Tour of Denmark: Boasson Hagen wins stage 2 sprint in Aarhus

Edvald Boassan Hagen (MTN Qhubeka) claimed stage 2 of the Tour of Denmark from Ringkøbing to Aarhus ahead of his teammate Kristian Sbaragli and Soren Kragh Andersen (Team Trefor - Blue Water) in a bunch sprint.

Boassan Hagen appeared to be leading Sbaragli out but with 150 metres to go he was still on the front and had enough in the tank to hold on for the win.

"It was a pretty long stage but I felt really good," Boasson Hagen said. "The final was hard enough to suit our team and the guys were excellent in chasing down all the small attacks. Gerald [Ciolek] was fantastic to lead us out into the final kilometer and to make sure Cort Nielsen was brought back. I had a good position in the final corner and just took it from there. I am really happy to take this win and it's also extra nice to have Kris finish 2nd." 

The final 10 kilometres were marked by a number of opportunist attacks with Rasmus Guldhammer (Cult Energy) the only rider able to open up a clear gap. He had 13 seconds at one point but he was reeled in before the line.

Lars Boom (Astana) picked up bonus seconds on the stage and retains his overall lead in the race.

How it unfolded

At 235km, stage 2 was the longest of the Tour of Denmark. Stage 1 winner and overall race leader Boom had the full service of his Astana teammates during race, and despite being persistently attacked, the race was all together at the start of the final 12km, and just over three laps remained of the circuit-style finish.

A series of attacks attempted to dismantle Astana’s control over the field. Tinkoff-Saxo’s Jay McCarty put forth a solo effort, carrying over his team’s aggressive riding from the previous day’s stage 1 where Christopher Juul Jensen forced the winning breakaway in the closing kilometres. Astana didn’t allow any leeway for McCarty and he was eventually brought back into the fold.

Martin Mortensen (Cult Energy) forced the pace and broke clear of the field with Floris De Tier (Topsport Vlaanderen), Kanstantsin Siutsou (Team Sky) and Rasmus Mygind (Riwal Platform Cycling Team) with nine kilometres to go, and two laps of the race remaining. As soon as the catch was made, counter attacks continued and several hundred metres later Mortensen’s teammate Rasmus Guldammer cleared the field.

MTN-Qhubeka emerged as the dominant team in the closing kilometres, forming a lead-out train for their sprinters Boasson Hagen and Sbaragli. It was a second chance for the team that pushed a strong lead-out during stage 1 but unluckily lost three riders to mechanicals in the process.

Guldhammer’s attacked flourished into a sizable gap as he stormed through the finish line area with the bell lap and a 20-second lead. However, he wasn’t strong enough to hold off an active peloton behind.

Lotto Soudal, Team Sky and Tinkoff-Saxo made counter moves but it was Magnus Cort (Denmark) who gained the late-race gap during the final two-kilometre stretch to the finish line. He raced under the flamme rouge with a small lead, desperately trying to hold off the charging MTN-Qhubeka-led peloton.

The South African outfit caught the lone escapee and their efforts paid off with a 1-2 finish as Boasson Hagen won the stage and Sbaragli took second. 

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