Driedaagse De Panne-Koksijde 2018 [FULL RACE]

March 21, 2018

Driedaagse De Panne-Koksijde 2018 – Brugge – De Panne : 202,4 km

The Driedaagse de Panne – Koksijde (known as Three Days of De Panne until 2017) is a road racing cycling race in Belgium in late March. Since 2018 it is raced over two days with a men’s race on Wednesday and a women’s race on Thursday. Both races start in Bruges and finish in De Panne. The women’s event is included in the UCI Women’s World Tour; the men’s race is part of the UCI Europe Tour as a 1.HC event.

Quick-Step Floors continued their winning streak with Elia Viviani taking victory at the new-look Driedaagse De Panne. Viviani had a clear margin as he claimed the team’s sixth win this month and his fifth of the season.

Pascal Ackerman (Bora-Hansgrohe) was the only rider to get close to the Italian, finishing second as he thumped his handlebars in frustration. Jasper Philipsen of Hagens Berman Axeon took the final place on the podium.

Despite having two teammates to guide him, the win was not straightforward for Viviani. He had to thread his way through several riders after starting his sprint from around five places back, slotting himself through a few gaps that looked like they were quickly disappearing.

Veranda’s Willems Crelan might contest that one of those gaps was not there as one of their riders had to sit up briefly as Viviani charged through. However, he Italian did get through and as they rounded the final, slight curve, he had just Ackerman in front of him. With just a few metres remaining, Viviani moved out into the wind for the first time, charging to the line with more than a bike’s length advantage over the chasing German.

“Personally, it’s the first in Europe this year. I’ve won in Australia and in the Emirates and I’ve had some placings in Paris-Nice, but the condition is really good,” Viviani said after his victory. “I really want to end the first part of my season really well and after that I will think about the Giro. Winning in Belgium with a Belgian team is always beautiful, and it’s a good start to the next few important weeks in Belgium for this team, and we will try to continue in this way.”

How it unfolded

Despite the name, the Driedaagse De Panne was just one day after losing its pre-Tour of Flanders slot to Dwars door Vlaanderen. With E3 Harelbeke this Friday, it has turned into a one-day affair with a new, sprinter-friendly route to go with it. The 202.4km route set off from Bruges’ Grote Markt on Wednesday morning, taking a meandering route around Flanders, along the French border and into De Panne with three circuits around the seaside town.

It took more than 20 kilometres for the day’s breakaway to form, with six riders swiftly gaining two minutes on the bunch behind. Conor Dunne (Aqua Blue Sport), an ever-present feature of breakaways this season, went clear alongside David Boucher and Ylber Saer (both Terteletto-Isorex-SH), Sean Bennett (Hagens Berman Axeon), Tanner Putt (UnitedHealthcare) and Brian van Goethem (Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij).

The gap had gone out to six minutes by the time the riders hit the series of five climbs after 80 kilometres of racing. A brief attack from Luke Durbridge (Mitchelton-Scott) and Nikolas Maes (Lotto Soudal) on the Kemmelberg didn’t stick but helped cut the advantage to the leaders, and it would continue to go down quickly over the coming kilometres. The large part of the chase was taken on by Quick-Step Floors with Remi Cavanga doing a big shift on the front.

With just over 70 kilometres to go, echelons began to form as crosswinds hit the peloton on a long, exposed stretch of road. A surge from Quick-Step and Lotto Soudal saw the bunch split in two but a lack of cooperation meant that it wouldn’t last long and the group eventually came back together 30 kilometres later. Quick-Step and Lotto Soudal, joined by Bora-Hansgrohe, turned up the pressure dial once again, however, and broke the bunch permanently this time.

A reduced peloton of 60 riders took back the six escapees with 15-kilometres to go. From there, it would be a battle between the sprinters’ teams as the riders negotiated the tram tracks around De Panne. Veranda’s Willems Crelan sought to set the pace inside the final kilometre, but Quick-Step Floors were still there in numbers and nothing could stop Viviani when he launched his sprint. It is the Belgian team’s 17th victory of the 2018 season.

Results :

1 Elia Viviani (Ita) Quick – Step Floors 4:41:08
2 Pascal Ackermann (Ger) Bora – Hansgrohe
3 Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Hagens Berman Axeon
4 Baptiste Planckaert (Bel) Team Katusha Alpecin
5 Jens Debusschere (Bel) Lotto Soudal
6 Amaury Capiot (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise
7 Roy Jans (Bel) Cibel – Cebon
8 Hugo Hofstetter (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
9 Adam Blythe (GBr) Aqua Blue Sport
10 Eduard Michael Grosu (Rom) Nippo – Vini Fantini – Europa Ovini
11 Timothy Dupont (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert
12 Coen Vermeltfoort (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij
13 Jelle Mannaerts (Bel) Tarteletto – Isorex
14 Luka Mezgec (Slo) Mitchelton – Scott
15 Zico Waeytens (Bel) Veranda’s Willems – Crelan
16 Maximiliano Ariel Richeze (Arg) Quick – Step Floors
17 Pawel Franczak (Pol) Ccc Sprandi Polkowice
18 Bryan Coquard (Fra) Vital Concept Cycling Club
19 Jimmy Turgis (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
20 Michael Goolaerts (Bel) Veranda’s Willems – Crelan 0:00:07
21 Jenthe Biermans (Bel) Team Katusha Alpecin
22 Andrew Fenn (GBr) Aqua Blue Sport
23 August Jensen (Nor) Israel Cycling Academy
24 Travis Mccabe (USA) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team
25 Kenny Dehaes (Bel) Wb Aqua Protect Veranclassic
26 Viacheslav Kuznetsov (Rus) Team Katusha Alpecin
27 Benjamin Perry (Can) Israel Cycling Academy
28 Pieter Vanspeybrouck (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert
29 Michal Kolár (Svk) Bora – Hansgrohe
30 Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert
31 Jordi Warlop (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise
32 Adrien Petit (Fra) Direct Energie
33 Nikolas Maes (Bel) Lotto Soudal
34 Mark Mcnally (GBr) Wanty – Groupe Gobert
35 Christoph Pfingsten (Ger) Bora – Hansgrohe 0:00:18
36 Wout Van Aert (Bel) Veranda’s Willems – Crelan
37 Florian Senechal (Fra) Quick – Step Floors
38 Michael Schwarzmann (Ger) Bora – Hansgrohe 0:00:20
39 Shane Archbold (NZl) Aqua Blue Sport 0:00:23
40 Wouter Wippert (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij 0:00:26
41 Bert Van Lerberghe (Bel) Cofidis, Solutions Credits 0:00:27
42 Frantisek Sisr (Cze) Ccc Sprandi Polkowice
43 Kenneth Van Rooy (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise 0:00:34
44 Milan Menten (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise
45 Rui Oliveira (Por) Hagens Berman Axeon
46 Christophe Noppe (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise
47 David Boucher (Bel) Tarteletto – Isorex
48 Alexandre Pichot (Fra) Direct Energie
49 Robbert De Greef (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij 0:00:37
50 Brian Van Goethem (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij
51 Moreno Hofland (Ned) Lotto Soudal
52 Davide Martinelli (Ita) Quick – Step Floors
53 Maxime Vantomme (Bel) Wb Aqua Protect Veranclassic
54 Lukas Spengler (Swi) Wb Aqua Protect Veranclassic 0:00:44
55 Matteo Pelucchi (Ita) Bora – Hansgrohe 0:00:49
56 Conor Dunne (Irl) Aqua Blue Sport
57 Sean Bennett (USA) Hagens Berman Axeon 0:00:52
58 Michaël Van Staeyen (Bel) Cofidis, Solutions Credits 0:00:54
59 Jelle Wallays (Bel) Lotto Soudal 0:01:22
60 Andreas Schillinger (Ger) Bora – Hansgrohe 0:01:32
61 Erik Baska (Svk) Bora – Hansgrohe 0:01:37
62 Ylber Sefa (Alb) Tarteletto – Isorex 0:01:44
63 Gianni Marchand (Bel) Cibel – Cebon 0:01:46
64 Michael Rice (Aus) Hagens Berman Axeon
65 Rémi Cavagna (Fra) Quick – Step Floors
66 Nikolay Trusov (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo
67 Dennis Coenen (Bel) Cibel – Cebon
68 Timothy Stevens (Bel) Cibel – Cebon
69 Kenneth Vanbilsen (Bel) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
70 Ian Garrison (USA) Hagens Berman Axeon
71 Remy Mertz (Bel) Lotto Soudal
72 Damiano Cima (Ita) Nippo – Vini Fantini – Europa Ovini
73 Frederik Frison (Bel) Lotto Soudal
74 Julien Stassen (Bel) Wb Aqua Protect Veranclassic 0:01:50
75 Jonas Van Genechten (Bel) Vital Concept Cycling Club
76 Luke Durbridge (Aus) Mitchelton – Scott
77 Preben Van Hecke (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise
78 Bert De Backer (Bel) Vital Concept Cycling Club
79 Jan Willem Van Schip (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij
80 Fabio Jakobsen (Ned) Quick – Step Floors 0:01:53
81 Kris Boeckmans (Bel) Vital Concept Cycling Club 0:02:18
82 Lorrenzo Manzin (Fra) Vital Concept Cycling Club 0:02:21
83 Mathew Hayman (Aus) Mitchelton – Scott 0:02:29
84 Yohann Gene (Fra) Direct Energie
85 Edward Planckaert (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen – Baloise
86 Tom Devriendt (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert 0:03:46
87 Simone Antonini (Ita) Wanty – Groupe Gobert
88 Oscar Riesebeek (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij
89 Sergio Torres Jorro (Spa) Tarteletto – Isorex 0:03:48
90 Sergei Shilov (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo
91 Boris Vallee (Bel) Wanty – Groupe Gobert
92 Niels De Rooze (Bel) Tarteletto – Isorex
93 Stijn De Bock (Bel) Cibel – Cebon
94 Geoffrey Soupe (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
95 Peter Koning (Ned) Aqua Blue Sport
96 Imerio Cima (Ita) Nippo – Vini Fantini – Europa Ovini
97 Guy Sagiv (Isr) Israel Cycling Academy
98 Jimmy Duquennoy (Bel) Wb Aqua Protect Veranclassic
99 Tim Ariesen (Ned) Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij
100 Rob Ruijgh (Ned) Tarteletto – Isorex
101 Christophe Masson (Fra) Wb Aqua Protect Veranclassic
102 Kamil Malecki (Pol) Ccc Sprandi Polkowice
103 Michael Hepburn (Aus) Mitchelton – Scott
104 Carlos Eduardo Alzate Escobar (Col) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team 0:03:52
105 Alexander Edmondson (Aus) Mitchelton – Scott 0:03:53
106 Daniel Eaton (USA) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team 0:03:56
107 Sergey Lagutin (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo
108 Senne Leysen (Bel) Veranda’s Willems – Crelan
109 Jens Keukeleire (Bel) Lotto Soudal
110 Marco Haller (Aut) Team Katusha Alpecin
111 Guillaume Boivin (Can) Israel Cycling Academy
112 Michiel Dieleman (Bel) Cibel – Cebon
113 Dmitriy Kozontchuk (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo
114 Evgeny Shalunov (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo
115 Simon Sellier (Fra) Direct Energie
116 Romain Cardis (Fra) Direct Energie
117 Marco Mathis (Ger) Team Katusha Alpecin
118 Alexander Cataford (Can) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team
119 João Almeida (Por) Hagens Berman Axeon
120 Dennis Van Winden (Ned) Israel Cycling Academy
121 Stijn Steels (Bel) Veranda’s Willems – Crelan
122 Ivo Oliveira (Por) Hagens Berman Axeon
123 Elias Van Breussegem (Bel) Veranda’s Willems – Crelan
124 Aaron Gate (NZl) Aqua Blue Sport 0:04:48
125 Hamish Schreurs (NZl) Israel Cycling Academy 0:06:14
126 Kevin De Jonghe (Bel) Tarteletto – Isorex 0:10:34
127 Sho Hatsuyama (Jpn) Nippo – Vini Fantini – Europa Ovini
128 Leszek Plucinski (Pol) Ccc Sprandi Polkowice
129 Lennert Teugels (Bel) Cibel – Cebon
130 Roman Maikin (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo
131 Aviv Yechezkel (Isr) Israel Cycling Academy
132 Tanner Putt (USA) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team
DNF Angelo Tulik (Fra) Direct Energie
DNF Pawel Bernas (Pol) Ccc Sprandi Polkowice
DNF Julien Morice (Fra) Vital Concept Cycling Club
DNF Adrien Garel (Fra) Vital Concept Cycling Club
DNF Eric Marcotte (USA) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team
DNF Adrian Hegyvary (USA) Unitedhealthcare Professional Cycling Team
DNF Kohei Uchima (Jpn) Nippo – Vini Fantini – Europa Ovini
DNF Hiroki Nishimura (Jpn) Nippo – Vini Fantini – Europa Ovini
DNF Damien Gaudin (Fra) Direct Energie
DNF Matthew Brammeier (Irl) Aqua Blue Sport
DNF Reto Hollenstein (Swi) Team Katusha Alpecin
DNF Alex Dowsett (GBr) Team Katusha Alpecin
DNF Fabio Sabatini (Ita) Quick – Step Floors
DNF Dimitri Claeys (Bel) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
DNF Ivan Rovny (Rus) Gazprom – Rusvelo