Greipel grabs win in Lagos

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For the second consecutive day at Portugal's Volta ao Algarve, HTC-Columbia's André Greipel entered the final kilometre trailing a solo rider seeking to steal a victory from the sprinters. Today, however, the German sprinter would not be denied his stage win.

The 27-year-old Greipel timed his acceleration to perfection to claim stage two in abysmal weather conditions and take over the race leadership from yesterday's winner Benoît Vaugrenard (Française Des Jeux).

Belgium's Jurgen Roelandts (Omega Pharma - Lotto) finished in second place with the same time as Greipel on the uphill finish while Olympic road champion Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel - Euskadi) crossed the line four seconds later to round out the top three.

Greipel was surprised about his victory on such a difficult stage. "I never thought I'd be able to hang on for so long, over all those climbs," said Greipel. "Okay, this race isn't the Tour de France, but it's still a special win, one I feel very proud of taking.

"My teammates were constantly telling me not to give up, and to keep trying, even though I thought I couldn't last because most of the day I felt terrible. Then when we managed to pull back the last guy from the break very close to the finish I went for it."

So close...

For Footon - Servetto's David Vitoria, however, the finish came 200m too late. The exhausted Swiss rider was swept up by the peloton at the foot of the steep finishing pitch after spending 195 kilometres off the front.

"It’s a pity, because the stage was extremely hard due to the weather, and I bonked in the last three or four kilometres," said Vitoria. "I knew that the final slope was really steep, but [I] got on it with no energy.

"That said, I'm happy since several teams had to work together to chase me down, and that means I've given my best.

"I did what I could, and that's how cycling works: sometimes it makes you happy with less effort, and today, when I did so much work, I was given no prize. Although my peak fitness doesn't come until April, I'm very satisfied with my season's start."

Misery abounds on rain-soaked stage

Vitoria, along with Jeremy Hunt (Cervélo Test Team), Jerome Baugnies (Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator), Michal Golas (Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team) and Julien Fouchard (Cofidis, Le Credit en Ligne), had attacked the peloton 12 kilometres into the stage and built up a 12-minute lead over a field not eager to race in the rainy, icy cold conditions.

The weather and the hilly parcours, containing four category three climbs, had its effect on the break, too, as the quintet gradually splintered. With 30 kilometres remaining until the finish in Lagos, Vitoria dropped Fourchard, his final companion of the original break. The Swiss rider led a reduced 70-man peloton by 3:30 and hoped to keep his pursuers at bay.

Under the impetus of Euskaltel-Euskadi, the field bore down on Vitoria who came tantalizingly close to pulling off the win, only to be caught an agonising 200m from the finish. Greipel atoned for his third place finish yesterday, where he won the field sprint but fell short of capturing Vaugrenard and Joan Horrach (Katusha), by taking the victory today.

With the winner's time bonus Greipel becomes the new race leader as the previous yellow jersey wearer, Benoît Vaugrenard (Française Des Jeux), falls to second, five seconds behind the German. Roelandts moved into third place, eight seconds in arrears of Greipel.

Greipel's tenure in the race lead may be short-lived, however, as the peloton faces the most difficult stage of the Volta ao Algarve on Friday. The field will travel 173.7km from Castro Marin to the mountain finish on the category two Alto do Malhão with three category three climbs preceding the final ascent.