Boom blasts to prologue win

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Lars Boom (Rabobank) rocketed to victory on the opening day of the Critérium du Dauphiné with a masterful performance in the prologue time trial in Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne. He edged out Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana) by two seconds with the impressive Bradley Wiggins (Sky) a further three seconds back in third.

The Dutchman took full advantage of a course well-suited to his characteristics to put daylight between himself and time trial specialists such as Wiggins to claim the race’s first yellow jersey

“My prologue is good if I train hard,” Boom said afterwards. “It was a very nice prologue, 5.4km with a small hill, so it was perfect for me.”

Boom admitted that he has been struggling with a knee injury in the run-up to the race, but the 25-year-old showed no ill effects as he scorched around the course to clock the fastest time of the day.

“I didn’t expect it,” he said. “I had some problems with my knee last week, since the Tour of California. I’m happy it’s going well now and I’m happy to have won.”

Second-placed Alexandre Vinokourov never realistically threatened Boom’s fine time, but the Kazakh will undoubtedly be pleased to have been the best-placed of the overall contenders on the opening day. He was 7 seconds clear of Cadel Evans (BMC) and 12 ahead of Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Omega Pharma-Lotto) and defending champion Janez Brajkovic (RadioShack).

“The legs are turning over very well, I had some good sensations,” Vinokourov said. “It’s very good.”

Meanwhile, Ivan Basso (Liquigas-Cannondale) could only manage a lowly 102nd place, coughing up over 30 seconds to Vinokourov as he continues his recovery from a recent training crash at Mount Etna.

How it unfolded

After carrying out their pre-stage reconnaissance under heavy morning rainfall, the Dauphiné peloton would have been fearing the worst ahead of Sunday’s prologue, but mercifully the roads had begun to dry by the time the first starters rolled down the ramp.

The early pace-setter was Cyrille Lemoine (Saur-Sojasun), who clocked an impressive 6:28 to best the times of the in-form Geraint Thomas (Sky) and Rabobank’s Paul Martens. Tony Martin (HTC-Highroad) set off early, but he couldn’t get close to Lemoine’s time and managed only a disappointing 34th place on the day, well below his own high expectations.

Indeed, Lemoine’s time was to last at the top of the leaderboard for much of the afternoon, as a rain shower soon after Martin finished had an obvious impact on the times of those who were to follow. Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky) was among those to suffer from the wet conditions, but the Norwegian still managed to squeeze inside the top 20.

In the final hour of the prologue, the rain stopped, and with the sun forcing its way through the clouds, the roads dried up quickly. Bled Kadri (Ag2r-La Mondiale) gratefully took advantage of the improved conditions to better Lemoine’s time, and soon afterwards Bradley Wiggins scorched around the course in 6:23 to set what looked like the winning time. The Englishman, fresh from beating Fabian Cancellara (Leopard Trek) in the Bayern Rundfahrt time trial, put in a typically stylish display to finish in provisional first and he seemed set to take the first yellow jersey.

It was not to be, however, as Lars Boom sliced all of five seconds off Wiggins’ time to take his second prologue win of the year. The Dutchman showcased his talents by making light work of the climb and then dealing capably with the technical corners that followed to take a convincing victory.

Another man to impress was HTC-Highroad’s John Degenkolb, who finished fourth on the stage and claimed possession of the white jersey, while French hope Jerome Coppel (Saur-Sojasun) gave notice of his form with a tenth-place finish. Cadel Evans (BMC) rode a solid time trial to finish in 7th place, and Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Omega Pharma-Lotto) did his overall chances no harm with a solid 14th place.

The best of the overall contenders was Vinokourov, however, and he surprised many to finish ahead of no less a figure than Wiggins in the short test. With the mountains looming, the seconds won and lost by the overall contenders at Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne should count for little in a week’s time, but the Kazakh will undoubtedly be pleased to have dealt an early blow.

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