McEwen's 'a real team leader'

By Brecht Decaluwé in Marcinelle

Davitamon-Lotto's Preben Van Hecke was happy to hear that Robbie McEwen could clinch the win in Marcinelle: "I didn't see Robbie take the win because at that time, my job was done," he told Cyclingnews. "My goal was to work in the peloton so that we could get a sprint; with ten km to go, the Milram guys took over and I let the peloton go."

Van Hecke said McEwen knew this was one of the few opportunities he had to grab a win: "He asked us to work out a sprint for him, so he must have been very confident; to me, he's a real team leader. I don't know if he can do it again tomorrow, but you never know since he'll be in a winning mood."