Kristoff wins yet again in Scheldeprijs

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Scheldeprijs followed the recent form guide of the spring Classics, with Alexander Kristoff (Katusha) winning the sprint finish ahead of Edward Theuns (Topsport) and Yauheni Hutarovich (Bretagne-Séché Environnement). 

The race was marred by a huge crash inside the final two kilometres with the majority of the field caught up or blocked by the carnage. However, that was inconsequential to Kristoff who opened a commanding sprint inside the final 150 meters to follow up on his Tour of Flanders success.

Kristoff and his Katusha team have been unbeatable in recent weeks, with Luca Paolini claiming Gent-Wevelgem and Kristoff a winner in the Three Days of De Panne before his Ronde triumph.

“It's unbelievable how the team is going. They worked really hard for me again today to pull it back for the sprint,” he told Sporza at the finish.

His win in Scheldeprijs had an air of inevitability about it. With Mark Cavendish, Andre Griepel, and Marcel Kittel all missing from the start list, Kristoff started as the favourite but there would have been little any of the notable absentees could have done against a rider in such form.

Even when his team faltered and left him isolated in the final two kilometres, the Norwegian had the confidence - there’s almost a swagger to his riding now – to position himself at the back of FDJ’s train before dipping his shoulder and coming through for the win.

“We came maybe a little too far with 1 to 2km to go. Then they did a good job to bring me to the front. In the last 500 meters, I was in perfect position and I could start when I want. I felt quite tired, because we had to use a lot of energy to get into position the last two kilometres. I was not really sure, but at the end I saw I had nobody to come past. It's a great feeling.”

The late crash that saw a number of the field crash had reduced the lead group to less than twenty riders with the vast majority of the peloton held up and forced to wait.

How it unfolded

Sandwiched between the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix they say that Scheldeprijs offers the sprinters a chance of success on the cobbles – a reward for the hardships they have been put through over the climbs of northern Belgium.

However the three fastest men of their generation, in Cavendish, Kittel and Griepel were absent when the race left Antwerp under blue skies. Their loss was a gain for their rivals with Peter Sagan hunting for his second win of the season and the unstoppable Kristoff looking to maintain his purple patch of form.

Little wonder then when both Tinkoff Saxo and Katusha set about dismantling the advantage set by the early break after an hour of racing.

Laurens De Vreese (Astana), Frederik Backaert (Wanty-Groupe Gobert), Kenneth Van Bilsen (Cofidis), Matteo Busato (Southeast), Vincent Jérôme (Europcar), Huub Duyn (Roompot), and Tanner Putt (UnitedHealthcare) had escaped just before the thirty kilometre point and established a lead of over four minutes by the time Kristoff’s and Sagan’s cavalry arrived.

The response was effective but slow releasing, the gap decreasing before it lay at just a minute with 20 kilometres remaining. At this point a number of other squads had sprung into action with Astana, Etixx-QuickStep and Team Sky showing noticeable intent at the head of the peloton.

De Vreese and Duyn fired off one last do-or-die attack with four kilometres remaining the advantage had been wiped out and the peloton looked set for a bunch sprint.

That all changed with just over a kilometre remaining when the battle for position proved too much with a touch of wheels leading to a major crash near the front of the field. The well positioned and the lucky made it through but Kristoff needs little help these days.

Next up for Kristoff and Katusha is Paris-Roubaix – a race where the Norwegian has struggled in the past.

“I hope I can keep this winning streak going, but Roubaix is a different race. I've struggled there before. I don't think I’m the biggest favourite, because I've never performed too well there, but I will try.”

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