(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
In a wild, wide-open sprint finish in Sanremo, 23 year old British
sprinter Mark Cavendish (Columbia)took the biggest win of his career in
La Classicissima di Primavera, Milano-Sanremo. Cavendish closed down on
Heinrich Haussler (Cervélo), who had jumped early in a chaotic sprint
and just passed Haussler at the finish line to snatch the win by 10cm
with a perfectly timed bike throw. After the race, an emotional Cavendish told Italian TV"it's the biggest day of my life, it's so amazing to win here; I didn't expect it at all."
Here comes Cav!
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
Today's Milano-Sanremo victory was the confirmation that the young
Manxman is not only the fastest sprinter in the peloton, he's also the
best and most exciting sprinter, period. Cavendish, who will be 24
years old on May 21st, has always been a precocious racer. He was World
Madison champion at 19 and has made steady progress since he turned pro
in 2006. Last year, Cavendish won 17 races and today is the 34th pro
win for Cavendish. His victory is the second ever for a British rider
in Milano-Sanremo; the legendary Tom Simpson won La Primavera in 1964.
Always modest and grateful in victory, Cavendish said post-race "my
(Columbia) team was so good today; they kept me in good position on the
climbs. I felt great today. George Hincapie worked really well for me
in the final to put me in position. I'm lucky that I got Haussler on
the line. I'm unbelievably happy."
Textbook bike throw for the win
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
Last season, the knock on Cavendish was that he could only win flat
races and he couldn't climb. The speedster from the Isle of Man didn't
ride the track this winter and was able to put in more base miles on
the road to build his strength. Cavendish lost 3kg (10lbs) and perhaps
most importantly, his Columbia team hired recently retired great Erik
Zabel as his personal coach. Zabel is a four time winner of
Milano-Sanremo and at the race finish today, Cav and Zabel hugged each
other in a tearful embrace. Zabel told Road Bike Action "well it was a
very emotional finish today, a thrilling finish. Mark rode a perfect
sprint. He was super! It was just an extraordinary performance today. I
have tried to help Mark, to learn some tricks and how to ride better
and today you can see it worked, " gushed a delighted Zabel.
Cav and Cipo celebrate
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
Ete Zabel wasn't the only person to offer props to Cavendish; seven
time Milano-Sanremo winner Eddy Merckx was on hand for the win and told
Italian TV "today was the confirmation for the talent of Cavendish, He
showed he can win after 300km and I see he's one of the great young
riders now." 2002 Milano-Sanremo winner Mario Cipollini, considered the
greatest sprinter of all-time, said of Cavendish "he rode an
extraordinary sprint. It was something special today and I think this
is just the beginning for Cavendish."
Cry me a river
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
George Hincapie, Cavendish's Columbia teammate captured the post-race
mood at Team Columbia on his twitter.com account. "Wow!!! What an
amazing day for us!!! We are super happy." Today was a changing of the
guard of sorts, with young sprinters finishing ahead of the older, more
established fastmen. Petacchi (5th), Bennati (6th), Paolini (9th)
and Boonen (15th) were edged out, while newcomers like Cavendish (1st),
Haussler (2nd), Galdos (7th), Rossi (8th), Peter Velits (8th) and Van
Avermaet (13th)
Pozatto fires on all cylinders on Il Poggio
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
In contrast, one of the pre-race favorites Filippo Pozatto (Katusha),
2006 Milano-Sanremo winner and runner-up last year tried to put a
positive spin on things today in Sanremo. Pozatto tried his mightiest
to make an escape move work on the final climb of il Poggio, and
although he made a perfectly timed counter-attack near the summit of
the ascent, it was too little, too late. Pozatto ended up 22nd and told
RAI-TV "Well it was clear that we went too easy on the Cipressa climb
and let the sprinters stay in the race. That was a mistake! I tried to
get away and I felt good but it didn't work, and then was a real
disaster in the sprint to find the right wheels."
Lance is still back at Milano-Sanremo
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
Astana's Lance Armstrong continued his comeback at the 100th edition of
Milano-Sanremo, but the seven-time Tour de France winner came up short,
finishing 125th at 8’19" behind Cavendish. On his twitter.com account,
Armstrong said "Done with Milan San Remo. What a race! Fast, crazy, but
great. My legs felt good. bad position at start of the Cipressa so my
day was done. Good to get in close to 190 miles on the bike too. Damn
that's far. Congrats to Cavendish on a spectacular victory. Cool kid."
It all starts now
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
After the official start on the southern outskirts of Milano at 9:45,
and powered by a north-northeast side/tailwind, the pace started very
fast at Milano-Sanremo and never relented, with the first two hours
covered at an average of 48 km/hr. Before the first break got away,
Stuart O'Grady (Saxo Bank) crashed out of the race, but without serious
injury. Near Novi Ligure with 200km to race, a group of 11 riders got a
gap and made good with their escape. The almost bakerd dozen included
Sebastian Lang (Silence-Lotto), Bernhard Eisel (Columbia), Giampaolo
Cheula (Barloworld), Thomas Bertolini (Diquigiovanni), Mikhail Ignatiev
(Katusha), Yuriy Krivtsov (AG2R), Sébastien Turgot (Bouygues),
Christophe Le Mevel (Française des Jeux), Maxim Belkov (ISD), Kasper
Klostergaard (Saxo Bank) and Maarten Tjallingii (Rabobank).
They increased their gap rapidly and as the peloton slowed, American
sprinter Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream) crashed and reportedly broke
his collarbone. Atop the Turchino Pass with 155km still to race, the
escape had a lead of 5' but the tailwind and fast pace kept the gap
fairly close. The escape led the gruppo a merry chase along the
Ligurian coast, with the Manie climb waiting with 100km to race.
Armstrong had his Astana team hit the front before the climb and the
acceleration brought the gap way down to less than a minute at the top
of the ascent.
But the break regrouped after the Manie climb and built their lead up
again until the three intermediate climb of the capi (coastal
headlands) began. These up and downs took their toll on the
frontrunners as the breakneck pace continued in the race. At the foot
of the day's penultimate climb of the Cipressa with 28km still to race,
the break was absorbed by the chasers and it was gruppo compatto. After
1km of climbing on the 5km ascent, Diquigiovanni sent Tirreno-Adriatico
winner Michele Scarponi to the front to make the pace high and set up a
potential attack by team leader Davide Rebellin, riding his 14th
Milano-Sanremo. The pace was high but not high enough to dust the
sprinters. The group then split in two on the ascent, scaled in 9'45",
well off the record (9'28") set by Paolo Bettini in 2005 and among the
casualties left behind was Lance Armstong. But up front, all the
sprinters were still around and with 20km to race, on the flat 10km
stretch between the base of the Cipressa and the beginning of the
Poggio, Milano-Sanremo's final climb, Liquigas went full gas to
drive the front group of 60 riders.
As the Poggio began with 10km to go, Quick.Step put French rider
Sylvain Chavanel on the front to keep the pace high, but when the climb
got steep with 1.5km before the top, Diquigiovanni's Davide Rebellin
made a strong attack, followed by Garzelli (Acqua & Sapone, Nibali
(Liquigas) & Martinez (Euskaltel). The race was stretched out in
one long line with 1km from the top of the Poggio when Rebellin slowed
slightly and Pozatto made a strong counter-attack. He got a gap and
crossed the top of the Poggio first, followed by Nibali & Rebellin.
Nibali was riding as a stopper to keep the attack from succeeding to
favor his sprinter Bennati and this worked; at the base of the Poggio
into Sanremo, it was gruppo compatto again, albeit strung out in one
long line. Caise d'Epargne's Paris-Nice winner Luis Leon Sanchez tried
a move with 2km to go but it was quickly covered.
With 1500m. to go, Columbia's George Hincapie hit the front and kept
the tempo high while his sprinter Cavendish worked for position.
Hincapie was still in front as the last kilometer began but no team
could get organized for the final sprint. The pace slowed and the
sprinters were all together as suddenly, Heinrich Haussler (Cervélo)
bolted through a narrow gap on the left with 350m. to go. He got a 10m.
lead when behind, a cannonball named Mark Cavendish exploded up the
middle of the road. Cavendish closed like a jet fighter, while Haussler
made the mistake of moving right, giving Cavendish room to pass on the
left and take the dramatic win by the narrowest of margins at a record
speed for Milano-Sanremo that averaged an incredible 44.421 km/hr for
298km.
100th Milano-Sanremo / 298km
Saturday, March 21, 2009
1. Mark Cavendish (GB) Columbia / 298 km / 6h42'31"
(44.421 km/hr average speed)
2. Heinrich Haussler (Ger) Cervélo @ same time
3. Thor Hushovd (Nor) Cervélo @ 2"
4. Alan Davis (Aus) Quick.Step
5. Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Lpr-Farnese
6. Daniele Bennati (Ita) Liquigas
7. Aitor Galdos (Spa) Euskaltel
8. Enrico Rossi (Ita) Flaminia
9. Luca Paolini (Ita) AcquaSapone
10. Peter Velits (Slk) Milram
13. Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) Silence-Lotto
15. Tom Boonen (Bel) Quick.Step
22. Fillipo Pozzato (Ita) Katusha
23. Phillipe Gilbert (Bel) Silence-Lotto
24. Fabian Wegmann (Ger) Milram
29. Juan Antonio Flecha (Spa) Rabobank
30. Giovanni Visconti (Ita) ISD
38. Davide Rebellin (Ita) Diquigiovanni @ all same time
41. Danilo Di Luca (Ita) Lpr-Farnese @ 14"
44. Ivan Basso (Ita) Liquigas @ 14"
125. Lance Armstrong (USA) Astana @ 8’19"
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