(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
It's been a long time coming for Katusha's Russian champion Sergei
Ivanov, but at 34, the hard-faced Russian hardman from Chelyabinsk rode
brilliantly in the finale of today's 44th edition of the Amstel Gold
Race to gain his greatest ever career victory. Ivanov, who lives not
far from the roads of the Amstel Gold Race in Bekkevoort, Belgium was
7th in last years edition of Amstel Gold and today was the first ever
win for a Russian in the Dutch classic as well as the first classics
win for the first-year Russian team. In 2008, riding for Team Astana,
tough-guy Ivanov took the overall win in the hilly Tour de Wallonie in
Belgium, showing he was perfectly suited to short, hard climbs and
changes of rhythm it takes to win at Amstel.
Oh Da Da! Ivanov captures Amstel Gold Race
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
A five time Russian national road champion, Ivanov's previous career
highlight was a Stage 9 win from Pontarlier to Aix-les-Bains in the
2001 Tour De France while riding for the Fassa Bortolo team. Post-race,
the famously taciturn Ivanov told Dutch TV "Yes, this is the biggest
win of my career. Amstel Gold is my favorite race and I have always
done well here over the past ten years. Today my Katusha team worked
very hard for me, so I am very thankful to them."
Tilting at windmills during Amstel Gold Race
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
How It Happened
Despite being under inquest by the Italian Olympic Committee for doping
irregularities, Alejandro Valverde was at Amstel Gold along with his
Caisse d’Epargne team, plus the inevitable Rabobank, who had missed the
break, maintained the chase and with 80km to go, the gap was under 3'.
With 70km to go, both Matt Lloyd (Silence-Lotto) and Frank Schleck
(Saxo Bank) crashed hard and both abandoned, but neither were seriously
injured.
In the chasing peloton, Rabobank decided to play the Oscar Freire card
on the Geulhemmerweg climb. Freire was in his first race back to
the peloton after breaking ribs in the Tour of California in February
and the move broke up the peloton. With the chase breathing down the
neck of the break, Terpstra attacked the others in the break with 63km to go on
the Bemelerberg, with the chase group at 1'30" . An 18 strong counter move
then developed behind, absorbing the rest of the break that had been
out front for almost 200km.
With Freire on the attack for his Rabobankers, Terpstra was
eventually caught by a small group including Burghardt (Columbia) and Agnoli (Liquigas),
while his Valverde's Caisse d’Epargne team, led by former Tour de
France "winner" Oscar Pereiro pulled the Freire move back with 36km to
go on the Loorberg climb. Once the peloton was together again, Quick
Step's 25 year old Belgian Dries Devenyns countered with 35km to go.
Eventually he was joined by Michael Rogers (Columbia) and Koen de Kort
(Skil-Shimano) but the move only lasted 5km. Lampre sent Gasparotto to
the front halfway up the next climb, the Gulperberg and his hard pace
got a gap along with Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank) and Roman Kreuziger
(Liquigas) who absorbed Rogers and Devenyns. That group was absorbed
before the 27th climb of the day, the short, steep Kreuzberg as the
favorites were looking at each other with Andy Schleck still up front
Kreuziger on the attack in the Amstel Gold Race finale
photo Roberto Bettini
Next on the Amstel Gold Race menu was climb #28, the Eyserbosweg, where
Gasparotto led over the top, but then Ivanov attacked on the descent
but his momentum was slowed when he almost crashed on a left hand bend.
This provoked a counter move from Kreuziger who got a gap headed to climb
#29, the Fromberg. Ivanov chased back and was with Kreuziger's
teammate, Nibali, who showed his inexperience by not chasing across
with the surging Russian on the next ascent, climb #29, the
penultimate and often decisive ascent of the Keutenberg. Kreuziger came
back with 12km to go, then Schleck punched it on the Keutenberg. Over
the top of the ascent on a false flat section, where Frank Schleck made
the winning attack in 2006, long, lean Robert Gesink (Rabobank) made
the move of the day and only Ivanov and Karsten Kroon (Saxo Bank) could
get across.
Phil's thrill kill: Gilbert bests Cunego at Amstel Gold Race
(Photo: Roberto Bettini)
Eventually the 30 strong chase group regrouped with 7km left in the
race. With just the long descent to Valkenberg and the final ascent of climb
#31, the Cauberg, which began with 1.5km to go the front trio had 20"
but an all-out chase by Johan Van Summeren (Silence-Lotto) pulled the
gap back to 5" with 2km to go. The break was losing time as they
maneuvered but once Silence-Lotto stopped chasing, no other team took
over and the front trio stayed away. Kroon attacked with 700m. to go
and Ivanov was there, while Gesink was gapped. Ivanov rode a perfect
finale and wound it up on the front as Kroon didn't have what he needed
to beat the Russian. Gesink squeaked home for third, while
Silence-Lotto's Phil Gilbert won the sprint for 4th over Cunego.
44th Amstel Gold Race / 258.6km
1. Sergei Ivanov (Katusha) 6h38'46"
2. Karsten Kroon (Saxo Bank) @ same time
3. Robert Gesink (Rabobank) @ 3"
4. Phillipe Gilbert (Silence-Lotto) @ 5"
5. Damiano Cunego (Lampre) @ same time
6. Christophe Riblon (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
7. Nicolas Roche (Irl) AG2R La Mondiale
8. Nick Nuyens (Bel) Rabobank
9. Christian Pfannberger (Aut) Katusha
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