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RACE REPORTS: TOUR DOWN UNDER: STAGE THREE
Road Bike Action and AFP
January 20, 2011
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Rabobank rookie Michael Matthews takes Stage Three.
Photo: Yuzuru Sunada
HTC-Highroad's Matthew Goss moved back into the leader's jersey at the Tour Down Under as fellow Australian Michael Matthews romped to victory on stage three on Thursday.
Goss started the 129-kilometer (80-mile) stage from Unley to Stirling in the Adelaide Hills on the same time as but behind overnight leader and Australian compatriot Robbie McEwen of RadioShack.
And despite suffering a puncture 10 km from the finish line, the Tasmanian all-rounder did enough to regain the lead he took after winning stage one on Tuesday.
A four-man breakaway entertained the thousands of fans who had turned up along the roads of a hilly 21 km circuit which the peloton raced three times in the race finale.
However, their lead had evaporated shortly after the start to the final lap.
A number of attacks came late in the race, including a futile effort from Australian stage race hopeful Richie Porte, before a large bunch of riders reformed in time for a mass sprint at the finish.
Matthews, who is in his first year with the Dutch Rabobank outfit, showed more of the same sprint prowess that won him the under-23 title at the world road race championships in October.
It is the 20-year-old's second win of the season, following his victory in stage two of the Jayco Bay Cycling Classic.
Two-time overall champion Andre Greipel of Omega-Pharma was second, with Goss in third place.
Britain's Mark Cavendish, also of HTC-Highroad, began trailing early into the final lap of the circuit but was happy to finish having suffered cuts and abrasions in a spectacular crash on Wednesday.
Friday's fourth stage is a 124 km ride over undulating terrain from Norwood to Strathalbyn.
RESULTS: Tour Down Under, Stage Three
Stage
1. Michael Matthews (AUS) Rabobank 3hr 11min 47sec, 2. Andre Greipel (GER) same time, 3. Matthew Goss (AUS) s.t., 4. Simon Gerrans (AUS) s.t., 5. Luke Roberts (AUS) s.t., 6. Francisco Ventoso (ESP) s.t., 7. Gorka Izagirre (ESP) s.t., 8. Allan Davis (AUS) s.t., 9. Blel Kadri (FRA) s.t., 10. Simone Ponzi (ITA) s.t., 11. Alessandro Ballan (ITA) s.t., 12. Stijn Vandenbergh (BEL) s.t., 13. Manuele Mori (ITA) s.t., 14. Jose Joaquin Rosas (ESP) s.t., 15. Davide Vigano (ITA) s.t.
Selected: 17. Robbie McEwen (AUS) s.t., 64. Richie Porte (AUS) at 46sec, 84. Lance Armstrong (USA) 3:11, 130. Mark Cavendish (GBR) 12:29
General classification
1. Matthew Goss (AUS) HTC-Highroad 9hr 56min 25sec, 2. Andre Greipel (GER) at 02sec, 3. Robbie McEwen (AUS) 4, 4. Michael Matthews (AUS) s.t., 5. Ben Swift (GBR) s.t., 6. Allan Davis (AUS) 14, 7. Francisco Ventoso (ESP) s.t., 8. Manuele Mori (ITA) s.t., 9. Alessandro Ballan (ITA) s.t., 10. Greg Henderson (NZL) s.t., 11. Luke Roberts (AUS) s.t., 12. Elia Viviani (ITA) s.t., 13. Blel Kadri (FRA) s.t., 14. Simone Ponzi (ITA) s.t., 15. Gorka Izagirre (ESP) s.t.
Selected: 63. Richie Porte (AUS) 1:00, 81. Lance Armstrong (USA) 3:25, 131.
Mark Cavendish (GBR) 16:30
PRESS RELEASE: HTC-HIGHROAD
HTC-Highroad's Matthew Goss managed to win back the Ochre Jersey on day three of the Santos Tour Down Under, when he took third place in the tough uphill sprint stage to Stirling. Goss now leads by two seconds from former race winner Andre Greipel.
"It was a pretty tough day," said Goss after the stage. "It was 36 degrees and that takes its toll on everyone. ThenI had a puncture with about 12km to go and had to chase back on. I was nearly gone when we got back on and I could barely hold on but I give the credit to my teammates.
"Bernie [Eisel] and Mark [Renshaw] waited when I punctured," he added. "Mark wanted to give me his wheel but we had trouble getting the wheel in the bike and so I ended up on my spare bike. By that stage the ambulances had gone past so we had a long chase ahead. Bernie chased me all the way back on. Just as we made it back to the peloton we were at the bottom of the climb with about 5km to go. There's no respite on that hill. It's pretty nasty. Hayden [Roulston] brought me up through the bunch so I could contest the sprint."
"It just shows how strong the guys are so I think we have good chances to try to defend the jersey for the rest of the week."
The team wore black arm bands during the race today in memory of team-mate Carla Swart who was killed on a training ride yesterday. Our thoughts are with her.
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