Saturday, October 12, 2024 at 4:47 PM
A new edition, the same winner. Tadej Pogacar has won the Tour of Lombardy for a fourth consecutive time. The Slovenian from UAE Emirates rode away from the peloton on the Colma di Sormano and then soloed in his rainbow jersey to the seventh monumental victory of his career.
The cycling season is coming to an end, but cycling enthusiasts can still fully enjoy the race this weekend. There is not only the European Championships on gravel around Asagio, but also (or especially) the 118th edition of the Tour of Lombardy. The route of the ‘Course of the Falling Leaves’ underwent some last minute changes this year due to last week’s harsh weather conditions. From Como to Bergamo the caravan conquered the climbs to Selvino and Valpiana, the famous Madonna del Ghisallo and the Colma di Sormano. In the absolute final phase, the San Fermo della Battaglia could still be decisive.
Attractive opening phase
Before the start, all eyes were on one man: Tadej Pogacar. The brand new world champion won the last three editions of the fifth monument of the year. Who could stop the Slovenian from winning this year? Some men thought it was the best strategy to gain an advantage over the top favorite and stole away in the opening phase. In fact, many riders tried to join the breakaway. The necessary pinpricks were parried from the peloton, so that no group had left after the Forcellino di Bianzano. Only on the flanks of the climb to Selvino did seven riders manage to break away from the pack.
The leading group in pictures – photo: Cor Vos
The group only took about twenty seconds and still did not win the peloton. A very active Wilco Kelderman (Visma | Lease a Bike) was one of the pacesetters at the head of the race. Also riding at his side were Axel Laurance (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Matej Mohoric (Bahrain Victorious), Rémy Rochas (Groupama-FDJ), Brandon Rivera (INEOS Grenadiers), Julien Bernard (Lidl-Trek) and compatriot Martijn Tusveld (dsm-firmenich). PostNL) from the front. However, some teams had missed the trick and were not yet satisfied with the race situation.
Large leading group, nerves in the peloton
Several riders tried to cross over to the leading group. Shortly after forming the leading group, Harold Mártin López (Astana Qazaqstan), Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious), Einer Rubio (Movistar), Daniel Felipe Martínez (Red Bull BORA-hansgrohe), Eddie Dunbar (Jayco AlUla) and Matteo also arrived. Connect Fabbro (Polti Kometa). This group – including some big names – brought the total number of riders at the front to thirteen. Yet the hunger was still not satisfied.
Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale still had no rider at the front and decided to send Bastien Tronchon on an adventure. The Frenchman bravely chased the leading group and inspired yet another wave of riders to launch an attack. A new group – of eleven men – broke away, including men such as Thymen Arensman (INEOS Grenadiers), Tiesj Benoot (Visma | Lease a Bike), Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) and Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal-Quick Step). The differences remained small while the riders conquered the Colle di Berbenno.
UAE Emirates remained in control throughout the day – photo: Cor Vos
At the foot of the climb to Valpiana, the chasing group managed to catch up with the men in front. This created an interesting race situation, with a large group riding more than two minutes ahead of the peloton. UAE Emirates seemed to be getting tight for a moment and increased the pace to firmly control the deficit. The men in the leading group also experienced this and managed to keep their lead above one and a half minutes. Antonio Tiberi fell victim to this fast pace.
Calm before the storm
Completing the climb to Valpiana led to an intermediate phase, in which UAE Emirates loosened the reins a bit. A lead of just under two minutes seemed like an impossible situation for the more than twenty riders at the front. In the flat zone the leaders managed to double the difference to four minutes. Was there a surprise in the making here? Tadej Pogacar’s men were put back to work. Led by Jan Christen and Rafal Majka, among others, the peloton came another minute closer.
The riders at the top of the famous Madonna del Ghisallo – photo: Cor Vos
The first gears were placed in the leading group at about 85 kilometers from the finish. The famous Madonna del Ghisallo was the sign for Thymen Arensman to test his legs. Yet the final did not really kick off yet. In the leading group, most riders preferred to keep their powder dry for a while, while in the peloton the white-clad army of the Slovenian world champion continued to take the initiative. Calm before the storm.
Closer and closer
Once at the top of the Madonna del Ghisallo, Majka had taken another minute off the lead at a blistering pace. This left the twenty front runners with only two minutes left with 75 kilometers to go. Only Harold Martín López in the leading group should have taken over the role on the flanks of the climb. The race was captured by a cat and mouse game and the real spectacle did not materialize. We had to wait for the Colma di Sormano (12.8 km at 6.7%), the longest climb of this edition.
Remco Evenepoel predicted that Tadej Pogacar would launch his attack on this climb. “I expect the race to explode on the Sormano,” said the Belgian. And he was right. Towards the foot of the climb, UAE Emirates brought the peloton within a minute of the leaders. There the men felt the hot breath on their necks. An acceleration from Rudy Molard caused the leading group to split up.
The world champion kept a low profile for a long time – photo: Cor Vos
Brandon Rivera and Martijn Tusveld immediately had to let go, while Eddie Dunbar, Wilco Kelderman and Einer Rubio managed to join their wagon. For Xandro Meurisse, an acceleration was not enough. The Belgian hit it and opened a hole. Behind it, Adam Yates was now doing the honors.
Mighty acceleration on Colma di Sormano
In the kilometers that followed, the other escapees tried with all their might to get back to the lone leader. However, one by one they had to capitulate. Thymen Arensman turned out to be the strongest companion for Meurisse. The Dutchman managed to fight his way back to the Belgian. Just then Tadej Pogacar zoomed past.
Tadej Pogacar went solo (again) far before the finish – photo: Cor Vos
A few minutes earlier, Adam Yates had handed over the baton in the peloton to Pavel Sivakov, who pushed even further towards the top of the Colma di Sormano. One by one, riders from the leading group waved back. About six kilometers from the top, the UAE Emirates helper had reached Meurisse and Arensman. 48 kilometers before the finish it turned out to be in favor Thank you the moment to accelerate.
Unparalleled
The world champion soon managed to gain a lead of half a minute over his closest pursuers. With a smooth step he increased this difference to one minute on the rest of the climb. In the chase it was Remco Evenepoel, Enric Mas and Lennert Van Eetvelt who found each other. They were allowed to compete for the title ‘best of the rest’. Tadej Pogacar had flown.
Remco Evenepoel rode a strong race – photo: Cor Vos
Men such as Michael Storer, Giulio Pellizzari, Giulio Ciccone, Roger Adrià and Pavel Sivakov were in a third group in a battle for the remaining spots in the top 10. Despite the efforts of his leader, the latter proved to be the strongest and raced away from this third group. The second group also did not stay together. Remco Evenepoel took advantage of an inattentive moment by his companions and rushed away on the descent.
Big win for the world champion
Remco Evenepoel plunged into the descent and rode Mas and Van Eetvelt within half a minute. The duo could not keep up the pace, allowing even Pavel Sivakov to join from the background. The trio was allowed to compete for the final podium spot, while Thank you and Evenepoel rode to the finish line in a hand-to-hand battle.
In the last twenty kilometers the Slovenian’s lead grew to well over three minutes. In Como, Pogacar crossed the line as winner of the Tour of Lombardy for the fourth time in a row. The win gives him his second monument of the year and his seventh in total. Behind him, Remco Evenepoel managed to secure second place.
In the battle for third place, Giulio Ciccone caused a surprise. The Italian came back to the pursuers on the San Fermo della Battaglia. On this last climb he went over and over again and finally managed to hold on.
