Stybar Wins Strade Bianche
Last updated : 07 March 2015 By Covsupport News Service
Zdenek Stybar of Etixx Quick Step has won the ninth Strade Bianche in Italy.
This 200km race from San Gimignano to Siena, attracted riders from thirty countries including three Brits and 59 from Italy.
Eight riders in Stefano Pirazzi (Bardiani-CSF), Giacomo Berlato and Daniele Colli (Nippo-Vini Fantini), Giuseppe Fonzi (Southeast), Artem Ovechkin (RusVelo), David Lozano (Novo Nordisk), Julian Arredondo (Trek) and Ilia Koshevoy (Lampre-Merida) were soon on the attack and they had a lead of 7.38 after 56 kilometres.
With a gale blowing from the left, sector fivem, with 110 kilometres, saw a crash and around twenty five punctures on new gravel.
Zdenek Stybar got to an attack by Allejandro Valverde and Peter Sagan on the Monte Sante Marie and by working together, they brought the escapers back.
With just under fifty kilometres to go, the trio were part of a group which also contained Fabian Cancellara, Sep Vanmarcke, Rosa, Cort Nielsen, Van Avermaet, Daniel Oss and Nathan Haas.
Oss launched an attack on the Monteaperti but he and Peter Sagan could not say with the pace and for the final twenty kilometres, it was out of Van Avermaet, Vanmarcke, Cancellara, Stybar and Valverde as to who would win.
Cancellera dropped back on the Colle Pinzuto and joined a group of Rosa and Oss who were thirty seconds behind.
Greg Van Avermaet of BMC attacked on the final climb but Zdenek Stybar went round him and took the win in 5.22.13, two seconds ahead of Greg Van Avermaet and eighteen seconds ahead of Allejandro Valverde.
Sep Vanmarcke was fourth, followed by Diego Rosa, Oscar Gatto, Rigoberto Uran, Fabio Felline, Przemyslaw Niemiec and Giampaolo Caruso.
"Of course I am absolutely thrilled about this victory," Stybar said to his team's website. "But what made this win even sweeter is that in the technical meeting this morning, Davide Bramati and the team put their trust in me and I was deemed the race captain. It was a big responsibility and I'm happy I proved to be worthy of the honour.
"It was a great race. I love this kind of technical, up-and-down parcours. I can handle my bike well, so I was really in my element here in Italy today.
"At 50 kilometres to go were in the front of the peloton with Sagan and Valverde, but it was too early. So we waited and then we finally went with eight or nine riders.
"It was a bit of a natural selection as you could see who the strongest riders were already. When we remained with three riders, I was afraid of Valverde but also Van Avermaet because he didn't pull a lot in the last 5 kilometres before the last clime to Siena. He was on my wheel and I expected his attack, but not so early on the bottom of the climb.
"My 'finish line' was at the top of the climb, so I really gave everything to catch him and then when I did, I was able to pass him there.
"When I turned into Piazza del Campo it was a dream. When the sun is in your face in that beautiful location, with such a passionate public, and you know you are the winner with no one able to catch you, it is like an explosion of joy. It was truly incredible.
"This win is also uniquely important for me because it comes after a period of struggle after crashes at Eneco Tour and my one and only cyclocross race of the winter. It was a long way back to this level of condition, so I appreciate this victory even more. I want to dedicate this win to my wife, Ine, and my family. They have been such great supporters always."
