Usually made for the sprinters, the BEMER Cyclassics in Hamburg followed the same scenario this Sunday. Unfortunately, Groupama-FDJ leader’s Paul Penhoët was unable to take part in the sprint after suffering a crash twenty-five kilometres from the finish. From then on, Thibaud Gruel and Rudy Molard went on the attack, but were unable to avoid a bunch finish. Clément Russo got 24th place.
Initially planned on 200 kilometres, with the usual slightly hilly final through the Waseberg (700m at 8%), the BEMER Cyclassics experienced a few small upheavals this Sunday. “The start was postponed by half an hour because there was an accident in the amateur race,” explained Yvon Caër. “As a result, they removed a twenty-kilometre loop that was supposed to be done twice. The race was shortened.” The day’s first event was followed by a second one, but only once the six-man breakaway including Michael Morkov (Astana Qazaqstan Team), Taco van der Hoorn (Intermarché-Wanty), Stefan De Bod (EF Education-EasyPost), Andrea Vendrame (Decathlon-AG2R), Cyrus Monk (Q36.5) and Rémi Cavagna (Movistar) had gone. “The peloton lost four minutes at a level crossing, and the gap went from four to eight minutes,” Yvon said. “So the peloton adjusted, and it was faster.” At the halfway point, the situation was brought back to normal, and several sprinters’ teams continued to lead the chase.
“We showed a strong mindset”, Yvon Caër
Entering the last hour of racing, the gap was reduced with the breakaway, which was about to be caught before the penultimate climb of the Waseberg, twenty-four kilometres from the finish. Unfortunately, a crash occurred a few moments earlier in the bunch, Paul Penhoët was caught in it, and he was unable to get going again. “Everything was going well up until that point, and we were sure that Paul would get over the final climbs”, said Yvon. “It’s really disappointing, but we need to accept these unfortunate events. Other sprinters also crashed out. It obviously penalized us because he was our leader, but once he was taken out of the race, we tried to be aggressive. We know it’s a race where it’s hard to get out, but we still showed a strong mindset with Thibaud who tried to go on the last climb, then Rudy afterwards”. However, no significant gap was made against teams that were still well organized. The bunch sprint therefore took place in the streets of Hamburg, despite a messy approach.
Olav Kooij claimed victory, while Clément Russo finished outside the top 20 (24th). “We had a communication problem in the final, and the guys were a bit lost”, added Yvon. “They didn’t have enough confidence and it’s a shame because almost everyone from our team was there. Paul’s crash certainly changed our approach a bit, but we still lacked a bit of ‘’grinta’’ in the end. Regarding Paul, the last news is reassuring. He will undergo some tests at the beginning of next week, but he only suffered from bruises. There is nothing to worry about”.
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