Vorobyev victorious in U23 time trial Worlds

Anton Vorobyev (Russia) upset the odds by storming to victory in the under-23 time trial at the world championships in Valkenburg, beating pre-race favourite Rohan Dennis (Australia) by a mammoth 44 seconds over the 36km course, while another Australian, Damien Howson, took bronze.

The geography of the Limburg area naturally makes for exacting time trial courses, but Vorobyev made light work of the rolling roads to post an average speed of some 48.9kph. If his dominance wasn’t already highlighted by the emphatic way he zoomed through the finish area, it was confirmed by a cursory glance at his split times.

The day’s major obstacles – the two-kilometre climb of the Sibbegrubbe and then the haul up the Cauberg in the finale – came at the back end of the course, and that was precisely where Vorobyev stretched out his winning margin. 4 seconds ahead of Dennis after 13km and 16 seconds up after 26.5km, Vorobyev was the only rider whose rhythm seemed wholly undisturbed by the sting in the tail as he bounded up the Cauberg to claim the spoils.

Vorobyev said afterwards that he had made no special concessions to the difficulty of the course. "No, I just worked hard from the first metres," he said. "I was sure of myself and I hoped that I could win."

Fourth place in the under-23 time trial in Copenhagen last year, Vorobyev also fell just shy of the podium at the European championships in August, but the Itera-Katusha rider said that the Worlds had always been his primary objective for the 2012 campaign.

In the lead-in to the race, Vorobyev locked horns with both Dennis and Howson at the Memorial Fardelli and finished 3rd behind the Australians, and he said that Dennis had been the outstanding favourite to triumph in Valkenburg.

"I’ve had some races with him and he’s had good results," Vorobyev said. "He won two good races just before coming here [Fardelli and the Chrono Champenois – ed.], and it was evident that he was the favourite."

For his part, Dennis acknowledged that he had entered the race with the tag of favourite, but said that it had not impacted on his preparation for the Worlds. "It is a little bit of added pressure to be the favourite coming into a race and especially when it’s the world championships," he said. "It is a little bit difficult, but at the same time, you just put that behind you and look towards the next race."

Dennis has returned to the road in recent weeks after a season focused on the track, as he built towards the London 2012 Olympics, where he won silver in the team pursuit. "I transitioned well," he said. "I think I did what I could with the preparation and the time that I had."

Another medal winner from London – Lasse Norman Hansen (Denmark), who took gold in the omnium – had set the quickest time before the final wave of riders approached the finish. The Dane struggled over the rugged closing kilometres, however, and this was where Damien Howson managed to overhaul him and clock the best time with just five more finishers to come.

With reigning champion and final starter Rasmus Quaade (Denmark) struggling to find his rhythm out on the course (he would eventually finish fifth), it soon became apparent that only Vorobyev and Dennis would better Howson’s time.

When Vorobyev duly scorched home 51 seconds quicker, all eyes turned to Dennis to see if he had managed pick up time over the final ten kilometres. It was not to be for the Australian. Not for the last time this week, the Cauberg delivered its verdict, and Vorobyev was world champion.

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Full Results
1Anton Vorobyev (Russian Federation)0:44:09.02
2Rohan Dennis (Australia)0:00:44.39
3Damien Howson (Australia)0:00:51.12
4Lasse Norman Hansen (Denmark)0:00:53.28
5Rasmus Christian Quaade (Denmark)0:01:02.56
6Marlen Zmorka (Ukraine)0:01:09.42
7Rasmus Sterebo (Denmark)0:01:25.24
8Jasha Sütterlin (Germany)0:01:28.70
9Sergey Chernetski (Russian Federation)0:01:37.95
10Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands)0:01:40.78
11Johan Le Bon (France)0:01:50.26
12Bob Jungels (Luxembourg)0:01:52.92
13Hugo Houle (Canada)0:01:59.72
14Yoann Paillot (France)0:02:12.09
15Gabriel Chavanne (Switzerland)0:02:17.05
16Yves Lampaert (Belgium)0:02:19.25
17Oleksandr Golovash (Ukraine)0:02:26.80
18Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakhstan)0:02:31.61
19Eduardo Sepulveda (Argentina)0:02:40.89
20Nathan Brown (United States of America)0:02:41.60
21Jasper Hamelink (Netherlands)0:02:41.94
22Daniil Fominykh (Kazakhstan)0:02:45.30
23Patrick Konrad (Austria)0:02:46.09
24Jakob Steigmiller (Germany)0:02:48.80
25Tsgabu Gebremaryam Grmay (Ethiopia)0:02:49.91
26Kevin De Jonghe (Belgium)0:03:00.44
27Lawrence Warbasse (United States of America)0:03:08.34
28Silvan Dillier (Switzerland)0:03:09.08
29Joseph Perrett (Great Britain)0:03:09.30
30Sean Patrick Downey (Ireland)0:03:10.86
31Daniel Turek (Czech Republic)0:03:16.71
32Tobias Ludvigsson (Sweden)0:03:26.91
33Andreas Hofer (Austria)0:03:28.71
34Omar Fraile Matarranz (Spain)0:03:29.74
35Hernando Bohorquez Sanchez (Colombia)0:03:35.15
36Louis Meintjes (South Africa)0:03:42.48
37James Oram (New Zealand)0:03:43.95
38Davide Martinelli (Italy)0:03:50.26
39Samuel Harrison (Great Britain)0:04:07.29
40Klemen Stimulak (Slovenia)0:04:12.79
41David Boily (Canada)0:04:16.33
42Andrei Holubeu (Belarus)0:04:23.48
43Marcos Jurado Rodriguez (Spain)0:04:25.85
44Mark Dzamastagic (Slovenia)0:04:29.31
45Jason Christie (New Zealand)0:04:36.73
46Soufiane Haddi (Morocco)0:04:41.75
47Alex Kirsch (Luxembourg)0:04:42.42
48Conor Dunne (Ireland)0:04:46.77
49Mattia Cattaneo (Italy)0:04:51.15
50Till Drobisch (Namibia)0:05:15.64
51Issiaka Cisse (Ivory Coast)0:05:25.00
52Tural Isgandarov (Azerbaijan)0:05:44.66
53Nikita Zharoven (Belarus)0:05:55.50
54Paulius Siskevicius (Lithuania)0:05:57.04
55Sarawut Sirironnachai (Thailand)0:06:25.01
56Quinten Winkel (Netherlands Antilles)0:06:39.49
57Reda Aadel (Morocco)0:06:53.02
58Carlos Eduardo Quisphe (Ecuador)0:06:53.67
59Piter Campero (Bolivia)0:07:01.77
60Manuel Andres Sanchez Cuevas (Dominican Republic)0:07:04.53
61Hillard Cijntje (Netherlands Antilles)0:07:08.26
62Johann Schwabik (Slovakia)0:07:12.94
63Hiroshi Tsubaki (Japan)0:07:16.61
64Maxim Rusnac (Republic of Moldova)0:07:29.65
65Julio Marcelo Paspuezan Carlozama (Ecuador)0:07:50.10
66Ulises Alfredo Castillo Soto (Mexico)0:08:31.69
67Stefan Petrovski (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)0:09:08.71
DNFRamon Carretero (Panama)Row 67 - Cell 2
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Split 1 - 13.1km
1Anton Vorobyev (Russian Federation)0:15:41.55
2Rohan Dennis (Australia)0:00:04.57
3Lasse Norman Hansen (Denmark)0:00:13.43
4Damien Howson (Australia)0:00:18.57
5Marlen Zmorka (Ukraine)0:00:18.68
6Bob Jungels (Luxembourg)0:00:20.23
7Rasmus Christian Quaade (Denmark)0:00:21.24
8Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands)0:00:23.82
9Jasha Sütterlin (Germany)0:00:24.21
10Rasmus Sterebo (Denmark)0:00:27.66
11Gabriel Chavanne (Switzerland)0:00:38.94
12Oleksandr Golovash (Ukraine)0:00:40.34
13Johan Le Bon (France)0:00:40.36
14Sergey Chernetski (Russian Federation)0:00:41.56
15Yoann Paillot (France)0:00:41.82
16Jakob Steigmiller (Germany)0:00:43.38
17Yves Lampaert (Belgium)0:00:48.38
18Jasper Hamelink (Netherlands)0:00:50.34
19Nathan Brown (United States of America)0:00:52.93
20Tobias Ludvigsson (Sweden)0:00:53.53
21Silvan Dillier (Switzerland)0:00:55.57
22Hugo Houle (Canada)0:00:58.23
23Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakhstan)0:00:59.34
24Eduardo Sepulveda (Argentina)0:00:59.44
25Joseph Perrett (Great Britain)0:00:59.83
26Daniel Turek (Czech Republic)0:01:00.15
27Daniil Fominykh (Kazakhstan)0:01:05.38
28Samuel Harrison (Great Britain)0:01:07.86
29Kevin De Jonghe (Belgium)0:01:08.59
30Patrick Konrad (Austria)0:01:08.75
31Tsgabu Gebremaryam Grmay (Ethiopia)0:01:10.27
32Sean Patrick Downey (Ireland)0:01:10.87
33James Oram (New Zealand)0:01:12.78
34Klemen Stimulak (Slovenia)0:01:14.78
35Louis Meintjes (South Africa)0:01:14.79
36Andreas Hofer (Austria)0:01:15.49
37Lawrence Warbasse (United States of America)0:01:15.93
38Omar Fraile Matarranz (Spain)0:01:18.04
39Davide Martinelli (Italy)0:01:19.95
40David Boily (Canada)0:01:24.02
41Andrei Holubeu (Belarus)0:01:25.97
42Mark Dzamastagic (Slovenia)0:01:27.18
43Jason Christie (New Zealand)0:01:27.89
44Mattia Cattaneo (Italy)0:01:29.26
45Hernando Bohorquez Sanchez (Colombia)0:01:30.30
46Marcos Jurado Rodriguez (Spain)0:01:30.48
47Alex Kirsch (Luxembourg)0:01:31.21
48Conor Dunne (Ireland)0:01:48.35
49Soufiane Haddi (Morocco)0:01:50.87
50Tural Isgandarov (Azerbaijan)0:01:51.69
51Nikita Zharoven (Belarus)0:01:52.29
52Issiaka Cisse (Ivory Coast)0:01:54.81
53Till Drobisch (Namibia)0:01:57.99
54Johann Schwabik (Slovakia)0:01:58.84
55Paulius Siskevicius (Lithuania)0:01:59.30
56Sarawut Sirironnachai (Thailand)0:02:00.97
57Hiroshi Tsubaki (Japan)0:02:11.91
58Quinten Winkel (Netherlands Antilles)0:02:14.43
59Carlos Eduardo Quisphe (Ecuador)0:02:18.57
60Manuel Andres Sanchez Cuevas (Dominican Republic)0:02:20.69
61Julio Marcelo Paspuezan Carlozama (Ecuador)0:02:24.63
62Reda Aadel (Morocco)0:02:25.54
63Hillard Cijntje (Netherlands Antilles)0:02:26.04
64Piter Campero (Bolivia)0:02:29.51
65Maxim Rusnac (Republic of Moldova)0:02:36.49
66Stefan Petrovski (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)0:02:47.87
67Ulises Alfredo Castillo Soto (Mexico)0:02:48.47
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Split 2 - 26.5km
1Anton Vorobyev (Russian Federation)0:31:30.53
2Rohan Dennis (Australia)0:00:25.75
3Lasse Norman Hansen (Denmark)0:00:35.25
4Damien Howson (Australia)0:00:37.03
5Marlen Zmorka (Ukraine)0:00:40.82
6Rasmus Christian Quaade (Denmark)0:00:53.99
7Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands)0:00:59.06
8Rasmus Sterebo (Denmark)0:01:03.10
9Bob Jungels (Luxembourg)0:01:05.86
10Jasha Sütterlin (Germany)0:01:06.84
11Sergey Chernetski (Russian Federation)0:01:22.84
12Gabriel Chavanne (Switzerland)0:01:29.32
13Johan Le Bon (France)0:01:29.71
14Oleksandr Golovash (Ukraine)0:01:31.12
15Yoann Paillot (France)0:01:32.06
16Hugo Houle (Canada)0:01:45.16
17Yves Lampaert (Belgium)0:01:48.19
18Jakob Steigmiller (Germany)0:01:51.80
19Eduardo Sepulveda (Argentina)0:01:59.08
20Jasper Hamelink (Netherlands)0:02:00.28
21Tobias Ludvigsson (Sweden)0:02:02.34
22Silvan Dillier (Switzerland)0:02:03.97
23Daniil Fominykh (Kazakhstan)0:02:06.11
24Tsgabu Gebremaryam Grmay (Ethiopia)0:02:06.71
25Nathan Brown (United States of America)0:02:08.25
26Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakhstan)0:02:12.58
27Daniel Turek (Czech Republic)0:02:13.99
28Joseph Perrett (Great Britain)0:02:15.83
29Patrick Konrad (Austria)0:02:16.15
30Andreas Hofer (Austria)0:02:29.33
31Kevin De Jonghe (Belgium)0:02:29.72
32Sean Patrick Downey (Ireland)0:02:30.20
33Lawrence Warbasse (United States of America)0:02:31.75
34James Oram (New Zealand)0:02:36.80
35Hernando Bohorquez Sanchez (Colombia)0:02:44.07
36Louis Meintjes (South Africa)0:02:44.35
37Samuel Harrison (Great Britain)0:02:51.66
38Omar Fraile Matarranz (Spain)0:02:55.82
39Davide Martinelli (Italy)0:03:00.01
40Klemen Stimulak (Slovenia)0:03:02.20
41David Boily (Canada)0:03:06.45
42Jason Christie (New Zealand)0:03:09.01
43Andrei Holubeu (Belarus)0:03:16.29
44Mark Dzamastagic (Slovenia)0:03:18.01
45Marcos Jurado Rodriguez (Spain)0:03:21.68
46Alex Kirsch (Luxembourg)0:03:22.38
47Conor Dunne (Ireland)0:03:27.37
48Mattia Cattaneo (Italy)0:03:29.56
49Soufiane Haddi (Morocco)0:03:36.10
50Issiaka Cisse (Ivory Coast)0:04:00.65
51Tural Isgandarov (Azerbaijan)0:04:00.70
52Till Drobisch (Namibia)0:04:14.95
53Nikita Zharoven (Belarus)0:04:15.26
54Paulius Siskevicius (Lithuania)0:04:23.08
55Sarawut Sirironnachai (Thailand)0:04:35.15
56Carlos Eduardo Quisphe (Ecuador)0:04:38.12
57Johann Schwabik (Slovakia)0:04:44.90
58Quinten Winkel (Netherlands Antilles)0:04:51.20
59Hiroshi Tsubaki (Japan)0:04:56.91
60Reda Aadel (Morocco)0:04:58.16
61Julio Marcelo Paspuezan Carlozama (Ecuador)0:05:05.75
62Manuel Andres Sanchez Cuevas (Dominican Republic)0:05:06.53
63Hillard Cijntje (Netherlands Antilles)0:05:11.58
64Piter Campero (Bolivia)0:05:14.36
65Maxim Rusnac (Republic of Moldova)0:05:27.60
66Ulises Alfredo Castillo Soto (Mexico)0:05:36.24
67Stefan Petrovski (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)0:06:15.85

 

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Barry Ryan
Head of Features

Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.

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