Superprestige Hamme-Zogge 2009

November 22, Elite Men:

Stybar does the double in Hamme Zogge

By:

Brecht Decaluwé

Published:

November 22, 2009, 14:54,

Updated:

November 22, 2009, 16:52

Czech champ outsprints Nys, Vantornout for second win of the weekend

Zdenek Stybar (Telenet Fidea Cycling Team) was pumped at the finsh

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Zdenek Stybar carried the momentum from his first season victory on Saturday into the Superprestige race in Hamme Zogge, taking another sprint victory this time over Belgian champion Sven Nys and a sorely disappointed Klaas Vantornout (Sunweb-Projob).

"It is super, what a dream weekend. I didn't expect that it would succeed to win twice in two days," said a clearly overjoyed Stybar to VT4 after the race.

Belgian wind and a Czech win in Hamme Zogge

On a blustery day, the sinuous and relatively flat course provided little selection, putting World Champion Niels Albert at a disadvantage against his more cagey foes.

As Albert tried to force a selection early in the race, Nys held back and followed wheels, saving his energies and gambling that the wind would sap the energy of the early attackers.

The gamble paid off, and two lead groups came together at the mid-race point, setting Nys up for his trademark attack. The Landbouwkrediet-Colnago rider pulled away a group of four with Stybar, Albert and Vantornout.

A series of attacks put Albert on the defensive, and on the last lap the world champion was uncharacteristically struggling. He finally lost contact as Vantornout put in a late race bid for glory.

But it was Stybar who charged past Vantornout with Nys on his wheel and, like Saturday in Hasselt, the Czech's powerful sprint proved unbeatable.

"Maybe I started my acceleration too late, but certainly at a wrong moment," said Nys, who was left to rue what could have been. "There was a strong headwind and I didn't recover enough for the sprint. Maybe I should've stayed in the wheels longer."

Vantornout, too, could do nothing to counter Stybar's dominant performance. "I'm extremely disappointed because I was so close to the win. But I'm happy to finish on the podium though, and I think my boss will be happy with what I showed too."

Nys and Albert now share the lead in the overall Superprestige Series classification, with Stybar one point behind. Albert was dropped out of the four-man leader's group on the final lap and, as a result, missed out on a podium spot for the first time this season. "I'm disappointed. I wanted to be on the podium and defend my leader's position, but it didn't work out that way. The gaps are small, but I couldn't get on the podium and that's a pity," Albert said.

Sven Vanthourenhout finished a gritty fifth as he returned from a mid-season break for the races this weekend. "I didn't expect a fifth place but during the race I felt good. Of course I didn't know if I could keep it up all race long. I was on third row but could easily move up which meant the legs were good," Vanthourenhout said.

Sole American starter Jonathan Page finished 19th today. After a good start, Page featured for a while in the leader's group, however he eventually dropped back and slipped out of contention.

The fifth round of the Superprestige Series will be held in Gieten, The Netherlands on November 29.

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