Porte seals Paris-Nice title with win on Col d’Èze

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Richie Porte (Sky Procycling) made history today as the first Australian to win overall at Paris-Nice. The 28-year-old Tasmanian sealed his general classification victory with a win on the final stage time trial up Col d'Eze, a climb the Monaco resident knows by heart. Porte duplicated the double final day victory of 2012 by teammate Bradley Wiggins and thus kept the Paris-Nice title within the Sky family.

"I just never thought or believed that I could win Paris-Nice," said Porte. "For me personally I've never had a nice experience at this race so it's a massive monkey off the back to come here and win it.

"I can't believe it. The first Aussie to win such a big race and it's just an honour to have my name up there with Bradley Wiggins, Tony Martin and all the big champions.

"I woke up this morning and I knew that I had good legs. After the armchair ride that I got from the team yesterday – as well as on stage five and for the entire week – I knew I'd be in good shape. The guys were just incredible this race."

Andrew Talansky (Garmin-Sharp) finished second on the day with a time of 19:39, 23 seconds off the pace of Porte. The 24-year-old American defended both his second place GC position, finishing 55 seconds behind Porte overall, as well as his best young rider classification lead.

Nairo Quintana placed third on the uphill race of truth, four seconds behind Talansky. The 23-year-old Colombian confirmed his climbing mettle as one of only four riders to crack the 20-minute barrier on the day, and the youngest to do so. The Movistar rider ultimately finished 15th overall on general classification, plus placed fourth overall on the best young rider classification.

Jean-Christophe Peraud (AG2R La Mondiale), fourth on the stage, jumped from fifth to third overall to earn the final overall podium position, 1:21 behind Porte, the first time in the Frenchman's career that he achieved such a result at a WorldTour event.

American Tejay van Garderen (BMC), best young rider at last year's Paris-Nice, finished fifth on the stage and fourth on the final general classification, plus second to compatriot Talansky for the white jersey.

Stage six winner Sylvain Chavanel (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) started the Col d'Eze time trial in third on general classification and put in an admirable 9th place performance amidst stellar climbers to ultimately place fifth overall, perhaps a harbinger of good results to come during the upcoming spring Classics.

Dutchman Rick Flens (Blanco), the first man out, set a reference time of 22:35 but he was quickly toppled from top spot by France's Jeremy Roy (FDJ), the first rider under 21 minutes in 20:59. The Frenchman's mark was improved by Italy's Mattia Cattaneo (Lampre-Merida) in 20:51.

While Jerome Coppel (Cofidis) avenged a disappointing Paris-Nice to date with a fine 20:33, former Giro winner Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) seized the lead with a time of 20:19.

The first rider under 20 minutes was Colombia's Nairo Quintana (Movistar), who showcased his climbing abilities with a 29.2 kph average speed on the uphill time trial to stop the clock in 19:43. Former junior world champion Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) in 20:16 and Slovenia's Simon Spilak (Katusha), 4th overall last year, in 20:11, were unable to improve on the former Tour de l'Avenir winner's time. Even American Tejay van Garderen (BMC), seen by many as the pre-race favourite, failed to crack the 20-minute mark and Quintana's time would prove enough to earn him a podium placing on the stage.

When the top five riders on the general classification started, the big battle for the final podium did as well. Jean-Christophe Peraud (AG2R La Mondiale), starting the day in fifth overall, avenged a crash in the first turn by clocking what would be the 4th fastest time in 19:48, enough for him to finish on the final podium. White jersey holder Andrew Talansky (Garmin-Sharp) also impressed by bettering Quintana's times with every kilometre, but there was no denying Richie Porte (Sky) a victory he amply deserved. The Australian led from the gun and crossed the line in 19:16, only four seconds slower than teammate Bradley Wiggins's record climb of a year ago.