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Scott Twaites Second In Le Samwyn

Last updated : 02 March 2016 By CNS Sport

British rider Scott Thwaites finished second in Le Samwyn race in Belgium.

It was a horrible wet day with strong winds for this 202.6km race from Quaregnon to Dour on a course which included sixteen sections of cobbles.

It was a race that saw many of the riders quit before the race had even reached the half-way stage leaving a group of six riders up the road.

Into the final thirty kilometres and only fifteen riders made up the peloton. Ten kilometres later and Niki Terpstra of Etixx Quick Step put in the first of two attacks.

The second was successful and he got away to win in a time of 4.52.52 with British rider Scott Thwaites of Bora Argon finishing 19 seconds down with Florian Senechal of Cofidis in third place.

Speaking about his win, Terpstra told the Etixx Quick Step website:

"It was a really tough race, as we rode full gas from the beginning. The last 10 kilometers were the hardest of the entire race. I knew I had about 15 seconds on Thwaites and I had to continue pulling. To make things even more difficult, the last 3 kilometers had a headwind and an uphill part. The weather conditions made the race beautiful in a strange way. I am happy with this victory, as it gives me confidence and comes as a confirmation that my condition is good for the upcoming Classics."
 
Scott Thwaites said: "The team was really strong today. Shortly before the circuit Pösti (L. Pöstlberger), Schilli (A. Schillinger), Ralf and me made an important group of 20 riders. With the weather turning bad on the circuit, the situation changed again and the race turned into a war with riders being dropped on every cobble section and climb. I had to play a bit of poker so that I didn’t show my strength too early but also not miss an important attack. When Terpstra attacked we made a good gap, but when he attacked again I could not follow. I rode the last 12k on my own, 15sec behind Terpstra and 15sec in front of the chasing group. It was hard but I had the power to hold on for 2nd. I am really happy because I was the 2nd strongest today and I finished 2nd to a top quality Classics rider, so I have no regrets with my performance.”