Sibiu Tour: Holler claims prologue as rain washes away WorldTour riders

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Nikodemus Holler (Bike Aid) took out the biggest win of his career, taking out the prologue of the UCI 2.1-ranked Sibiu Tour in Romania on Thursday.

Holler was only the sixth rider off the start ramp in the historic centre of Sibiu and dove through the cobbled turns, powered up the short, steep climb and sprinted to the line in 03:34.6.

It was a solid effort but with Bora-Hansgrohe and Israel Start-Up Nation on the start list, few expected the 29-year-old to keep the lead. Mother Nature had other ideas, however, and after a vicious storm blew through and soaked the highly technical course, Holler's time held.

Not only was the win Bike Aid's first of the year, their first leader's jersey of a stage race, but also Holler's win will go down in history as the first in a 2.1 race in the restart of racing amid the coronavirus pandemic.

After sitting through 100 minutes of other riders finishing, Holler finally let out a whoop of joy as the last rider came through well behind.

"I was nervous all the time, it was getting more and more dry and good guys were starting on the last positions. But there were still four or five corners that were still wet – I'm lucky. I was nervous as hell – I'm not made for being a time trialist. I prefer to go over the line and know already you won. This was not good for my health," Holler joked.

"I always did good in this prologue, I was top 20. I knew I could do a good time, but there was some luck with the weather. Today it was fortune, but still to take it you have to take the opportunity. There were some other guys starting on good roads without rain and I beat them, so it's a victory.

"I've had so many bad times - in March I broke several bones in my face. This time I had luck, so I think it's fair."

How it unfolded

The prologue of the Sibiu Tour got underway as the first stage race fielding WorldTour teams (two) after the coronavirus pandemic brought the season to a halt in March.

Racing in the time of COVID-19 looked quite different from previous years, with masked men holding the riders on the start ramp and a gloved hand counting down to each rider's launch.

The streets of the short, 2.5km twisting dash over historic cobbles in Sibiu, Romania were mostly deserted, especially after an intense rain storm blew in and threatened to knock over riders and barricades.

Romanian stand-out Serghei Tvetcov started his ride in the worst part of the storm and, despite being a strong time trialist, finished well off the mark set by Nikodemus Holler (Bike Aid), who finished his effort before the rain came.

WorldTour riders like Pascal Ackermann (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Mihkel Räim (Israel Start-Up Nation) were taking no chances and cruised through the individual time trial well over a minute off the leader.

While the storm let up before the last wave of starters, the still rain-soaked streets continued to slow down even the best riders, leaving Holler in the hot seat well into the final.

Maciej Paterski (Wibatech Merx) clocked one of the faster times after the rain, sneaking in for tenth place as the cobbles began to dry out. Michael Bresciani (D'Amico um Tools) nearly crashed in the final turn and others simply soft-pedalled through the finish – clearly the time limit had been removed.

That changed when 19-year-old local Iustin-Ioan Vaidian cracked the top 10 and took home the prize for best Romanian rider after a dare-devil ride. "I grew up with the Sibiu Cycling Tour," Vaidian said. 

"For three years, I have been a volunteer at the race and worked here on the Piața Mare, now I stand on the podium. It is a dream come true. My goal is to finish the race in good health, anything else is a bonus."

All eyes were on Romanian Eduard Grosu (Nippo Delko One Provence), who started third to last, for a home victory but the roads were still too slick for quick turns and he came through outside the top 10, with only Mathias Brändle (Israel Start-Up Nation) and Patrick Konrad (Bora-Hansgrohe) still to come.

The Austrian champion also finished outside the top 10 and Holler's fortunes rose one step higher as the clock ticked out on Konrad. The Bora rider came through in 10th and Holler let out a primal scream, having claimed the biggest win of his career.

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