Cyclist
Pro Log: Lorena Wiebes and Tim Merlier win European Road Race titles, Tadej Pogačar and Michael Matthews victorious in Canada
Welcome back to another edition of Pro Log. The European Championships week has come to an end, resulting in new jerseys for several riders including the Netherlands’ Lorena Wiebes and Tim Merlier of Belgium in the elite road races.
Time-trial victories went to Belgium’s Lotte Kopecky and Italy’s Edoardo Affini, and Affini picked up a second jersey by being part of the winning Italian team in the mixed relay, alongside Mattia Cattaneo, Elena Cecchini, Vittoria Guazzini, Mirco Maestri and Gaia Masetti.
Lorena Wiebes sprints to second European jersey
The elite women’s 162km road race came down to a sprint finish between the Netherlands, Poland, Italy and France. But once Dutchwoman Lorena Wiebes got her head in the wind, there was no stopping her.
Launching her sprint in the final 200m, Wiebes catapulted to the front and remained there with an unmatchable power. Since the modern revamp of the European Championships in 2016, she is the only woman to double up after previously winning in 2022. Italy’s Elisa Balsamo finished second with Poland’s Daria Pikulik in third.
Belgium’s Lotte Kopecky won the elite women’s time-trial, ending the three-year reign of Switzerland’s Marlen Reusser. Kopecky beat the Netherlands’ Ellen van Dijk by 44 seconds.
Tim Merlier comes out on top
The elite men’s road race would also come down to a sprint finish after 222.8km of racing. Many countries were well represented in the final kilometre, with Belgium, France and Italy swarming at the front. Belgium had two cards to play in Tim Merlier and Jasper Philipsen.
Both contested the sprint but it was Merlier who would prevail, with Olav Kooij (Netherlands) in second and Madis Mihkels (Estonia) in third. Philipsen finished just off the podium in fourth, followed by Alexsander Kristoff (Norway) and Mads Pedersen (Denmark).
Italy’s Edoardo Affini would win the men’s elite time-trial by 10 seconds ahead of Switzerland’s Stefan Küng.
Tadej Pogačar launches successful breakaway in Montréal
'This is what the crowd came here to see.'
— Eurosport (@eurosport) September 15, 2024
Crowd-pleaser Tadej Pogacar has plenty of time to celebrate in the closing stretches after attacking with 23km to go and dropping the field#GPCQM | @TeamEmiratesUAE | @TamauPogi pic.twitter.com/nCbZmxm9o4
UAE Team Emirates’ Tadej Pogačar showed just how fine a form he’s in ahead of the World Championships in Zurich after launching a solo attack to win the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal. He attacked on the Côte Camilien-Houde on the penultimate lap and had time to celebrate at the finish, high-fiving fans before crossing the line.
Pello Bilbao of Bahrain Victorious finished second, 24 seconds behind, with Julian Alaphilippe of Soudal-QuickStep prevailing in the bunch sprint for the final spot on the podium.
Michael Matthews makes it three at GP Québec
Jayco-AlUla’s Michael Matthews sprinted to his third win at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Qubec ahead of Biniam Girmay (Intermarché–Wanty) and Rudy Molard (Groupama-FDJ). It now puts him above Peter Sagan and Simon Gerrans for most victories in the race, with his previous successes in the event coming in 2018 and 2019.
Matthews dedicated the win to his late grandmother, saying, ‘Two days ago here in Quebec, I watched her funeral live. This gave me extra motivation and makes this victory so special. I wanted it so much. If I didn’t win then what was the point in being so far away from my family during this difficult time?’
See you next week.
The post Pro Log: Lorena Wiebes and Tim Merlier win European Road Race titles, Tadej Pogačar and Michael Matthews victorious in Canada appeared first on Cyclist.