Vantomme wins Le Samyn
By Cycling News
Tsatevich and Bouhanni round out top three
Maxime Vantomme (Roubaix Lille Metropole) unleashed a powerful sprint on the slightly uphill finish in Dour to claim victory ahead of Alexey Tsatevich (Katusha) and Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ.fr) at Le Samyn.
When late attacker Vladimir Isaichev (Katusha) was caught inside the final kilometre on the deceptive drag towards the line, the stage seemed set for Bouhanni to land his second win of the new season.
Bouhanni was well-positioned on the wheel of lead-out man Sebastien Chavanel when the bunch swung around the final bend, but Vantomme anticipated the Frenchman by launching his sprint on the opposite side of the road with 200 metres to go.
Vantomme instantly opened a small gap, and though the 2013 Samyn winner Tsatevich and Bouhanni both finished rapidly, they were unable to make up the ground. There was disappointment, too, for Gerald Ciolek (MTN-Qhubeka), who could only manage 8th place, while his teammate Kristian Sbaragli finished 5th.
“I like this race a lot. I’m done it a few times and the uphill finish is perfect for me. I’ve had good results here before now, but never the win,” Vantomme said as he waited to mount the podium.
Vantomme’s victory was his first in over six years, since he won a stage of the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in 2008. In the intervening period, Vantomme spent four seasons in the WorldTour at Katusha, but finds himself with greater responsibility within the Continental Roubaix Lille Metropole squad.
“I have carte blanche with my new team and I could do what I wanted today,” he said. “It was hard to stay near the front in the finale, but I was well-placed with 200 metres to go. I launched my sprint and I managed to win. I could feel my former Katusha teammate Tsatevich coming up behind me, but I said to myself that he wasn’t going to come past.”
Omega Pharma-QuickStep's forcing
The opening stages of Wallonia’s first race of the season were animated by a three-man break featuring Sijmens, Van de Maele and Hubert, who escaped in the first hour of racing and held a lead of three minutes over the bunch shortly after the midway point.
That margin began to tumble soon afterwards, however, as Omega Pharma-QuickStep began to ratchet up the pace in the main peloton. Indeed, after the three leaders were caught, the QuickStep pressing threatened to force the decisive split of the day with 70 kilometres to race.
Certainly, there were shades of Sunday’s Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne when no fewer than six QuickStep riders – Julian Alaphilippe, Andy Fenn, Iljo Keisse, Peter Vakoc, Martin Velits and Guillaume Van Keirsbulck – found themselves in a group of 11 riders that clipped off the front, though the move was pegged back within ten kilometres.
Another QuickStep rider, new arrival Thomas De Gendt, was part of the next major move, slipping away with Alexis Gougeard (Ag2r-La Mondiale) inside the final 50 kilometres. With Lotto-Belisol and Trek Factory Racing among the teams chasing, however, the pair were never allowed a lead greater than 40 seconds, and were pegged back on the finishing circuit with 20 kilometres remaining.
On that finishing circuit, a group of ten riders, including Greg Henderson (Lotto-Belisol), Sergey Lagutin (Rusvelo), Lloyd Mondory, Julian Kern (Ag2r-La Mondiale) and Sébastien Delfosse (Wallonie-Bruxelles) forged their way clear, but they, too, were swept up inside the final ten kilometres.
Jasper Stuyven (Trek Factory Racing) was prominent near the front of the bunch in a finale where a number of moves took off without ever gaining any significant traction, although the Russian champion Isaichev threatened to upset the odds when he powered off the front with two kilometres remaining.
Isaichev’s lead lasted into the final kilometre, but he was caught just as the final, shallow slopes began to bit. Bouhanni seemed well-placed for the win, but Vantomme had other ideas.
“Up to now, I’ve always been missing a little detail,” Vantomme said. “But today, I didn’t wait for Bouhanni or anyone else. I just did my own sprint.”
Full Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Maxime Vantomme (Bel) Roubaix Lille Metropole | 4:36:20 |
2 | Alexey Tsatevitch (Rus) Team Katusha | |
3 | Nacer Bouhanni (Fra) Fdj.fr | |
4 | Erwann Corbel (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
5 | Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) MTN - Qhubeka | |
6 | Steve Chainel (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
7 | Danilo Napolitano (Ita) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
8 | Gerald Ciolek (Ger) MTN - Qhubeka | |
9 | Zico Waeytens (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
10 | Tom Dernies (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
11 | Yauheni Hutarovich (Blr) AG2R La Mondiale | |
12 | Danny Van Poppel (Ned) Trek Factory Racing | |
13 | Jimmy Turgis (Fra) Roubaix Lille Metropole | |
14 | Laurens De Vreese (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
15 | Edwig Cammaerts (Bel) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
16 | Gaetan Bille (Bel) Verandas Willems | |
17 | Maciej Paterski (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
18 | Rudy Barbier (Fra) Roubaix Lille Metropole | |
19 | Rudiger Selig (Ger) Team Katusha | |
20 | Jelle Mannaerts (Bel) Verandas Willems | |
21 | Pieter Jacobs (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
22 | Roman Maikin (Rus) Rusvelo | |
23 | Julien Stassen (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
24 | Gediminas Bagdonas (Ltu) AG2R La Mondiale | |
25 | Jérôme Baugnies (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
26 | Niels Vandyck (Bel) Verandas Willems | |
27 | Olivier Chevalier (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
28 | Sergey Lagutin (Rus) Rusvelo | |
29 | Rob Ruijgh (Ned) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
30 | Jonathan Dufrasne (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
31 | Tomasz Kiendys (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
32 | Kiryll Pozdnyakov (Rus) Rusvelo | |
33 | Viacheslav Kuznetsov (Rus) Team Katusha | |
34 | Sander Cordeel (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
35 | Rudy Molard (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
36 | Kenny De Haes (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
37 | Julian Kern (Ger) AG2R La Mondiale | |
38 | Joeri Stallaert (Bel) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
39 | Pierre-Luc Perrichon (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
40 | Timofey Kritskiy (Rus) Rusvelo | |
41 | Cédric Pineau (Fra) Fdj.fr | |
42 | Andrew Fenn (GBr) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
43 | Arnaud Gerard (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
44 | Michael Van Staeyen (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
45 | Florent Delfosse (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | |
46 | Martin Velits (Svk) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
47 | Piotr Gawronski (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
48 | Björn Leukemans (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
49 | Greg Henderson (NZl) Lotto Belisol | |
50 | Geoffrey Soupe (Fra) Fdj.fr | |
51 | Andrei Solomennikov (Rus) Rusvelo | |
52 | Giorgio Brambilla (Ita) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
53 | Thomas Sprengers (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
54 | Florian Senechal (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
55 | Sébastien Chavanel (Fra) Fdj.fr | |
56 | Florent Mottet (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
57 | Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek Factory Racing | |
58 | Sébastien Delfosse (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
59 | Guillaume Levarlet (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
60 | Christophe Premont (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
61 | Jerome Kerf (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | 0:00:25 |
62 | Dmitry Kozontchuk (Rus) Team Katusha | 0:00:29 |
63 | Hugo Houle (Can) AG2R La Mondiale | |
64 | Jaroslaw Marycz (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
65 | Igor Boev (Rus) Rusvelo | 0:00:31 |
66 | Boy Van Poppel (Ned) Trek Factory Racing | |
67 | Edward Theuns (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
68 | Jonas Vangenechten (Bel) Lotto Belisol | 0:00:35 |
69 | Dennis Vanendert (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
70 | Jean-Marc Bideau (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
71 | Benjamin Le Montagner (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
72 | Boris Dron (Bel) Wallonie - Bruxelles | |
73 | Petr Vakoc (Cze) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | 0:00:40 |
74 | Eliot Lietaer (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
75 | Jay Robert Thomson (RSA) MTN - Qhubeka | |
76 | Julien Vermote (Bel) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
77 | Ignatas Konovalovas (Ltu) MTN - Qhubeka | |
78 | Vladimir Isaichev (Rus) Team Katusha | |
79 | Kevin Hulsmans (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
80 | Gregory Habeaux (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | 0:00:45 |
81 | Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (Bel) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
82 | Stijn Devolder (Bel) Trek Factory Racing | |
83 | Benoît Vaugrenard (Fra) Fdj.fr | |
84 | Boris Vallee (Bel) Lotto Belisol | 0:00:49 |
85 | Baptiste Plackaert (Bel) Roubaix Lille Metropole | |
86 | Preben Van Hecke (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
87 | Romain Lemarchand (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
88 | Martin Reimer (Ger) MTN - Qhubeka | |
89 | Jean-Albert Carnevali (Bel) Verandas Willems | 0:00:52 |
90 | Stéphane Poulhies (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
91 | Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
92 | Vegard Breen (Nor) Lotto Belisol | |
93 | Sam Lennertz (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
94 | Romain Pillon (Fra) Roubaix Lille Metropole | |
95 | Fumiyuki Beppu (Jpn) Trek Factory Racing | |
96 | Tosh Van Der Sande (Bel) Lotto Belisol | 0:01:18 |
97 | Kristof Vandewalle (Bel) Trek Factory Racing | 0:01:20 |
98 | Iljo Keisse (Bel) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
99 | Sean De Bie (Bel) Lotto Belisol | 0:01:26 |
100 | Franck Vermeulen (Fra) Roubaix Lille Metropole | |
101 | Remy Mertz (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | 0:01:32 |
102 | Maxime Daniel (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | 0:01:37 |
103 | Lloyd Mondory (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
104 | Steve Bekaert (Bel) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
105 | Floris Smeyers (Bel) Verandas Willems | |
106 | Rudy Kowalski (Fra) Roubaix Lille Metropole | 0:01:48 |
107 | Nicolas Vereecken (Bel) Verandas Willems | 0:01:49 |
108 | Jacek Morajko (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
109 | Frederik Veuchelen (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
110 | Anton Vorobyev (Rus) Team Katusha | 0:02:04 |
111 | Kurt Geysen (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | 0:02:42 |
112 | Adrian Kurek (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | 0:02:43 |
113 | Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team | |
114 | Serge De Wortelaer (Bel) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
115 | Pawel Charucki (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
116 | Laurent Didier (Lux) Trek Factory Racing | |
117 | David Boucher (Fra) Fdj.fr | |
118 | Johann Van Zyl (RSA) MTN - Qhubeka | |
119 | Jussi Veikkanen (Fin) Fdj.fr | |
120 | Tim De Troyer (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | 0:02:51 |
121 | Jonathan Baratto (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | 0:04:12 |
DNF | Gatis Smukulis (Lat) Team Katusha | |
DNF | Alexis Gougeard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
DNF | Gert Joeaar (Est) Cofidis, Solutions Credits | |
DNF | Andreas Stauff (Ger) MTN - Qhubeka | |
DNF | Leonid Krasnov (Rus) Rusvelo | |
DNF | Nikolay Mihaylov (Bul) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
DNF | Romain Feillu (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
DNF | Clément Koretzky (Fra) Bretagne - Seche Environnement | |
DNF | Tim Declercq (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen - Baloise | |
DNF | Nico Sijmens (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
DNF | Titte Van Laer (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
DNF | Kevin Van Staeyen (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
DNF | Alphonse Vermote (Bel) Vastgoedservice - Golden Palace Continental Team | |
DNF | Francesco Van Coppernolle (Bel) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
DNF | Darijus Dzervus (Ltu) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
DNF | Yu Takenouchi (Jpn) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
DNF | Frederik Vandewiele (Bel) Veranclassic - Doltcini | |
DNF | Walt De Winter (Bel) Verandas Willems | |
DNF | Olivier Pardini (Bel) Verandas Willems | |
DNF | Timothy Dupont (Bel) Roubaix Lille Metropole | |
DNF | Andrew Ydens (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Julien Deschesne (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Axel Gremelpont (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Guillaume Haag (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Toshoni Van Craen (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Glenn Vandemaele (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Maxime Vekeman (Bel) T.Palm - Pôle Continental Wallon | |
DNF | Julien Kaise (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | |
DNF | Antoine Warnier (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | |
DNF | Thomas Wertz (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | |
DNF | Romain Hubert (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze | |
DNF | Gaëtan Pons (Bel) Color Code - Biowanze |
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