World Championships 2021 – Road Race [FULL RACE] (junior)

September 24, 2021

World Championships 2021 – Road Race Junior – Leuven – Leuven : 121,4 km

The UCI Road World Championships have been around since 1921 but for the first six years the event only consisted of a Men’s Amateur Road Race. The first professional World Championships took place in 1927 in Nürburgring, Germany. The amateur road race continued to run alongside the professional race up until 1995 when it was then replaced with the more familiar U-23 event. Jerseys are an integral part of cycling, both as a sport and as a culture. Not only do they indicate a rider’s team affinity or national colours, they also denote achievement and accomplishment too. Wearing the rainbow bands of World Champion is perhaps the highest honour and achievement one can attain in the sport. This year’s UCI Road World Championships is set to be one of the toughest events in recent times. Held in Flanders, Belgium, the 2021 courses are some of the most attritional we’ve seen for a decade and should therefore favour the pure Classic specialists and born Flandriens.

Per Strand Hagenes (Norway) soloed to victory in the junior men’s road race at the World Championships in Leuven after he unleashed a vicious attack on the penultimate climb of Wijnpers.

The Norwegian came home 19 seconds clear of European champion Romain Gregoire (France), while Madis Mihkels (Estonia) won the sprint for third 5 seconds further back.

Hagenes showed his strength by bridging across to a dangerous six-man move at the beginning of the final lap and then helping to temper the aggression of Finlay Pickering (Great Britain).

Hagenes hit the front of the leading group at the base of the climb of Wijnpers with 5.6km to go and his long acceleration eventually proved too much for Gregoire, though a crash at the base of the climb effectively ended the challenge of the impressive Simon Dalby (Denmark).

Hagenes, who will ride for Jumbo-Visma’s development squad in 2022, edged out his lead over lone chasers Gregoire and Dario Belletta (Italy) thereafter to claim a resounding victory.

While Belletta was caught by the chasing group on the approach to the finish, Gregoire held on to add a World Championship silver medal to his European gold, but the day belonged to the man he had beaten to that title two weeks ago, Per Strand Hagenes.

“I knew it was possible when I looked at the course yesterday because I know on those short, punchy climbs, I’m quite good and I’ve done well in races this year on courses like that,” said Hagenes.

“I knew it was possible but to make it happen is incredible. I lay on my bed last night before sleeping and I got a high pulse just thinking about taking the win today.”

The 121.8km race was a breathless affair, and the tension was evident from the very outset, when Cian Uijtdebroeks (Belgium) was among the early fallers.

Uijtdebroeks, who will ride for Bora-Hansgrohe next year, spent the rest of his race engaged in a spirited but ultimately unsuccessful attempt to chase back up to the front. He showcased his strength in front of the home crowds, but the rainbow jersey was already beyond his grasp.

A race of attack and counter-attack began to take a slightly more discernible shape with three laps to go as the high speed began to exact a toll and whittle the peloton down in size still further.

A notable move featuring Joshua Tarling (Great Britain), Luis-Joe Luehrs (Germany) and Milan Kadlec (Czech Republic) gained some traction but they were reeled in at the beginning of the penultimate lap.

Daniel Schrag (Germany) and Dario Belletta (Italy) were the next to forge clear, and they were later joined by Finlay Pickering (Great Britain), Eddy Le Huitouze, Pierre Gautherat (France) and, at the bell, Simon Dalby (Denmark).

The margins were still tight, however, and Hagenes soon thundered into the race from behind, launching a searing effort to bridge across to the leaders in the company of Gregoire.

Pickering had made a brace of attempts to forge clear before Hagenes arrived but eight riders – three of them from the French squad – hit the base of the short and sharp climb up Wijnpers with 6km to go. Hagenes led into the corner at the foot of the climb and then powered his way clear.

“I had to gap up to the breakaway so in the hill before, I had to punch quite hard. There were three French guys in the breakaway so it was really difficult but I knew on the last hill, I was going to take that corner first and just go full gas,” Hagenes said.

“The French guy [Gregoire] was on my wheel but when I looked back I saw I had metres, so then I just put my head down and pushed as hard as I could to the finish line.”

With Dalby and several others held by a crash on the climb, a number of willing chasers were ruled out of the running, but in truth, Hagenes’ strength brooked no argument and he crested the summit with what looked like a winning advantage.

Hagenes made light work, too, of the final ascent up Sint-Antoniusberg, where his lead over Gregoire stretched out beyond 20 seconds, while a flagging Bellotta was caught by the chasers behind.

On the false flat towards the finish, Hagenes had time to celebrate his victory, the first by a Norwegian in the junior men’s road race.

Results :
1 Per Strand Hagenes (Norway) 2:43:48
2 Romain Gregoire (France) 0:00:19
3 Madis Mihkels (Estonia) 0:00:24
4 Martin Svrcek (Slovakia)
5 Alexander Hajek (Austria)
6 Antonio Morgado (Portugal)
7 Manuel Oioli (Italy)
8 Vlad van Mechelen (Belgium)
9 Max Poole (Great Britain)
10 Luis-Joe Luehrs (Germany)
11 Romet Pajur (Estonia)
12 Mike Bronswijk (Netherlands)
13 Jente Michels (Belgium)
14 Arno Wallenborn (Luxembourg)
15 Colby Simmons (United States Of America)
16 Moritz Kaersten (Germany)
17 Joost Brinkman (Netherlands)
18 Matyas Kopecky (Czech Republic)
19 Andrey Remkhe (Kazakhstan)
20 Ivan Romeo Abad (Spain)
21 Frank Aron Ragilo (Estonia)
22 Goncalo Tavares (Portugal)
23 Rindert Buiter (Netherlands)
24 Darren Rafferty (Ireland)
25 Jack Brough (Great Britain)
26 Jan Christen (Switzerland)
27 Cole Kessler (United States Of America)
28 Jelle Harteel (Belgium)
29 Artem Shmidt (United States Of America)
30 Daniel Schrag (Germany)
31 Carl-Frederik Bevort (Denmark) 0:00:36
32 Finlay Pickering (Great Britain) 0:00:56
33 Dario Igor Belletta (Italy) 0:01:02
34 Nils Aebersold (Switzerland) 0:01:19
35 Milan Kadlec (Czech Republic)
36 Simon Dalby (Denmark) 0:01:57
37 Alec Segaert (Belgium) 0:02:05
38 Ola Sylling (Norway) 0:02:25
39 Pierre Gautherat (France) 0:02:47
40 Melvyn Lethier (France)
41 Eddy le Huitouze (France)
42 Adam Seeman (Czech Republic) 0:05:10
43 Cedric Abt (Germany) 0:05:12
44 Gustav Wang (Denmark) 0:06:33
45 Stian Edvardsen-Fredheim (Norway)
46 Leo Kraemer (France)
47 Alberto Bruttomesso (Italy)
48 Joshua Tarling (Great Britain)
49 Maxim Taraskin (Kazakhstan) 0:08:26
50 Mitchel Fitzsimons (New Zealand)
51 Mihajlo Stolic (Serbia)
52 Aaron Aus (Estonia)
53 Lewis Bower (New Zealand)
54 Dejan Cogoljevic (Serbia)
55 Mathieu Kockelmann (Luxembourg)
56 Victor Paula (Brazil)
57 Alexey Vaganov (Kazakhstan)
58 Lauri Tamm (Estonia)
59 Iker Bonillo Martin (Spain)
60 Savelii Laptev (Russian Federation)
61 Michael Leonard (Canada)
62 Zoltan Antal Lepold (Hungary)
63 Robin Donze (Switzerland)
64 Jaka Spoljar (Slovenia)
65 Fabijan Kralj (Slovenia)
66 Ronan o Connor (Ireland)
67 Gabriel Grozev (Bulgaria)
68 Samandar Sultanov (Uzbekistan)
69 Alexandre Kess (Luxembourg)
70 Cian Uijtdebroeks (Belgium)
71 Yegor Strelnikov (Kazakhstan) 0:08:40
72 Moritz Hoerandtner (Austria) 0:08:47
73 Kacper Gieryk (Poland) 0:08:59
74 Leevi Kervinen (Finland) 0:09:09
75 Trym Brennsaeter (Norway) 0:10:30
76 Sebastian Kirkedam Larsen (Norway)
77 Ayoub Ferkous (Algeria)
78 Liam Flannery (Bermuda) 0:11:05
79 Isaac del Toro Romero (Mexico) 0:15:39
80 Tomas Sivok (Slovakia)
81 Abdelkrim Ferkous (Algeria)
82 Samuel Niyonkuru (Rwanda) 0:16:22
83 Dmytro Polupan (Ukraine) 0:17:30
84 Karlis Klismets (Latvia) 0:17:40
85 Gvido Kokle (Latvia) 0:18:14
86 Vitalii Kost (Ukraine) 0:18:24
87 Kiya Rogora (Ethiopia)
88 Maksym Varenyk (Ukraine)
89 Brayan Molano Alvarado (Colombia) 0:19:51
90 Lucas Janssen (Netherlands) 0:21:43
DNF Emil Herzog (Germany)
DNF Dean Harvey (Ireland)
DNF Jonathan Guatibonza Becerra (Colombia)
DNF Michal Zelazowski (Poland)
DNF El Yass Sekkiny (Morocco)
DNF Cesar Macias Estrada (Mexico)
DNF Pablo Bonilla (Uruguay)
DNF Matias Sanchez Jimenez (Mexico)
DNF Alexander Pita Bolanos (Ecuador)
DNF Igor Nadoveza (Serbia)
DNF David Larsson (Sweden)
DNF Alexander Gustin (United States Of America)
DNF Leomar Briceno (Venezuela)
DNF Vladislav Troman (Uzbekistan)
DNF Stefan Dragoiu (Romania)
DNF Michal Pomorski (Poland)
DNF Youssef Lamzaouk (Morocco)
DNF Eric Pedersen (Sweden)
DNF Alexander Miller (Bermuda)
DNF Oussama Abdellah Mimouni (Algeria)
DNF Kristof Arvai (Hungary)
DNF Zeteny Szijarto (Hungary)
DNF Warren Moolman (South Africa)
DNF Matiss Kalverss (Latvia)
DNF Nikita Sitov (Azerbaijan)
DNF Leo Kerschbaumer (Austria)
DNF Aljaz Turk (Slovenia)
DNF Dylan Bibic (Canada)
DNF Daniil Zarakovskiy (Russian Federation)
DNF Mark Kryuchkov (Russian Federation)
DNF Quentin Cowan (Canada)
DNF Ron Donio (Israel)
DNF Mohammed Najib Sanbouli (Morocco)
DNF Iliass Hasnany (Morocco)
DNF Samuel Kovac (Slovakia)
DNF Henrik Pedersen (Denmark)
DNF Yanis-Eric Markwalder (Switzerland)
DNF Lucas Lopes (Portugal)
DNF Jason Eggett (South Africa)
DNF Diogo Pinto (Portugal)
DNF Stepan Telecky (Czech Republic)
DNF Abdulkhamid Tuychiev (Uzbekistan)
DNF Derex Segarra Alvarado (Puerto Rico)
DNF Axel Kaellberg (Finland)
DNF Tomas-Casimir Niemi (Finland)
DNF Oscar Garzon Alfonso (Colombia)
DNF Hubert Grygowski (Poland)
DNF Pau Marti Soriano (Spain)
DNF Haimar Etxeberria Ansalas (Spain)
DNF Matisse Julien (Canada)
DNF Pedri Crause (South Africa)
DNF Samuele Bonetto (Italy)
DNF Sergey Gorelikov (Uzbekistan)
DNF Cristopher Miranda (Panama)
DNF Karlis Valters Grundulis (Latvia)
DNF Hugo Lennartsson (Sweden)
DNF Etienne Tuyizere (Rwanda)
DNF Ignacio Emanuel Campo Dominguez (Argentina)
DNF Conal Scully (Ireland)
DNF Jack Carswell (New Zealand)
DNF Fabian Tapia Munoz (Chile)
DNF Andre Cruz Falcon (Mexico)
DNF Chanton Perrins (South Africa)
DNF Constantinos Ioannou (Cyprus)
DNF Mohamed Redwane Brinis (Algeria)
DNF Nicolas Gojkovic (Croatia)
DNF Poul Andersen (Denmark)
DNF Mihnea-Alexandru Harasim (Romania)
DNF Roy Shyman (Israel)
DNF Amit Keynan (Israel)
DNF Samuel Tuka (Slovakia)
DNF Yan Luis Arrieta Diaz (Cuba)
DNF Miguel Iturrieta Wilson (Chile)
DNF Leonel Eduardo Manani (Argentina)
DNF Brayan Vargas Hernandez (Colombia)
DNF Bence Meszaros (Hungary)
DNF Mil Morang (Luxembourg)
DNF Marco Schrettl (Austria)
DNF Mark Percic (Serbia)
DNF Vid Jeromel (Slovenia)
DNF Grigorii Skorniakov (Russian Federation)
DNS Jomantas Venckus (Lithuania)
DNS Edgaras Zekas (Lithuania)