Chris Froome (Team Sky) won his first criterium as a Tour de France winner on Monday in Belgium, beating teammate Richie Porte in a sprint in Aalst.
Froome competed in his sequined yellow jersey, the same he had collected on the Champs Elysees on Sunday night. He admitted he had celebrated his victory until 5:30 in the morning and then headed to Belgium with fiancée Michelle Cound.
The race attracted thousands of Belgian cycling fans, including cycling legend Roger De Vlaeminck, who made a point of intruducing himself to the new Tour de France winner.
There were several early attacks by local rider Kris Boeckmans and Dutchman Stefan van Dijk. Bert De Backer Laurent Didier made a late attack but then Froome and Porte attacked with two laps to go, with Tour de France stage winner Matteo Trentin (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) winning the sprint for third place ahead of Oscar Gatto (Vini Fantini) and Boeckmans.
Results
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christopher Froome (GBr) Sky Procycling | 2:02:26 | |
| 2 | Richie Porte (Aus) Sky Procycling | ||
| 3 | Matteo Trentin (Ita) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | 0:00:03 | |
| 4 | Oscar Gatto (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia | ||
| 5 | Kris Boeckmans (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM | 0:00:07 | |
| 6 | Bert De Backer (Bel) Argos-Shimano | ||
| 7 | Stefan van Dijk (Ned) Accent Jobs-Wanty | ||
| 8 | Steffen Radochla (Ger) Euskaltel-Euskadi | ||
| 9 | Laurent Didier (Lux) RadioShack Leopard | ||
| 10 | Kurt Hovelynck (Bel) Crelan-Euphony | ||
| 11 | Benjamin Verraes (Bel) Accent Jobs-Wanty | ||
| 12 | Tom Meeusen (Bel) Telenet-Fidea | ||
| 13 | Tim De Troyer (Bel) Accent Jobs-Wanty | ||
| 14 | David Boucher (Fra) FDJ.fr | ||
| 15 | Rutger Roelandts (Bel) Ventilair - Steria | ||
| 16 | David Beulens (Bel) | ||
| 17 | Rob Peeters (Bel) Telenet-Fidea | ||
| 18 | Robin Van Goethem (Bel) | ||
| 19 | Valentijn Van De Velde (Bel) | ||
| 20 | Koen Barbé (Bel) Crelan-Euphony | ||
| 21 | Dimitri Van Der Perre (Bel) | ||
| 22 | Michel Vereecken (Bel) | ||
| 23 | Pier Paolo De Negri (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia | ||
| 24 | Niels Vandyck (Bel) | ||
| 25 | Matt Brammeier (Ire) Champion System | ||
| 26 | Joaquim Durant (Bel) | ||
| 27 | Jim Aernouts (Bel) | ||
| 28 | Bart Wellens (Bel) | ||
| 29 | Kevin Pauwels (Bel) | ||
| 30 | Vincent De Vreese (Bel) | ||
| 31 | Glenn Van De Maele (Bel) | ||
| 32 | Iljo Keisse (Bel) Omega Pharma-QuickStep | ||
| 33 | André Schulze (Ger) Euskaltel-Euskadi | ||
| 34 | Staf Scheirlinckx (Bel) Accent Jobs-Wanty |
