Martin wins time trial, overall at Volta ao Algarve

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Reigning time trial world champion Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) stamped his authority on the Volta ao Algarve's final stage as the 27-year-old German scorched the 34.8km race of truth in 45:09 to win both the stage and the overall general classification. Such was the dominance of Martin's performance that his closest competitor, teammate Michal Kwiatkowski, ceded 1:07 to the flying German while Jesse Sergent (RadioShack-Leopard) notched the third best time at 1:15 down.

"I am really happy," Martin said. "I was really looking to have a good day, and I had a good feeling immediately this morning during the reconnaissance. The parcours was really hard, with a lot of technical parts and little climbs where it was necessary to relaunch the action every time. Fortunately, it didn't rain during the TT. It rained a little bit before, but it stopped before so we had good conditions on the course during the TT. I really pushed a lot, and everything was perfect. There was a perfect approach to the race, and the result was because of all of these things."

Kwiatkowski made it a 1-2 Omega Pharma finish for both the stage and general classification as well, finishing 58 seconds down on Martin overall.

"Today I liked this kind of parcours," said Kwiatkowski. "It was not one for the big gear — it was a bit more technical with a lot of shifting. I like that kind of parcours the most. I am very happy about the entire week, even on the climb yesterday. I saw the job I did in the last month to improve on the climbs pay off. I had good results at this race and I am happy about it."

Dutch time trial champion Lieuwe Westra (Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team) clocked the fourth fastest time, 1:16 down on Martin. Westra started the stage eight seconds ahead of Kwiatkowski and 17 seconds in front of Martin on general classification, but the Dutchman lost time to the Omega Pharma-Quick Step teammates. Westra would still finish on the final GC podium in third, however, with Kwiatkowski edging him out for second overall by just one second.

Overnight leader Sergio Henao (Sky) proved no match for the rouleurs on the Volta al Algarve's concluding time trial, losing 3:15 and the overall title to Martin, who started the day 28 seconds in arrears of the 25-year-old Colombian. Although Henao finished a respectable 14th in the final stage, beating the likes of French time trial champion Sylvain Chavanel by four seconds, he nonetheless dropped to 12th overall on general classification, 2:47 down on Martin.

The seeds of overall victory were sown by Martin the previous day, where he limited his losses to his GC rivals with an 11th place result on the Alto do Malhão summit finish, a stage won by Henao. With a stunning display of time trial prowess befitting the world champion, Martin quickly erased his general classification deficit to seal his second Volta ao Algarve overall win in three years.

"My condition is better than last year at this moment," said Martin. "I knew it was possible to not lose a lot of time from the best climbers, and my team and I made sure of it. I have to say this kind of race, with an uphill finish, a TT, and sprint stages in the beginning is perfect for me. It's the kind of race I like and I am always looking for.

"I hope this victory helps me and the team continue to get good results during the season. I'd also like to thank my team and my teammates. They really protected me and Michal for the entire week. With the bad luck of Cav in the sprints, we really focused on the GC and the TT. Fortunately, we were successful. This is not just an individual victory, but a team victory."