Milano-Sanremo 2013 [FULL RACE]

March 17, 2013

Milano-Sanremo 2013 – Milano – Sanremo : 245 km

If the figures behind the touted World Cycling Series had invented the spring classics, there would never have been a Milan-San Remo, but the glorious anachronism that is La Classicissima, 106 years old this weekend, continues to stand proud as the opening monument of the cycling season and one of the most beguiling dates on the international calendar. A 298-kilometre race from Milan to the fading grandeur of the coastal town of Sanremo, bereft of circuits, super-steep climbs or dirt roads, seems the antithesis of the spectacle apparently demanded by cycling’s so-called “stakeholders,” yet La Classicissima quickens the pulse in a way that few other races can. The intrigue is provided in large part by the ambiguity of the route – the lack of serious climbs means that the sprinters line up in Milan with designs on victory, yet the race’s sheer length means that the capi on the run-in to Sanremo often turn from mere creases into roadblocks, and the headlands of the Riviera can quickly become a protracted elephant’s graveyard for the aspirations of the fast men. The very nature of the route means that Milan-San Remo is the Classic that boasts the widest range of potential winners of all, yet seldom has there been as overwhelming a favourite for victory as Peter Sagan (Cannondale) this year. In a race that pits attackers against sprinters, logic says that the rider who can do both with equal aplomb – as Sagan showed at Tirreno-Adriatico – is the man to beat.

Gerald Ciolek (MTN-Qhubeka) won a shortened version of Milan-San Remo, as snow forced organisers to cut the first two climbs. The German sprinter took the close win ahead of Peter Sagan (Cannondale) and Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack-Leopard) in a thrilling sprint finish.

As so often this season, the weather played a major role in the race. Snow forced the organizers to take the Turchino and La Manie climbs out of the race, with the nearly-frozen riders re-starting the race in Cogoleto, after a nearly two-hour break.

Ciolek was part of a six-rider group which formed on the descent of the Poggio that included Sagan, Cancellara, Sylvain Chavanel (Omega Pharma-QuickStep), Ian Stannard (Team Sky), and Luca Paolini (Katusha). The German sprinter let the others take the lead on the sharp, steep descent, and played his cards cleverly in the finale.

Stannard led the way in the final kilometre, and Sagan opened the sprint once the break caught sight of a closing Taylor Phinney (BMC). However Ciolek, came off Sagan’s wheel to take the biggest win of his career and firmly put the MTN-Qhubeka team on the map. Chavanel, who had attacked with Stannard on the Cipressa, was forced to settle for fourth.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Ciolek after crossing the finish line. “This is an unbelievable success for us and just an incredible day. We just came here as a wildcard and now we’re standing here with the trophy. This is great. I knew I had to follow all the best riders on the Poggio and it worked out perfectly.

“When I chose this team, people wondered why I would join a Pro Continental team but it’s just been unbelievable. The coaching and staff on this team is so professional. I have never seen management care so much for the riders. I am happy to be on this team.”

Snow, rain, cold and buses

Slate grey skies and low temperatures greeted the riders as they gathered in Milan’s Piazza Castello and much of the start-line chatter was focused on the weather forecast, although at that point few anticipated the severity of the impact it would have on the day’s events. A light rain began to fall just as the peloton began to snake its way out of the city centre, but 150 kilometres away, the Passo del Turchino was already banked with snow.

When the flag dropped, however, rumours of a neutralised Turchino were just that, and there was a typically fast start to proceedings. The early break went away shortly beyond the city limits, with Diego Rosa (Androni-Venezuela), Pablo Lastras (Movistar), Lars Bak (Lotto Belisol), Matteo Montaguti (Ag2r-La Mondiale), Maxim Belkov (Katusha) and Francesco Fortin (Bardiani-CSF Inox) forging clear, and after 15km, their lead was already five minutes.

At Pavia (40km), the sextet had 10:35 in hand, and they averaged a brisk 46.4kph for the first hour of racing. By that point, however, the rumours of snow on the Turchino had been confirmed and the race organisers were compelled to come up with an ad hoc solution to ensure the safety of the riders.

It was decided that the race would be neutralised for 46km between Ovada and Arenzano: rather than climb the Turchino, the peloton would stop at the 117km point and clamber back aboard their team buses, re-starting over an hour later.

Given that snow had fallen overnight on the Turchino, questions will be asked as to why the race organisers had not taken more satisfactory measures beforehand to circumvent the climb, but there was no time for the break to debate the whys and wherefores as they sped through the snow towards Ovada. Their race had now become something of a time trial, as they sought to build up as big a lead as possible before the re-start, and they duly reached the stop with 7:10.

La Manie, the next climb, was also taken out, and the race was restarted in heavy rain at Cogoleto. Not all the riders took to the second part of the race, with Omega Pharma-Quick Step’s Tom Boonen being the biggest name to remain in the bus, with hard words for race organizers.

The weather stayed cold and wet, and more riders abandoned as the race went on. With 40km to go, the climbing finally started, but by then only three riders were still in the lead. Bak, Rosa and Belkov had shed their other three companions along the way, with the trio holding a two-minute lead up the Capo Berto.

A reduced peloton, by now shedding its extra layers of clothing, was determined to catch the break group before the Cipressa. The cold conditions began to take a toll on even the best and Vincenzo Nibali was the biggest casualty as he pulled out due to the cold.

By now, Sky had attempted to stamp their authority on the race and it appeared to be working until a crash saw Geraint Thomas and several teammates hit the deck along with Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp).

The first attack on the Cipressa, led by Omega Pharma-QuickStep’s Sylvain Chavanel, was not successful, while surprisingly, Sky’s Edvald Boasson Hagen fell off the back of the group. He was not the only one, as Andre Greipel (Lotto Belisol), Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge) and 2005 winner Alessandro Petacchi all lost the struggle to hang on.

The group topped out on the Cipressa with only about 40 riders. World Champion Philippe Gilbert of BMC led the way down, perhaps hoping to build up enough of a lead to stay away for the remaining 20 kilometres. It was not to be, as Chavanel lead a group of six, including Sagan up to the Belgian.

The next lead group to form was Chavanel, Eduard Vorganov (Katusha) and Ian Stannard (Sky). The field didn’t want to let them go, and kept them within 30 seconds, as the rain started again. Vorganov lost ground on the Poggio and was quickly passed by Maxim Iglinskiy.

But on the descent Sagan led a counter attack with Cancellara and reeled in Chavanel and Stannard. Ciolek also made the move.

They caught the two leaders with just less than 4km to go. Stannard jumped, but Sagan led the chase, and then took off on his own. Cancellara gave chase, with all coming together, until Stannard jumped again with 1.8km to go.

The six came through the final kilometre with a sufficient gap, but it was the sight of Phinney tearing across that ignited the sprint and set the wheels in motion for Ciolek.

Results :
1 Gerald Ciolek (Ger) MTN-Qhubeka 5:37:20
2 Peter Sagan (Svk) Cannondale Pro Cycling
3 Fabian Cancellara (Swi) RadioShack Leopard
4 Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
5 Luca Paolini (Ita) Katusha
6 Ian Stannard (GBr) Sky Procycling
7 Taylor Phinney (USA) BMC Racing Team
8 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) Katusha 0:00:14
9 Mark Cavendish (GBr) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
10 Bernhard Eisel (Aut) Sky Procycling
11 Francisco José Ventoso Alberdi (Spa) Movistar Team
12 Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
13 Heinrich Haussler (Aus) IAM Cycling
14 Enrico Gasparotto (Ita) Astana Pro Team
15 Sébastien Turgot (Fra) Team Europcar
16 Jurgen Roelandts (Bel) Lotto Belisol
17 Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
18 John Degenkolb (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano
19 Yoann Offredo (Fra) FDJ
20 Oscar Gatto (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia
21 Borut Bozic (Slo) Astana Pro Team
22 Angel Vicioso Arcos (Spa) Katusha
23 Sebastian Langeveld (Ned) Orica-GreenEdge
24 Xavier Florencio Cabre (Spa) Katusha
25 Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Movistar Team
26 Davide Malacarne (Ita) Team Europcar
27 Gabriel Rasch (Nor) Sky Procycling
28 Daniele Bennati (Ita) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
29 Maxime Bouet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
30 Grégory Rast (Swi) RadioShack Leopard
31 Gorka Izaguirre Insausti (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
32 Philippe Gilbert (Bel) BMC Racing Team
33 Filippo Pozzato (Ita) Lampre-Merida
34 Matteo Rabottini (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia
35 Maxim Iglinskiy (Kaz) Astana Pro Team
36 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) BMC Racing Team
37 Thomas Lövkvist (Swe) IAM Cycling
38 Mauro Santambrogio (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia 0:00:20
39 Vincent Jerome (Fra) Team Europcar
40 Michael Rogers (Aus) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
41 Arthur Vichot (Fra) FDJ 0:00:56
42 Salvatore Puccio (Ita) Sky Procycling
43 Eduard Vorganov (Rus) Katusha
44 Maxime Monfort (Bel) RadioShack Leopard 0:02:39
45 Moreno Moser (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling 0:02:42
46 Roberto Ferrari (Ita) Lampre-Merida 0:03:26
47 Daryl Impey (RSA) Orica-GreenEdge
48 Andriy Grivko (Ukr) Astana Pro Team 0:03:35
49 Damiano Caruso (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling 0:04:40
50 Alessandro De Marchi (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling
51 Adriano Malori (Ita) Lampre-Merida
52 Davide Appollonio (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale 0:05:13
53 Kristian Sbaragli (Ita) MTN-Qhubeka
54 Mark Renshaw (Aus) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
55 Fabio Felline (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
56 Danilo Hondo (Ger) RadioShack Leopard
57 Jonas Aaen Jörgensen (Den) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
58 André Greipel (Ger) Lotto Belisol
59 Stefan Denifl (Aut) IAM Cycling
60 Aleksejs Saramotins (Lat) IAM Cycling
61 Mauro Finetto (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia
62 Ricardo Garcia Ambroa (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
63 Maarten Tjallingii (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
64 Vicente Reynes Mimo (Spa) Lotto Belisol
65 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Lampre-Merida
66 Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
67 Jens Keukeleire (Bel) Orica-GreenEdge
68 Simon Gerrans (Aus) Orica-GreenEdge
69 Yaroslav Popovych (Ukr) RadioShack Leopard
70 Ramunas Navardauskas (Ltu) Garmin-Sharp
71 Manuel Quinziato (Ita) BMC Racing Team
72 Juan Antonio Flecha Giannoni (Spa) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
73 Matti Breschel (Den) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
74 Johan Vansummeren (Bel) Garmin-Sharp
75 Daniele Pietropolli (Ita) Lampre-Merida
76 Davide Cimolai (Ita) Lampre-Merida
77 Alessandro Vanotti (Ita) Astana Pro Team
78 Grega Bole (Slo) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
79 Simon Geschke (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano
80 Angel Madrazo Ruiz (Spa) Movistar Team
81 Jorge Azanza Soto (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:07:49
82 Paul Martens (Ger) Blanco Pro Cycling Team 0:08:59
83 Marco Bandiera (Ita) IAM Cycling 0:09:20
84 Johannes Fröhlinger (Ger) Team Argos-Shimano
85 Jonathan Cantwell (Aus) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
86 Stuart O’Grady (Aus) Orica-GreenEdge 0:09:22
87 Fabian Wegmann (Ger) Garmin-Sharp
88 Ioannis Tamouridis (Gre) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:11:19
89 Sergey Lagutin (Uzb) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team 0:11:21
90 Greg Henderson (NZl) Lotto Belisol 0:11:29
91 Marcel Sieberg (Ger) Lotto Belisol
92 Jack Bauer (NZl) Garmin-Sharp
93 Jens Mouris (Ned) Orica-GreenEdge
94 Tyler Farrar (USA) Garmin-Sharp
95 Alessandro Proni (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia 0:11:39
96 Kristijan Koren (Slo) Cannondale Pro Cycling 0:11:44
97 Murilo Antonio FISCHER
98 Garikoitz Bravo Oiarbide (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
99 Matteo Tosatto (Ita) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
100 Matthieu Ladagnous (Fra) FDJ
101 David Tanner (Aus) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
102 Sergio Pardilla Bellon (Spa) MTN-Qhubeka 0:11:46
103 Jacobus Venter (RSA) MTN-Qhubeka
104 Roy Curvers (Ned) Team Argos-Shimano
105 Boy van Poppel (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
106 Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Movistar Team
107 Massimo Graziato (Ita) Lampre-Merida
108 Elia Viviani (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling
109 Bert-Jan Lindeman (Ned) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team 0:11:49
110 Alex Howes (USA) Garmin-Sharp
111 Andrea Pasqualon (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
112 Enrico Battaglin (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
113 Jonathan Castroviejo Nicolas (Spa) Movistar Team
114 Kevin Hulsmans (Bel) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia
115 Rick Flens (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
116 Gustav Larsson (Swe) IAM Cycling
117 Lars Ytting Bak (Den) Lotto Belisol
118 Martin Elmiger (Swi) IAM Cycling
119 Bjorn Thurau (Ger) Team Europcar
120 Maxim Belkov (Rus) Katusha
121 Tomas Aurelio Gil Martinez (Ven) Androni Giocattoli
122 Diego Rosa (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
123 Michael Morkov (Den) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
124 Baden Cooke (Aus) Orica-GreenEdge 0:11:56
125 Martin Velits (Svk) Omega Pharma-Quick Step 0:13:09
126 Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Team Argos-Shimano
127 Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Team Europcar
128 Andreas Stauff (Ger) MTN-Qhubeka
129 Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ
130 Jesse Sergent (NZl) RadioShack Leopard
131 Dominic Klemme (Ger) IAM Cycling
132 Frederik Veuchelen (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
133 Anthony Roux (Fra) FDJ
134 Francesco Chicchi (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia 0:15:03
135 Vladimir Isaychev (Rus) Katusha 0:18:25
DNF Matthew Harley Goss (Aus) Orica-GreenEdge
DNF Manuel Belletti (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale
DNF Steve Chainel (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
DNF Hugo Houle (Can) AG2R La Mondiale
DNF Ben Gastauer (Lux) AG2R La Mondiale
DNF Matteo Montaguti (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale
DNF Franco Pellizotti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
DNF Riccardo Chiarini (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
DNF Jackson Rodriguez (Ven) Androni Giocattoli
DNF Miguel Angel Rubiano Chavez (Col) Androni Giocattoli
DNF Emanuele Sella (Ita) Androni Giocattoli
DNF Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team
DNF Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Astana Pro Team
DNF Simone Ponzi (Ita) Astana Pro Team
DNF Sacha Modolo (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
DNF Francesco Manuel Bongiorno (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
DNF Nicola Boem (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
DNF Marco Canola (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
DNF Filippo Fortin (Ita) Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
DNF Lars Petter Nordhaug (Nor) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
DNF Tom Jelte Slagter (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
DNF Maarten Wynants (Bel) Blanco Pro Cycling Team
DNF Thor Hushovd (Nor) BMC Racing Team
DNF Klaas Lodewyck (Bel) BMC Racing Team
DNF Daniel Oss (Ita) BMC Racing Team
DNF Michael Schär (Swi) BMC Racing Team
DNF Maciej Bodnar (Pol) Cannondale Pro Cycling
DNF Paolo Longo Borghini (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling
DNF Egoi Martinez De Esteban (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
DNF Miguel Minguez Ayala (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
DNF Robert Vrecer (Slo) Euskaltel-Euskadi
DNF William Bonnet (Fra) FDJ
DNF Mickael Delage (Fra) FDJ
DNF Robert Hunter (RSA) Garmin-Sharp
DNF David Millar (GBr) Garmin-Sharp
DNF Aliaksandr Kuchynski (Blr) Katusha
DNF Diego Ulissi (Ita) Lampre-Merida
DNF Adam Hansen (Aus) Lotto Belisol
DNF Frederik Willems (Bel) Lotto Belisol
DNF Andrey Amador Bakkazakova (CRc) Movistar Team
DNF Pablo Lastras Garcia (Spa) Movistar Team
DNF Eloy Teruel Rovira (Spa) Movistar Team
DNF Martin Reimer (Ger) MTN-Qhubeka
DNF Songezo Jim (RSA) MTN-Qhubeka
DNF Jay Robert Thomson (RSA) MTN-Qhubeka
DNF Tom Boonen (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
DNF Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
DNF Niki Terpstra (Ned) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
DNF Stijn Vandenbergh (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quick Step
DNF Giacomo Nizzolo (Ita) RadioShack Leopard
DNF Hayden Roulston (NZl) RadioShack Leopard
DNF Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Sky Procycling
DNF Vasil Kiryienka (Blr) Sky Procycling
DNF Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr) Sky Procycling
DNF Geraint Thomas (GBr) Sky Procycling
DNF Koen De Kort (Ned) Team Argos-Shimano
DNF Ji Cheng (Chn) Team Argos-Shimano
DNF Matthieu Sprick (Fra) Team Argos-Shimano
DNF Jerome Cousin (Fra) Team Europcar
DNF Yohann Gene (Fra) Team Europcar
DNF David Veilleux (Can) Team Europcar
DNF Manuele Boaro (Ita) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
DNF Kris Boeckmans (Bel) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
DNF Mirko Selvaggi (Ita) Vacansoleil-DCM Pro Cycling Team
DNF Jonathan Monsalve (Ven) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia