Tour of Qatar news shorts: Katusha scores first win of the year in Qatar
Battaglin crashes out; Van Avermaet looks ahead to TT; Start order for stage 3
Katusha scores first win of the year in Qatar
Katusha won their first race of the 2015 season after Alexander Kristoff finished first in the stage 2 bunch kick at the Tour of Qatar on Monday. The Norwegian sprinter was the fastest of 15 riders that formed a lead group through strong crosswinds. The win bumped him up into the overall race lead heading into the stage 3 time trial on Tuesday.
“This was maybe the hardest stage I have ever seen here in Qatar,” said Katusha's director Torsten Schmidt. “A very strong wind, high pace, permanent echelons and fighting for the position in the front made this stage a real struggle. The team was great today. The peloton split in groups many times, and every time Alex had his teammates, who supported him. The last time, when the leading group of 20 riders went away, Viacheslav Kuznetsov and Sven Erik Bystrøm helped Alex to get a good position in front. In the end, it was the great sprint of Kristoff who finished the job. This is our first 2015 victory and I am happy we’ve got it so early in the season.”
Crash forces Battaglin to abandon Tour of Qatar
A crash 60km into the second stage of the Tour of Qatar has forced Bardiani-CSF rider Enrico Battaglin to abandon the race all together. The Italian hit the ground after colliding with a rider in front of him during a section of strong crosswinds.
Stage 2 was a 194.5km race from Al Wakra to Al Khor Corniche where the field was shattered because of strong gusty winds, and only 15 riders were in the lead group at the finish line. Bardiani’s Luca Sterbini was the first to go down in the opening kilometres, followed by Battaglin at the 60km mark.
Battaglin was also involved in a crash at the Tour de San Luis in January, and has fallen on the same injuries, according to a team press release.
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“Already from the first kilometre started echelons,” Battaglin said. “I was in a chasing group when a rider of Topsport tried to jump a bump but he went down and I couldn’t avoid him. I suffered some pain on my left side and remembering the Tour de San Luis crash, we decided to stop. This is a race that is a bit unlucky for me, last year too I went down heavily. Fortunately this time it is not so serious and the abandon was just to prevent future problems.
Battaglin will travel home to Italy and focus on the upcoming Trofeo Laigueglia.
Van Avermaet looks ahead to stage 3 time trial
BMC’s Greg Van Avermaet is three seconds away from the overall race lead at the Tour of Qatar, and he is hoping to stay with in striking distance of the gold jersey after Wednesday’s stage 3 time trial.
"I will see how it goes," Van Avermaet said. "I have spent a lot of energy the first two days already. Last year, I did a good time trial and there is not a specialist up front (in the overall standings). So if I can stay close to Tom Boonen and the other guys, that will be good. I am feeling pretty good. The breakaways were not as long as normal, but I feel my form is good. It is a good sign for the classics.”
Van Avermaet placed third in the sprint, out of the small lead group that raced into Al Khor Corniche at the end of the second stage. Kristoff won and Guardini was second. His teammate Marcus Burghardt was also in the front group and finished eighth.
"It was a hard sprint with the tailwind," Van Avermaet said. "They surprised us a little from the back so I had to close the gap and then Kristoff started his sprint. So it was hard to come over him. I think I did a good sprint to get third place."
Van Avermaet is now in third place overall, three seconds behind Kristoff and two seconds behind Boonen. Burghardt is in sixth place at nine seconds back.
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Start Time (GMT +3h) |
---|---|---|
1 | Maximiliano Richeze (Arg) Lampre-Merida | 13:40:00 |
2 | Cyril Lemoine (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 13:41:00 |
3 | Jasha Sütterlin (Ger) Movistar Team | 13:42:00 |
4 | Shane Archbold (NZl) Bora-Argon 18 | 13:43:00 |
5 | Gijs Van Hoecke (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 13:44:00 |
6 | Albert Timmer (Ned) Team Giant-Alpecin | 13:45:00 |
7 | David Boucher (Fra) FDJ.fr | 13:46:00 |
8 | Jens Mouris (Ned) Orica GreenEdge | 13:47:00 |
9 | Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) Trek Factory Racing | 13:48:00 |
10 | Dries Devenyns (Bel) IAM Cycling | 13:49:00 |
11 | Jesper Hansen (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo | 13:50:00 |
12 | Lars Boom (Ned) Astana Pro Team | 13:51:00 |
13 | Alessandro De Marchi (Ita) BMC Racing Team | 13:52:00 |
14 | Iljo Keisse (Bel) Etixx - Quick-Step | 13:53:00 |
15 | Gatis Smukulis (Lat) Team Katusha | 13:54:00 |
16 | Matteo Bono (Ita) Lampre-Merida | 13:55:00 |
17 | Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) MTN - Qhubeka | 13:56:00 |
18 | Steve Chainel (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 13:57:00 |
19 | Pablo Lastras (Spa) Movistar Team | 13:58:00 |
20 | Michael Schwarzmann (Ger) Bora-Argon 18 | 13:59:00 |
21 | Jef Van Meirhaeghe (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 14:00:00 |
22 | Georg Preidler (Aut) Team Giant-Alpecin | 14:01:00 |
23 | Johan Le Bon (Fra) FDJ.fr | 14:02:00 |
24 | Svein Tuft (Can) Orica GreenEdge | 14:03:00 |
25 | Danny Pate (USA) Team Sky | 14:04:00 |
26 | Grégory Rast (Swi) Trek Factory Racing | 14:05:00 |
27 | Jonas Vangenechten (Bel) IAM Cycling | 14:06:00 |
28 | Pavel Brutt (Rus) Tinkoff-Saxo | 14:07:00 |
29 | Lieuwe Westra (Ned) Astana Pro Team | 14:08:00 |
30 | Ben Hermans (Bel) BMC Racing Team | 14:09:00 |
31 | Martin Velits (Svk) Etixx - Quick-Step | 14:10:00 |
32 | Marco Haller (Aut) Team Katusha | 14:11:00 |
33 | Mario Costa (Por) Lampre-Merida | 14:12:00 |
34 | Jaco Venter (RSA) MTN - Qhubeka | 14:13:00 |
35 | Florian Senechal (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 14:14:00 |
36 | Andrey Amador (CRc) Movistar Team | 14:15:00 |
37 | Paul Voss (Ger) Bora-Argon 18 | 14:16:00 |
38 | Victor Campenaerts (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 14:17:00 |
39 | Marcel Kittel (Ger) Team Giant-Alpecin | 14:18:00 |
40 | William Bonnet (Fra) FDJ.fr | 14:19:00 |
41 | Brett Lancaster (Aus) Orica GreenEdge | 14:20:00 |
42 | Christian Knees (Ger) Team Sky | 14:21:00 |
43 | Gert Steegmans (Bel) Trek Factory Racing | 14:22:00 |
44 | Matthias Brandle (Aut) IAM Cycling | 14:23:00 |
45 | Nikolay Trusov (Rus) Tinkoff-Saxo | 14:24:00 |
46 | Laurens De Vreese (Bel) Astana Pro Team | 14:25:00 |
47 | Peter Velits (Svk) BMC Racing Team | 14:26:00 |
48 | Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (Bel) Etixx - Quick-Step | 14:27:00 |
49 | Jacopo Guarnieri (Ita) Team Katusha | 14:28:00 |
50 | Andrea Piechele (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 14:29:00 |
51 | Filippo Pozzato (Ita) Lampre-Merida | 14:30:00 |
52 | Johann Van Zyl (RSA) MTN - Qhubeka | 14:31:00 |
53 | Adrien Petit (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 14:32:00 |
54 | Enrique Sanz (Spa) Movistar Team | 14:33:00 |
55 | Zakkari Dempster (Aus) Bora-Argon 18 | 14:34:00 |
56 | Preben Van Hecke (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 14:35:00 |
57 | Tom Stamsnijder (Ned) Team Giant-Alpecin | 14:36:00 |
58 | Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ.fr | 14:37:00 |
59 | Leigh Howard (Aus) Orica GreenEdge | 14:38:00 |
60 | Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Team Sky | 14:39:00 |
61 | Danny Van Poppel (Ned) Trek Factory Racing | 14:40:00 |
62 | Reto Hollenstein (Swi) IAM Cycling | 14:41:00 |
63 | Michael Morkov (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo | 14:42:00 |
64 | Dmitriy Gruzdev (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | 14:43:00 |
65 | Rick Zabel (Ger) BMC Racing Team | 14:44:00 |
66 | Stijn Vandenbergh (Bel) Etixx - Quick-Step | 14:45:00 |
67 | Dmitrii Kozonchuk (Rus) Team Katusha | 14:46:00 |
68 | Simone Sterbini (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 14:47:00 |
69 | Sacha Modolo (Ita) Lampre-Merida | 14:48:00 |
70 | Gerald Ciolek (Ger) MTN - Qhubeka | 14:49:00 |
71 | Geoffrey Soupe (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 14:50:00 |
72 | Imanol Erviti (Spa) Movistar Team | 14:51:00 |
73 | Scott Thwaites (GBr) Bora-Argon 18 | 14:52:00 |
74 | Jelle Wallays (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 14:53:00 |
75 | Ramon Sinkeldam (Ned) Team Giant-Alpecin | 14:54:00 |
76 | Murilo Antonio Fischer (Bra) FDJ.fr | 14:55:00 |
77 | Jens Keukeleire (Bel) Orica GreenEdge | 14:56:00 |
78 | Christopher Sutton (Aus) Team Sky | 14:57:00 |
79 | Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Trek Factory Racing | 14:58:00 |
80 | Marcel Aregger (Swi) IAM Cycling | 14:59:00 |
81 | Christopher Juul Jensen (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo | 15:00:00 |
82 | Borut Bozic (Slo) Astana Pro Team | 15:01:00 |
83 | Jean-Pierre Drucker (Lux) BMC Racing Team | 15:02:00 |
84 | Matteo Trentin (Ita) Etixx - Quick-Step | 15:03:00 |
85 | Luca Paolini (Ita) Team Katusha | 15:04:00 |
86 | Stefano Pirazzi (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 15:05:00 |
87 | Ruben Plaza Molina (Spa) Lampre-Merida | 15:06:00 |
88 | Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) MTN - Qhubeka | 15:07:00 |
89 | Dominique Rollin (Can) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 15:08:00 |
90 | Francisco Ventoso (Spa) Movistar Team | 15:09:00 |
91 | Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Argon 18 | 15:10:00 |
92 | Pieter Vanspeybrouck (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 15:11:00 |
93 | Bert De Backer (Bel) Team Giant-Alpecin | 15:12:00 |
94 | Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) FDJ.fr | 15:13:00 |
95 | Mitchell Docker (Aus) Orica GreenEdge | 15:14:00 |
96 | Andrew Fenn (GBr) Team Sky | 15:15:00 |
97 | Markel Irizar (Spa) Trek Factory Racing | 15:16:00 |
98 | Vicente Reynes (Spa) IAM Cycling | 15:17:00 |
99 | Matti Breschel (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo | 15:18:00 |
100 | Andriy Grivko (Ukr) Astana Pro Team | 15:19:00 |
101 | Philippe Gilbert (Bel) BMC Racing Team | 15:20:00 |
102 | Nikolas Maes (Bel) Etixx - Quick-Step | 15:21:00 |
103 | Sven Erik Bystrøm (Nor) Team Katusha | 15:22:00 |
104 | Nicola Boem (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 15:23:00 |
105 | Roberto Ferrari (Ita) Lampre-Merida | 15:24:00 |
106 | Youcef Reguigui (Alg) MTN - Qhubeka | 15:25:00 |
107 | Jonas Ahlstrand (Swe) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 15:26:00 |
108 | Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team | 15:27:00 |
109 | Daniel Schorn (Aut) Bora-Argon 18 | 15:28:00 |
110 | Jarl Salomein (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 15:29:00 |
111 | Nikias Arndt (Ger) Team Giant-Alpecin | 15:30:00 |
112 | Yoann Offredo (Fra) FDJ.fr | 15:31:00 |
113 | Mathew Hayman (Aus) Orica GreenEdge | 15:32:00 |
114 | Ian Stannard (GBr) Team Sky | 15:33:00 |
115 | Boy Van Poppel (Ned) Trek Factory Racing | 15:34:00 |
116 | Roger Kluge (Ger) IAM Cycling | 15:35:00 |
117 | Maciej Bodnar (Pol) Tinkoff-Saxo | 15:36:00 |
118 | Ruslan Tleubayev (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | 15:37:00 |
119 | Marcus Burghardt (Ger) BMC Racing Team | 15:38:00 |
120 | Niki Terpstra (Ned) Etixx - Quick-Step | 15:39:00 |
121 | Viacheslav Kuznetsov (Rus) Team Katusha | 15:40:00 |
122 | Nicola Ruffoni (Ita) Bardiani CSF | 15:41:00 |
123 | Nelson Oliveira (Por) Lampre-Merida | 15:42:00 |
124 | Theo Bos (Ned) MTN - Qhubeka | 15:43:00 |
125 | Nacer Bouhanni (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | 15:44:00 |
126 | Jose Joaquin Rojas (Spa) Movistar Team | 15:45:00 |
127 | Ralf Matzka (Ger) Bora-Argon 18 | 15:46:00 |
128 | Tim Declercq (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | 15:47:00 |
129 | Tom Veelers (Ned) Team Giant-Alpecin | 15:48:00 |
130 | Mickael Delage (Fra) FDJ.fr | 15:49:00 |
131 | Adam Blythe (GBr) Orica GreenEdge | 15:50:00 |
132 | Luke Rowe (GBr) Team Sky | 15:51:00 |
133 | Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek Factory Racing | 15:52:00 |
134 | Heinrich Haussler (Aus) IAM Cycling | 15:53:00 |
135 | Peter Sagan (Svk) Tinkoff-Saxo | 15:54:00 |
136 | Andrea Guardini (Ita) Astana Pro Team | 15:55:00 |
137 | Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing Team | 15:56:00 |
138 | Tom Boonen (Bel) Etixx - Quick-Step | 15:57:00 |
139 | Alexander Kristoff (Nor) Team Katusha | 15:58:00 |
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