Canadian Leandre Bouchard sealed his first Crocodile Trophy victory while Andrew L'Esperance won his third straight stage win to close out the Australian stage race.
"I'm really happy that I was able to take most of my lead across the finish line," said Bouchard who was 15 seconds slower than L'Esperance in the 30km time trial.
"Andrew [L'Esperance] got really strong over the last few days and I really wanted to claim today's stage myself, but am content with the overall victory, of course. It's been a real adventure and I really enjoyed this week."
Bouchard claimed the overall title by 1:16 minutes over L'Esperance with third place going to Ben May who was 2:28:05 in arrears.
Haley Smith (Norco Factory Team) successfully completed the race and sealed the elite women's title as the sole rider in the classification.
The race will move back to its traditional latter spot on the calendar in 2018, taking place 13-20 October 2018.
Full Elite Results
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrew L'Esperance (Can) Forward Racing-Norco | 0:54:49 |
| 2 | Leandre Bouchard (Can) BH SR Suntour KMC | 0:00:15 |
| 3 | Ben May (Aus) Bicycle Riders/Specialized/Infinit Nutrition | 0:07:54 |
| 4 | Mike Blewitt (Aus) Subaru-Marathonmtb.com | 0:08:17 |
| 5 | Hiroyuki Okamoto (Jpn) Inpulse | 0:57:08 |
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Haley Smith (Can) Norco Factory Team | 1:07:56 |
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leandre Bouchard (Can) BH SR Suntour KMC | 27:16:00 |
| 2 | Andrew L'Esperance (Can) Forward Racing-Norco | 0:01:16 |
| 3 | Ben May (Aus) Bicycle Riders/Specialized/Infinit Nutrition | 2:48:05 |
| 4 | Hiroyuki Okamoto (Jpn) Inpulse | 3:27:42 |
| 5 | Mike Blewitt (Aus) Subaru-Marathonmtb.com | 4:56:03 |
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Haley Smith (Can) Norco Factory Team | 32:13:29 |
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'I had no idea what I was in for' – Tracey Gaudry looks back on a crucial moment in Melbourne to Warrnambool history in this 'Wheel Life 3' book extract
Inside that 1994 edition when Gaudry added her name to the, at the time very short, Melbourne to Warrnambool women's finishers list -
'Sidequest' - Noah Hobbs saved by local fan after getting lost during Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
British rider benefits from the kindness of strangers -
'I was a bit exhausted in the final stages' - Bad luck spoils defending champion Jasper Philipsen's day in Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne
Alpecin-Premier Tech racer forced to settle for 18th after getting boxed in behind Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe -
Prototype Dura Ace wheels, an updated Canyon Aeroad frame and unreleased tyres from Specialized and Michelin - Opening Weekend tech gallery
All the tech from both races at Opening Weekend
