoto (Jpn) Matrix Powertag    
41 Ryohei Komori (Jpn) Japanese National Team    
42 Nicki Sörensen (Den) Team Saxo Bank    
43 Julien Guay (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom    
44 Yoshiyuki Shimizu (Jpn) Blitzen Utsunomiya Pro Racing    
45 Masaaki Kikuchi (Jpn) EQA - Meitan Hompo - Graphite Design    
46 Kensyo Sawada (Jpn) Matrix Powertag    
47 Kazuki Aoyanagi (Jpn) Japanese National Team    
48 Ryota Nishizono (Jpn) Japanese National Team    

Photos