Arnaud De Lie wins Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana - Gran Premi València

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Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Dstny) claimed his first victory of the 2023 season on his first race day, triumphing in a reduced bunch sprint at the Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana on Sunday. 

The 20-year-old Belgian is tipped for big things after a stunning debut season featuring nine victories. He picked up where he left off with a victory that showcased his ability to overcome tough terrain before finishing fastest. 

After a hilly day of racing, a reduced peloton gathered for the finish on an uphill drag in La Nucia, and De Lie was a convincing winner ahead of Edvald Boasson Hagen (TotalEnergies) and Jenthe Biermans (Arkéa-Samsic)

The Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana, also known as the Gran Premier València, marked the start of the European season after the Tour Down Under kicked off the campaign in Australia last week. 

On offer was a 190km route from Valencia, capital of the region, down south to La Nucia in the corner of the Costa Blanca that plays host to so many pro team training camps during the winter. The opening portion was flat, but the parcours became increasingly hilly, with the category-3 Alto de Barx preceding the longer cat-2 Alto de Bizauca, which topped out 25km from the line. 

The early breakaway was made up of Mattia Bais (Eolo-Kometa), Thomas Denis (GoSport Roubaix Lille Métropole), Iker Ballarín (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Mateu Estelrich (Electro Hiper Europa), and Samuele Zoccarato (Green Project-Bardiani-CSF). They built a lead of three minutes but were never allowed much rope by the peloton.

Denis claimed the first intermediate sprint but was dropped on the Alto de Barx, where Ballarín was first over the top. Ballarín was then dropped, along with Estelrich, as the Italian pair of Bais and Zoccarato pressed on together.

However, the peloton had made big inroads on the approach to the Alto de Bizauca and continued the charge onto the draggy 17km climb. Louis Barre (Arkéa-Samsic) led over the top as the attacks came, and he managed to stay away down the descent, but the reduced bunch soon came back together.

After a short kicker, the road dragged relentlessly uphill in the final kilometres. A number of attacks came and went, but none managed to open up a significant gap, and De Lie was able to sprint and deliver on his favourite status.

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