UCI World Championships: Etixx beat BMC to win TTT title
Orica take third after close race in Qatar
Etixx-QuickStep claimed victory in the men's team time trial at the Road World Championships in Qatar, ousting defending champions BMC Racing, who finished in second with a perfectly drilled performance on the technical 40km course.
Tony Martin bids farewell to Etixx-QuickStep with third Worlds TTT crown
Boels Dolmans end dominant season with team time trial world title
World Championships: Orica-BikeExchange delighted with team time trial bronze
Phinney: Sometimes you're beaten by a better squad
Etixx-Quick Step back on top step of Worlds TTT podium, First win for Boels Dolmans - Weekend Wrap
Etixx-QuickStep stopped the clock with a time of 42:32, covering the 40km course at an average speed of 56.426km/h. BMC started last as defending champions but struggled to match Etixx’s pace. They eventually finished 11 seconds slower in a time of 42:44. Orica-Bike Exchange was third at a more distant 37 seconds. Team Sky finished fourth at 54 seconds, with LottoNL-Jumbo taking fifth at 55 seconds.
After a protest by the WorldTour teams with the UCI about travel costs, only 10 squads from the 18 WorldTour teams competed. The rest of the rather short start list contained little-known teams from Europe and Asia. As a result, no WorldTour points were awarded.
The Etixx-QuickStep riders and staff celebrated as soon as BMC failed to beat their time, hugging each other in celebration. The Belgian team won the first two editions of the team time trial world title in 2012 and 2013 but their run of success ended with BMC winning in 2014 and 2015.
BMC was arguably the favourite again after winning the recent team time trial at the Eneco Tour, but Etixx added some extra speed and power to the squad this season with the arrival of former Junior time trial world champion Marcel Kittel. Also in the six-rider line-up were Bob Jungels, Yves Lampaert, Tony Martin, Niki Terpstra and Julien Vermote.
The lesser teams started off first in the 40km time trial, with each team taking it steady on the many corners around the Lusail shooting centre. The long, straight 15km section south to Doha proved to be vital, with some riders spinning a 58 chain ring to push their average speed above 60km/h. However the team time trial is also about control.
Movistar’s chances of a medal faded when they had to wait for Jonathan Castroviejo to change bikes. Other teams lost riders too early; with speed, rotation and recovery of six riders the key to success.
Etixx was fastest at the first time split, indicating they handled the early corners well. BMC was four seconds down but then pulled equal, with both teams on 27:56 after 27km. They both switched to a risky four-rider strategy for the many curves and corners on the Pearl, and it was Etixx who found the extra speed and unity to carve out their 11.69 second winning margin. Tony Martin and Marcel Kittel did huge turns to drag the team home so they could celebrate their first world title of the week.
Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Etixx - Quick Step | 0:42:32 |
Row 1 - Cell 0 | Bob Jungels (Lux) | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
Row 2 - Cell 0 | Marcel Kittel (Ger) | Row 2 - Cell 2 |
Row 3 - Cell 0 | Yves Lampaert (Bel) | Row 3 - Cell 2 |
Row 4 - Cell 0 | Tony Martin (Ger) | Row 4 - Cell 2 |
Row 5 - Cell 0 | Niki Terpstra (Ned) | Row 5 - Cell 2 |
Row 6 - Cell 0 | Julien Vermote (Bel) | Row 6 - Cell 2 |
2 | BMC Racing Team | 0:00:12 |
Row 8 - Cell 0 | Rohan Dennis (Aus) | Row 8 - Cell 2 |
Row 9 - Cell 0 | Stefan Kueng (Swi) | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
Row 10 - Cell 0 | Daniel Oss (Ita) | Row 10 - Cell 2 |
Row 11 - Cell 0 | Taylor Phinney (USA) | Row 11 - Cell 2 |
Row 12 - Cell 0 | Manuel Quinziato (Ita) | Row 12 - Cell 2 |
Row 13 - Cell 0 | Joseph Rosskopf (USA) | Row 13 - Cell 2 |
3 | Orica-BikeExchange | 0:00:37 |
Row 15 - Cell 0 | Luke Durbridge (Aus) | Row 15 - Cell 2 |
Row 16 - Cell 0 | Alexander Edmondson (Aus) | Row 16 - Cell 2 |
Row 17 - Cell 0 | Michael Hepburn (Aus) | Row 17 - Cell 2 |
Row 18 - Cell 0 | Daryl Impey (RSA) | Row 18 - Cell 2 |
Row 19 - Cell 0 | Michael Matthews (Aus) | Row 19 - Cell 2 |
Row 20 - Cell 0 | Svein Tuft (Can) | Row 20 - Cell 2 |
4 | Team Sky | 0:00:54 |
Row 22 - Cell 0 | Vasil Kiryienka (Blr) | Row 22 - Cell 2 |
Row 23 - Cell 0 | Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) | Row 23 - Cell 2 |
Row 24 - Cell 0 | Nicolas Roche (Irl) | Row 24 - Cell 2 |
Row 25 - Cell 0 | Ben Swift (GBr) | Row 25 - Cell 2 |
Row 26 - Cell 0 | Geraint Thomas (GBr) | Row 26 - Cell 2 |
Row 27 - Cell 0 | Danny Van Poppel (Ned) | Row 27 - Cell 2 |
5 | Team Lotto Nl - Jumbo | 0:00:55 |
Row 29 - Cell 0 | Victor Campenaerts (Bel) | Row 29 - Cell 2 |
Row 30 - Cell 0 | Wilco Kelderman (Ned) | Row 30 - Cell 2 |
Row 31 - Cell 0 | Tom Leezer (Ned) | Row 31 - Cell 2 |
Row 32 - Cell 0 | Primoz Roglic (Slo) | Row 32 - Cell 2 |
Row 33 - Cell 0 | Timo Roosen (Ned) | Row 33 - Cell 2 |
Row 34 - Cell 0 | Jos Van Emden (Ned) | Row 34 - Cell 2 |
6 | Movistar Team | 0:01:11 |
Row 36 - Cell 0 | Andrey Amador (CRc) | Row 36 - Cell 2 |
Row 37 - Cell 0 | Jonathan Castroviejo (Spa) | Row 37 - Cell 2 |
Row 38 - Cell 0 | Alex Dowsett (GBr) | Row 38 - Cell 2 |
Row 39 - Cell 0 | Imanol Erviti Ollo (Spa) | Row 39 - Cell 2 |
Row 40 - Cell 0 | Nelson Oliveira (Por) | Row 40 - Cell 2 |
Row 41 - Cell 0 | Jasha Suttrline (Spa) | Row 41 - Cell 2 |
7 | Team Giant - Alpecin | 0:01:26 |
Row 43 - Cell 0 | Søren Kragh Andersen (Den) | Row 43 - Cell 2 |
Row 44 - Cell 0 | John Degenkolb (Ger) | Row 44 - Cell 2 |
Row 45 - Cell 0 | Tom Dumoulin (Ned) | Row 45 - Cell 2 |
Row 46 - Cell 0 | Chad Haga (USA) | Row 46 - Cell 2 |
Row 47 - Cell 0 | Georg Preidler (Aut) | Row 47 - Cell 2 |
Row 48 - Cell 0 | Ramon Sinkeldam (Ned) | Row 48 - Cell 2 |
8 | Team Katusha | 0:02:01 |
Row 50 - Cell 0 | Sven Erik Bystrøm (Nor) | Row 50 - Cell 2 |
Row 51 - Cell 0 | Alexander Kristoff (Nor) | Row 51 - Cell 2 |
Row 52 - Cell 0 | Viacheslav Kuznetsov (Rus) | Row 52 - Cell 2 |
Row 53 - Cell 0 | Michael Morkov (Den) | Row 53 - Cell 2 |
Row 54 - Cell 0 | Nils Politt (Ger) | Row 54 - Cell 2 |
Row 55 - Cell 0 | Anton Vorobyev (Rus) | Row 55 - Cell 2 |
9 | Astana Pro Team | 0:02:21 |
Row 57 - Cell 0 | Dario Cataldo (Ita) | Row 57 - Cell 2 |
Row 58 - Cell 0 | Jakob Fuglsang (Den) | Row 58 - Cell 2 |
Row 59 - Cell 0 | Andriy Grivko (Ukr) | Row 59 - Cell 2 |
Row 60 - Cell 0 | Tanel Kangert (Est) | Row 60 - Cell 2 |
Row 61 - Cell 0 | Alexey Lutsenko (Kaz) | Row 61 - Cell 2 |
Row 62 - Cell 0 | Gatis Smukulis (Lat) | Row 62 - Cell 2 |
10 | Veranda's Willems Cycling Team | 0:03:39 |
Row 64 - Cell 0 | Sander Cordeel (Bel) | Row 64 - Cell 2 |
Row 65 - Cell 0 | Jan Ghyselinck (Bel) | Row 65 - Cell 2 |
Row 66 - Cell 0 | Aidis Kruopis (Ltu) | Row 66 - Cell 2 |
Row 67 - Cell 0 | Christophe Premont (Bel) | Row 67 - Cell 2 |
Row 68 - Cell 0 | Elias Van Breussegem (Bel) | Row 68 - Cell 2 |
Row 69 - Cell 0 | Stef Van Zummeren (Bel) | Row 69 - Cell 2 |
11 | Ag2R La Mondiale | 0:03:43 |
Row 71 - Cell 0 | Gediminas Bagdonas (Ltu) | Row 71 - Cell 2 |
Row 72 - Cell 0 | Ben Gastauer (Lux) | Row 72 - Cell 2 |
Row 73 - Cell 0 | Alexis Gougeard (Fra) | Row 73 - Cell 2 |
Row 74 - Cell 0 | Patrick Gretsch (Ger) | Row 74 - Cell 2 |
Row 75 - Cell 0 | Hugo Houle (Can) | Row 75 - Cell 2 |
Row 76 - Cell 0 | Christophe Riblon (Fra) | Row 76 - Cell 2 |
12 | Cycling Academy Team | 0:04:25 |
Row 78 - Cell 0 | Guillaume Boivin (Can) | Row 78 - Cell 2 |
Row 79 - Cell 0 | Dan Craven (Nam) | Row 79 - Cell 2 |
Row 80 - Cell 0 | Mihkel Raim (Est) | Row 80 - Cell 2 |
Row 81 - Cell 0 | Guy Sagiv (Isr) | Row 81 - Cell 2 |
Row 82 - Cell 0 | Daniel Turek (Cze) | Row 82 - Cell 2 |
Row 83 - Cell 0 | Aviv Yechzkel (Irs) | Row 83 - Cell 2 |
13 | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | 0:04:26 |
Row 85 - Cell 0 | Víctor De La Parte (Spa) | Row 85 - Cell 2 |
Row 86 - Cell 0 | Felix Grosschartner (Aut) | Row 86 - Cell 2 |
Row 87 - Cell 0 | Nikolay Mihaylov (Bul) | Row 87 - Cell 2 |
Row 88 - Cell 0 | Lukasz Owsian (Pol) | Row 88 - Cell 2 |
Row 89 - Cell 0 | Maciej Paterski (Pol) | Row 89 - Cell 2 |
Row 90 - Cell 0 | Branislau Samoilau (Blr) | Row 90 - Cell 2 |
14 | Kolss-BDC Team | 0:05:04 |
Row 92 - Cell 0 | Andrii Bratashchuk (Ukr) | Row 92 - Cell 2 |
Row 93 - Cell 0 | Vitaliy Buts (Ukr) | Row 93 - Cell 2 |
Row 94 - Cell 0 | Mykhaylo Kononenko (Ukr) | Row 94 - Cell 2 |
Row 95 - Cell 0 | Andriy Kulyk (Ukr) | Row 95 - Cell 2 |
Row 96 - Cell 0 | Sergiy Lagkuti (Ukr) | Row 96 - Cell 2 |
Row 97 - Cell 0 | Ndriy Vasylyuk (Ukr) | Row 97 - Cell 2 |
15 | Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team - Al Ahli Club | 0:05:44 |
Row 99 - Cell 0 | Soufiane Haddi (Mar) | Row 99 - Cell 2 |
Row 100 - Cell 0 | Adil Jelloul (Mar) | Row 100 - Cell 2 |
Row 101 - Cell 0 | Francisco Mancebo (Esp) | Row 101 - Cell 2 |
Row 102 - Cell 0 | Tariq Obaid (UAE) | Row 102 - Cell 2 |
Row 103 - Cell 0 | Andrea Palini (Ita) | Row 103 - Cell 2 |
Row 104 - Cell 0 | Marlen Zmorka (Ukr) | Row 104 - Cell 2 |
16 | Vino 4-Ever SKO | 0:06:31 |
Row 106 - Cell 0 | Stepan Astafyev (Kaz) | Row 106 - Cell 2 |
Row 107 - Cell 0 | Zhandos Bizhigitov (Kaz) | Row 107 - Cell 2 |
Row 108 - Cell 0 | Yevgeniy Gidich (Kaz) | Row 108 - Cell 2 |
Row 109 - Cell 0 | Alexandr Shushemoin (Kaz) | Row 109 - Cell 2 |
Row 110 - Cell 0 | Alexey Voloshin (Kaz) | Row 110 - Cell 2 |
Row 111 - Cell 0 | Oleg Zemlyakov (Kaz) | Row 111 - Cell 2 |
17 | Stradalli - Bike Aid | 0:07:24 |
Row 113 - Cell 0 | Joschka Beck (Ger) | Row 113 - Cell 2 |
Row 114 - Cell 0 | Daniel Bichlmann (Ger) | Row 114 - Cell 2 |
Row 115 - Cell 0 | Patrick Lechner (Ger) | Row 115 - Cell 2 |
Row 116 - Cell 0 | Dominik Merseburg (Ger) | Row 116 - Cell 2 |
Row 117 - Cell 0 | Timo Schafer (Ger) | Row 117 - Cell 2 |
Row 118 - Cell 0 | Meron Teshome Hagos (Ger) | Row 118 - Cell 2 |
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Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.