Keough fastest sprinter in Charlotte
Protest over final sprint causes upset on the podium
Jake Keough (UnitedHealthcare) benefited from a perfect team lead-out to take the victory at the Presbyterian Hospital Invitational Criterium on Saturday night in Charlotte, North Carolina. He took a run to the line in the bunch sprint and out-paced Australian Criterium Champion Jonathan Cantwell (V Australia) in second and Alejandro Borrajo (Jamis-Sutter Home) in third.
“It was our race to lose from the start,” Keough said. “We raced smart all night and it was really hard and we didn’t control it until those last few laps when we did our lead-out. Everyone was attacking, it was stop and go and everyone was attacking. It was a hard race to win and I think we earned the win.”
Cantwell protested the sprint with race officials following the final sprint. Several riders alleged that Keough abruptly switched lines in the finishing straight. Officials ruled in favour of Keough saying that they did not see the incident. Cantwell declined to comment.
“Cantwell is a classy rider, Australian National Criterium Champion, and when he lines up, nine times out of ten he is the one we are looking at to be the big competition,” Keough said. “I have full respect for him. I don’t know what happened, we sprint from the front. The team rode the front for the last seven laps and we worked really hard for it.”
Cantwell lined up under sweltering heat to defend his title in the Pro-Cat 1 men’s race for a whopping $50,000. Three rows of riders including Elite, Amateurs and Professionals were called to the start line. Notable sprinters included Luca Damiani (Kenda/5-hour Energy), Menzies (UnitedHealthcare), Frank Pipp and Kyle Wamsley (Bissell), Mark Hekman (Clevland Clinic Sports Health), Christian Helmig (Elbowz Racing) and Emile Abraham (AeroCat-Cycling) and USA CRITS overall series leader Luke Keough (MountainKhakis p/b Smart Shop), among others.
“I think the whole race was a little more quiet than usual because of the heat, the air was really heavy,” Borrajo said. “It was an easier race because there weren’t a lot of attacks. It was still a hard pace, but the humidity made it a strange race.”
The dumbbell-shaped race course offered the fans a chance to see the riders twice through the finish area and a four-corner circuit on each end. The Pro-Cat 1 men raced for 80 kms. Race organizers kick-started the race with a $1000 prime won by Cantwell.
Heath Blackgrove (Elbowz Racing) went on a solo move in the first few laps of the race and he was followed by chaser Jose Navarro (GM Bikes). Bissell and UnitedHealthcare seemed interested in keeping the field together during the early parts of the race. John Loehner (Stan’s No Tubes-AXA Equitable-CRCA) picked up several race primes during his solo efforts.
“The primes were an incentive tonight,” said Blackgrove, who made nearly $2000 in primes on the day. “But I think breakaways would go and then a prime would just happen. I was going to try and break up the race, try and get a breakaway going and try and win the race.”
Kenda/5-hour Energy made a chase effort but was quickly marked by riders from UnitedHealthcare and Bissell. Yosvany Falcon (RealCyclist.com) made a solo move followed by Chad Hartley (Kenda/5-hour Energy), who worked together to hold a small lead over the field for several laps. Soladay and Bobby Lea (Pure Energy Cycling-ProAir HFA) tried to bridge across.
The next series of riders to attempt a breakaway included Kyle Wamsley (Bissell), Clayton Barrows (Stan’s No Tubes-AXA Equitable-CRCA) and Tom Soladay (Kelly Benefit Strategies-OptumHealth). Wamsley won the mid-race prime for USA CRITS points.
Soladay continued to ride solo several laps before his breakaway was neutralized with 14 laps to go by riders attempting to bridge across. Bissell and UnitedHealthcare continued to have a strong presence at the front of the field. Andy Baker (Bissell) made his move but was covered by Davide Frattini (UnitedHealthcare). Daniel Holt (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) went on a solo flyer for one lap. He was followed by Ben Zawacki (Mountain Khakis p/b Smart Shop) and Jonny Clarke (UnitedHealthcare).
Blackgrove made one final move and stayed off the front for three laps, picking up a $1000 prime. Luis Amaran (Jamis-Sutter Home) made a short effort to try and bridge across, but the two riders were reabsorbed into the field with four laps to go by the UnitedHealthcare train.
“We had a small team here because the other part of the team is racing in Brazil,” Borrajo said.
1 | Jake Keough (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | 1:55:35 |
2 | Jonathan Cantwell (V Australia) | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
3 | Alejandro Borrajo (Jamis-Sutter Home) | Row 2 - Cell 2 |
4 | Demis Aleman (Jamis-Sutter Home) | Row 3 - Cell 2 |
5 | Andrew Pinfold (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | 0:00:01 |
6 | Serghei Tvetcov (AeroCat Cycling Team) | Row 5 - Cell 2 |
7 | Kyle Wamsley (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | 0:00:02 |
8 | Karl Menzies (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | Row 7 - Cell 2 |
9 | Euris Rafael Vidal (Foundation/CRCA) | 0:00:03 |
10 | Emile Abraham (AeroCat Cycling Team) | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
11 | Yosvany Falcon (Realcyclist.com Pro Cycling Team) | Row 10 - Cell 2 |
12 | Joey Rosskopf (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) | Row 11 - Cell 2 |
13 | Weimar Roldan (Colombian National Team) | Row 12 - Cell 2 |
14 | Luis Alberto Romero Amaran (Jamis-Sutter Home) | 0:00:04 |
15 | Eric Young (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | Row 14 - Cell 2 |
16 | Luke Keough (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | Row 15 - Cell 2 |
17 | Chad Hartley (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | Row 16 - Cell 2 |
18 | Frank Travieso (Realcyclist.com Pro Cycling Team) | 0:00:06 |
19 | Andrew Dahlheim (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | Row 18 - Cell 2 |
20 | Chad Burdzilauskas (Texas Roadhouse Cycling Team) | Row 19 - Cell 2 |
21 | Joseph Schmalz (ELBOWZ Racing) | 0:00:07 |
22 | Rafael Meran (Foundation/CRCA) | Row 21 - Cell 2 |
23 | Thomas Brown (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | 0:00:12 |
24 | Colin Jaskiewicz (MetLife Cycling Team) | Row 23 - Cell 2 |
25 | Daniel Holt (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) | 0:00:17 |
26 | Keck Baker (XO Communications / Battley Harley-Davidson) | 0:00:19 |
27 | David Forkner (Foundation/CRCA) | Row 26 - Cell 2 |
28 | Jose Frank Rodriguez (Team Coco's) | 0:00:20 |
29 | Patrick Allison (Birmingham Velo PB Donahoo Auto) | Row 28 - Cell 2 |
30 | Owen Nielsen (Happy Tooth) | Row 29 - Cell 2 |
31 | Jose Navarro (GM Bikes) | 0:00:21 |
32 | Clay Murfet (RideClean p/b PatentIt.com) | Row 31 - Cell 2 |
33 | Ryan Dewald (XO Communications / Battley Harley-Davidson) | Row 32 - Cell 2 |
34 | Stephen Housley (Chemstar p/b UnitedHealthcare) | 0:00:22 |
35 | Clayton Barrows (Stan's No Tubes / AXA Equitable) | Row 34 - Cell 2 |
36 | J Gabriel Lloyd (MetLife Cycling Team) | 0:00:23 |
37 | Thomas Soladay (Kelly Benefit Strategies-OptumHealth) | 0:00:27 |
38 | David Guttenplan (Chemstar p/b UnitedHealthcare) | 0:00:35 |
39 | Andrew Gonzales (ELBOWZ Racing) | 0:00:37 |
40 | Arles Castro (Colombian National Team) | Row 39 - Cell 2 |
41 | John Grant (Texas Roadhouse Cycling Team) | 0:00:38 |
42 | Marco Li (Garneau-Club Chaussures-Norton) | 0:00:45 |
43 | Josh Oxendine (DIY Music p/b AYC) | Row 42 - Cell 2 |
44 | Travis Livermon (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | 0:00:48 |
45 | Austin Roach (MetLife Cycling Team) | 0:00:49 |
46 | Christian Helmig (ELBOWZ Racing) | 0:01:06 |
47 | Jonathan Clarke (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | 0:01:08 |
48 | Hilton Clarke (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | 0:01:09 |
49 | K Frank Pipp (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | 0:01:12 |
50 | Isaac Howe (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | 0:06:11 |
51 | Robert White (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | Row 50 - Cell 2 |
52 | Winston David (Globalbike Elite Team) | Row 51 - Cell 2 |
53 | Jonathan Hamblen (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | Row 52 - Cell 2 |
54 | David Williams (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | Row 53 - Cell 2 |
55 | Davide Frattini (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | Row 54 - Cell 2 |
56 | John Simms (Jamis-Sutter Home) | 0:06:12 |
57 | Shane Kline (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | Row 56 - Cell 2 |
58 | Patrick Bevin (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | Row 57 - Cell 2 |
59 | Adrian Hegyvary (UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling) | Row 58 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Joshua Carter (Aerocat Cycing Team) | Row 59 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Diego Garavito (Aerocat Cycing Team) | Row 60 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Sabastian Cancio (Aerocat Cycling Team) | Row 61 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Mark Warno (AVC/Team Hagerstown) | Row 62 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Andy Baker (BISSELL Pro Cycling) | Row 63 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Aaron Frahm (Chemstar p/b UnitedHealthcare) | Row 64 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Wally Bixby (Chemstar p/b UnitedHealthcare) | Row 65 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Brian Hill (Chemstar p/b UnitedHealthcare) | Row 66 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Gavriel Epstein (Chipotle Development Team) | Row 67 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Nicholas Inabinet (Cleveland Clinic Sports Health RGF Cycling p/b Felt Bicycles) | Row 68 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alan Antonuk (Cleveland Clinic Sports Health RGF Cycling p/b Felt Bicycles) | Row 69 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Patrick Weddell (Cleveland Clinic Sports Health RGF Cycling p/b Felt Bicycles) | Row 70 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Andre Vandenberg (Cleveland Clinic Sports Health RGF Cycling p/b Felt Bicycles) | Row 71 - Cell 2 |
DNF | James Baldesare | Row 72 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Mark Hekman (Cleveland Clinic Sports Health RGF Cycling p/b Felt Bicycles) | Row 73 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Juan Esteban Araango (Colombian National Team) | Row 74 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Carlos Uran (Colombian National Team) | Row 75 - Cell 2 |
DNF | William Munoz (Deportivo CICO Rionegro) | Row 76 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Maxwell Robb (DIY Music p/b AYC) | Row 77 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Michael Raynor (DIY Music p/b AYC) | Row 78 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Cody Johnson (DIY Music p/b AYC) | Row 79 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Heath Blackgrove (ELBOWZ Racing) | Row 80 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alejandro Guzman (Foundation/CRCA) | Row 81 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alexander Bremer (Foundation/CRCA) | Row 82 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jeff Schiller (Garneau-Club Chaussures-Norton Rose) | Row 83 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Kyle Knott (Team Globalbike p/b Catoma) | Row 84 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Trey Miller (Team Globalbike p/b Catoma) | Row 85 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Marc Williams (Globalbike Elite Team) | Row 86 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Scott Edge (Team Globalbike p/b Catoma) | Row 87 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Simon Bennett (Globalbike Elite Team) | Row 88 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Luis Zayas | Row 89 - Cell 2 |
DNF | John Crow (Happy Tooth) | Row 90 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Cory Scott (Happy Tooth) | Row 91 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Adam Ray (Industry Nine) | Row 92 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Fernando Antogna (Jamis-Sutter Home) | Row 93 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Shawn Milne (Kenda 5 Hour Energy P/B GearGrinder) | Row 94 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Luca Damiani (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | Row 95 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Christopher Monteleone (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | Row 96 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Scottie Weiss (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | Row 97 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Spencer Gaddy (Kenda-5 Hour Energy p/b GearGrinder) | Row 98 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Andy Munas (MetLife p/b groSolar) | Row 99 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Ben Faulk (Mock Orange Racing) | Row 100 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Bobby Lea (Pure Energy Cycling/ProAirHFA) | Row 101 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Cole House (Realcyclist.com Pro Cycling Team) | Row 102 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Andy Crater (Serenity Bikes p/b Yoga One) | Row 103 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Marc Prutton (Stan's No Tubes / AXA Equitable / CRCA) | Row 104 - Cell 2 |
DNF | John Loehner (Stan's No Tubes / AXA Equitable / CRCA) | Row 105 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Joseph Whitman (Stan's No Tubes / AXA Equitable / CRCA) | Row 106 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jim Cunningham (Team Carolina Tri-Metro Reprographics) | Row 107 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Yosmani Pol (Team Coco's) | Row 108 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Leonardo Martinez (Team Coco's) | Row 109 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Neil Bezdek (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | Row 110 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Adam Myerson (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | Row 111 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Benjamin Zawacki (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | Row 112 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jerome Townsend (Team Mountain Khakis presented by SmartStop) | Row 113 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Andrea Ciacchinni (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) | Row 114 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Strad Helms (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) | Row 115 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alex Bowden (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) | Row 116 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Charles Eldridge (Team Type 1-Sanofi Aventis) | Row 117 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Adam Bergman | Row 118 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Kevin Attkisson (Texas Roadhouse Cycling Team P/B Motorex) | Row 119 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jared Nieters (XO Communications / Battley Harley-Davidson) | Row 120 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Timothy Brown (XO Communications / Battley Harley-Davidson) | Row 121 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Zachary Felpel (XO Communications / Battley Harley-Davidson) | Row 122 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jean-Michel Lachance (Team Canada) | Row 123 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Mike Midlarsky (Realcyclist.com Pro Cycling Team) | Row 124 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Damien Dunn (Hub) | Row 125 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Marcus Morgan (Preferred Parking) | Row 126 - Cell 2 |
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews, overseeing the global racing content plan.
Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.
She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.
Most Popular
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Hagens Berman Jayco creates formal pathway to WorldTour with Jayco AlUla
GreenEdge Cycling now supports four teams, with feeder squads for women and men -
Ben O'Connor connects with his roots to inspire young Aussie generation as Jayco-AIUIa leader
'Results are fickle; it can be about being smart' says Grand Tour rider, yet to reveal 2025 programme beyond Tour de France -
'Tougher' Louisville course welcomed to break up elite fields at US Cyclocross Nationals
Live broadcast on Saturday features six races from Joe Creason Park in Louisville, Kentucky -
From Arkéa to UAE, these are the 2025 pro cycling team kits
French teams lead the way in new jersey design reveals but spies have spotted a couple unofficial releases