Dylan Groenewegen sprints to Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana victory

Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-Alula) got his season off to a perfect start when he sprinted to victory at the Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana 1969 - Gran Premi València, the first men’s race on the European calendar.

The Dutchman delivered a powerful sprint in Valencia to take the spoils ahead of Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) and Tim Torn Teutenberg (Lidl-Trek), while Davide Cimolai (Movistar) placed fourth.

“It was a bit hectic [in the final], but we made a really good plan. Maybe the final was not the hardest part it was already in the start, but the team did a really good job bringing me back into position and making the peloton," Groenewegen said.

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"Then, we caught the breakaway of 16 guys. We also had Felix in the break, so that was good for us. In the final, we did everything well. I was a bit in the bubble, a little bit behind the boys, but actually, that was good, and I could use the slipstream of the other sprinters. In the end, I could finish top. It is nice to pay off the hard work of the team.”

The event was always liable to produce a bunch finish, though there was no shortage of willing attackers on the 200km run from Nucía, with Jasper De Buyst (Lotto Dstny) and Jetse Bol (Burgos-BH) among the dangermen in a 16-strong move that went clear in the opening, hilly phase of the race.

The group gained a maximum advantage of two minutes before Jayco-Alula and Astana Qazaqstan began to apply pressure at the head of the peloton. Later, the front group would fragment, with Valentin Retailleau (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team), Liam Slock (Lotto Dstny) and Stefano Oldani (Cofidis) pushing clear while the remnants of the break were swept up by the bunch.

The leading trio combined well, but by that point, the road had flattened and the pace in the peloton increased accordingly. A bunch finish was ineluctable, and the Retailleau, Slock and Oldani were swept up with a shade under 10km remaining.

On the fast run-in, Groenewegen was well piloted by his Jayco-Alula squad, and he duly delivered the 70th win of his professional career.

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