Why was it beautiful? Because it happened as Simon Gerrans said it would. From the winner we saw a perfect race: patient, strong, reliable, savvy, well-supported… and even a touch of luck. Had it not been for the slip of a rear wheel on the final turn, the 100th edition of The Old Girl, La Doyenne, then Dan Martin would have been the champion again. The Irishman had the title of Liège-Bastogne-Liège in his sight and then it all came crashing down for him. And that’s when the Australian champion jumped to the fore and onward to victory.
Without Peter Weening, it wouldn’t have ended this way. The Dutchman was responsible for the pursuit of two fugitives, Giampaolo Caruso and Domenico Pozzovivo, but he wasn’t riding for himself. On his wheel was a group of favourites… with former LBL winner Alejandro Valverde riding towards the back with a green-and-gold shadow on his wheel.
Around the final turn: Caruso seemed as though he may take a coup; Martin lost the title defence; Valverde knew he had the speed to win; Gerrans continues to show restraint; Pozzovivo faded into the colours of others as he move was soaked up… and the finishing line beckoned.
If Simon says he can, he often does. That’s how it’s been for the Australian championships, the Tour Down Under, the Jayco-Herald Sun Tour, stage wins of the Tour, Giro and Vuelta… that’s how it was for Milan-San Remo when his team claimed its first ‘Monument’. That’s how it was in Corsica last year at the Tour de France when he beat Peter Sagan. And Simon has been saying for years that he can win in the Ardennes. Now he has. Injury free, with support, and onward to Ans to finish the job.
Here is a collection of images from the final of the Spring Classics. Click on the photo of Simon Gerrans (below) to begin the slideshow…
[ReflexGallery id=’93’]
1 | Simon GERRANS | AUS | OGE | 6:37:43 |
2 | Alejandro VALVERDE BELMONTE | ESP | MOV | at same time |
3 | Michal KWIATKOWSKI | POL | OPQ | same time |
4 | Giampaolo CARUSO | ITA | KAT | same time |
5 | Domenico POZZOVIVO | ITA | ALM | 3″ |
6 | Tom Jelte SLAGTER | NED | GRS | 3″ |
7 | Roman KREUZIGER | CZE | TCS | 3″ |
8 | Philippe GILBERT | BEL | BMC | 3″ |
9 | Daniel MORENO FERNANDEZ | ESP | KAT | 5″ |
10 | Romain BARDET | FRA | ALM | 6″ |
11 | Jelle VANENDERT | BEL | LTB | 8″ |
12 | Enrico GASPAROTTO | ITA | AST | 10″ |
13 | Damiano CUNEGO | ITA | LAM | 10″ |
14 | Cyril GAUTIER | FRA | EUC | 10″ |
15 | Bauke MOLLEMA | NED | BEL | 12″ |
16 | Rudy MOLARD | FRA | COF | 12″ |
17 | Tiago MACHADO | POR | TNE | 12″ |
18 | Anthony ROUX | FRA | FDJ | 12″ |
19 | Frank SCHLECK | LUX | TFR | 12″ |
20 | Stefan DENIFL | AUT | IAM | 12″ |
21 | Przemyslaw NIEMIEC | POL | LAM | 12″ |
22 | Sébastien REICHENBACH | SUI | IAM | 12″ |
23 | Pierre ROLLAND | FRA | EUC | 17″ |
24 | Simon GESCHKE | GER | GIA | 19″ |
25 | Julian David ARREDONDO MORENO | COL | TFR | 19″ |
26 | Jakob FUGLSANG | DEN | AST | 23″ |
27 | Mathias FRANK | SUI | IAM | 23″ |
28 | Chris Anker SÖRENSEN | DEN | TCS | 31″ |
29 | Warren BARGUIL | FRA | GIA | 48″ |
30 | Vincenzo NIBALI | ITA | AST | 51″ |
31 | Samuel SANCHEZ GONZALEZ | ESP | BMC | 56″ |
32 | Ben HERMANS | BEL | BMC | +1:09 |
33 | Alexandr KOLOBNEV | RUS | KAT | +1:09 |
34 | Pieter WEENING | NED | OGE | +1:11 |
35 | Tony GALLOPIN | FRA | LTB | +1:27 |
36 | Thomas VOECKLER | FRA | EUC | +1:27 |
37 | Lars Petter NORDHAUG | NOR | BEL | +1:29 |
38 | Guillaume LEVARLET | FRA | COF | +1:31 |
39 | Daniel MARTIN | IRL | GRS | +1:37 |
40 | Ivan SANTAROMITA | ITA | OGE | +2:26 |
41 | Simon CLARKE | AUS | OGE | +2:26 |
42 | Jerome COPPEL | FRA | COF | +2:26 |
43 | Tim WELLENS | BEL | LTB | +2:26 |
44 | Eduard VORGANOV | RUS | KAT | +2:26 |
45 | Paul MARTENS | GER | BEL | +2:26 |
46 | Pieter SERRY | BEL | OPQ | +2:51 |
47 | Mikael CHEREL | FRA | ALM | +2:51 |
48 | Jan BAKELANTS | BEL | OPQ | +2:51 |
49 | Thomas DEGAND | BEL | WGG | +2:51 |
50 | Angel VICIOSO ARCOS | ESP | KAT | +2:53 |
51 | David DE LA CRUZ MELGAREJO | ESP | TNE | +3:33 |
52 | José Joao PIMENTA COSTA MENDES | POR | TNE | +3:33 |
53 | Arnold JEANNESSON | FRA | FDJ | +3:33 |
54 | Cesare BENEDETTI | ITA | TNE | +3:33 |
55 | Daan OLIVIER | NED | GIA | +3:33 |
56 | Jarlinson PANTANO | COL | COL | +3:33 |
57 | Iker CAMANO ORTUZAR | ESP | TNE | +3:33 |
58 | Sergio PARDILLA BELLON | ESP | MTN | +3:33 |
59 | Robinson Eduardo CHALAPUD GOMEZ | COL | COL | +3:33 |
60 | Fabio FELLINE | ITA | TFR | +3:33 |
61 | Louis MEINTJES | RSA | MTN | +3:33 |
62 | Bob JUNGELS | LUX | TFR | +3:33 |
63 | Maxim IGLINSKY | KAZ | AST | +3:33 |
64 | Alberto LOSADA ALGUACIL | ESP | KAT | +3:33 |
65 | Tom DUMOULIN | NED | GIA | +3:33 |
66 | Diego ULISSI | ITA | LAM | +3:33 |
67 | Jérémy ROY | FRA | FDJ | +3:47 |
68 | Matteo MONTAGUTI | ITA | ALM | +3:54 |
69 | Amaël MOINARD | FRA | BMC | +3:54 |
70 | Nathan EARLE | AUS | SKY | +5:16 |
71 | Marco MARCATO | ITA | CAN | +5:16 |
72 | Carlos VERONA QUINTANILLA | ESP | OPQ | +5:16 |
73 | Thomas SPRENGERS | BEL | TSV | +5:16 |
74 | Fabian WEGMANN | GER | GRS | +5:16 |
75 | Darwin ATAPUMA HURTADO | COL | BMC | +5:16 |
76 | Christophe RIBLON | FRA | ALM | +5:16 |
77 | Ryder HESJEDAL | CAN | GRS | +5:16 |
78 | John GADRET | FRA | MOV | +6:19 |
79 | Pierrick FEDRIGO | FRA | FDJ | +7:10 |
80 | Wouter POELS | NED | OPQ | +7:10 |
81 | Matthew BUSCHE | USA | TFR | +8:05 |
82 | Alex HOWES | USA | GRS | +8:05 |
83 | Carlos Julian QUINTERO | COL | COL | +8:05 |
84 | Gustav LARSSON | SWE | IAM | +8:05 |
85 | Gorka IZAGUIRRE INSAUSTI | ESP | MOV | +8:07 |
86 | Jon IZAGUIRRE INSAUSTI | ESP | MOV | +8:07 |
87 | Jesus HERRADA LOPEZ | ESP | MOV | +8:07 |
88 | Marcus BURGHARDT | GER | BMC | +8:28 |
89 | Cameron MEYER | AUS | OGE | +8:52 |
90 | Jérôme BAUGNIES | BEL | WGG | +9:20 |
91 | Reto HOLLENSTEIN | SUI | IAM | +9:26 |
92 | Laurent PICHON | FRA | FDJ | +9:26 |
93 | Francis DE GREEF | BEL | WGG | +10:01 |
94 | Jonathan HIVERT | FRA | BEL | +10:12 |
95 | Michael ALBASINI | SUI | OGE | +10:43 |
96 | Rafael VALLS FERRI | ESP | LAM | +11:41 |
97 | Mirko SELVAGGI | ITA | WGG | +11:41 |
98 | Luis Angel MATE MARDONES | ESP | COF | +11:41 |
99 | Mattia CATTANEO | ITA | LAM | +11:41 |
100 | Pieter JACOBS | BEL | TSV | +11:41 |
101 | Dennis VANENDERT | BEL | LTB | +11:41 |
102 | Bartosz HUZARSKI | POL | TNE | +11:41 |
103 | Nathan HAAS | AUS | GRS | +11:41 |
104 | Miguel Angel RUBIANO CHAVEZ | COL | COL | +11:41 |
105 | Rory SUTHERLAND | AUS | TCS | +11:41 |
106 | Ben GASTAUER | LUX | ALM | +11:41 |
107 | Kévin REZA | FRA | EUC | +11:41 |
108 | Jaco VENTER | RSA | MTN | +11:41 |
109 | Eduard Alexander BELTRAN SUAREZ | COL | TCS | +11:41 |
110 | Benoît VAUGRENARD | FRA | FDJ | +11:41 |
111 | Daryl IMPEY | RSA | OGE | +12:01 |
112 | Romain SICARD | FRA | EUC | +12:01 |
113 | Alessandro DE MARCHI | ITA | CAN | +12:08 |
114 | Matteo BONO | ITA | LAM | +12:11 |
115 | Christian MEIER | CAN | OGE | +12:15 |
116 | Eliot LIETAER | BEL | TSV | +12:15 |
117 | Leonardo Fabio DUQUE | COL | COL | +12:15 |
118 | Frantisek PADOUR | CZE | TNE | +12:15 |
119 | Andriy GRIVKO | UKR | AST | +12:15 |
120 | Peter VELITS | SVK | BMC | +12:15 |
121 | Romain ZINGLE | BEL | COF | +12:15 |
122 | Martijn KEIZER | NED | BEL | +12:15 |
123 | Lieuwe WESTRA | NED | AST | +12:15 |
124 | Imanol ERVITI | ESP | MOV | +12:15 |
125 | Daniel TEKLEHAIMANOT | ERI | MTN | +12:15 |
126 | Tanel KANGERT | EST | AST | +12:15 |
127 | Matej MOHORIC | SLO | CAN | +12:15 |
128 | Karsten KROON | NED | TCS | +12:15 |
129 | Perrig QUEMENEUR | FRA | EUC | +12:15 |
130 | Pirmin LANG | SUI | IAM | +12:15 |
131 | Daniele RATTO | ITA | CAN | +12:15 |
132 | David TANNER | AUS | BEL | +12:15 |
133 | Davide VILLELLA | ITA | CAN | +12:15 |
134 | Preben VAN HECKE | BEL | TSV | +12:15 |
135 | Bram TANKINK | NED | BEL | +13:27 |
136 | Thomas DAMUSEAU | FRA | GIA | +13:47 |
DNF | Thomas DEKKER | NED | GRS | |
DNF | Ramunas NAVARDAUSKAS | LTU | GRS | |
DNF | Joaquin RODRIGUEZ OLIVER | ESP | KAT | |
DNF | Dmitry KOZONTCHUK | RUS | KAT | |
DNF | José Ivan GUTIERREZ PALACIOS | ESP | MOV | |
DNF | Benat INTXAUSTI ELORRIAGA | ESP | MOV | |
DNF | Sébastien MINARD | FRA | ALM | |
DNF | Rui Alberto FARIA DA COSTA | POR | LAM | |
DNF | Nelson Filipe SANTOS SIMOES OLIVEIRA | POR | LAM | |
DNF | Alexey LUTSENKO | KAZ | AST | |
DNF | Stephen CUMMINGS | GBR | BMC | |
DNF | Laurent MANGEL | FRA | FDJ | |
DNF | Jussi VEIKKANEN | FIN | FDJ | |
DNF | Jack BOBRIDGE | AUS | BEL | |
DNF | Richie PORTE | AUS | SKY | |
DNF | Ian BOSWELL | USA | SKY | |
DNF | Joshua EDMONDSON | GBR | SKY | |
DNF | David LOPEZ GARCIA | ESP | SKY | |
DNF | Danny PATE | USA | SKY | |
DNF | Michael Valgren ANDERSEN | DEN | TCS | |
DNF | Bruno PIRES | POR | TCS | |
DNF | Michael ROGERS | AUS | TCS | |
DNF | Jurgen VAN DEN BROECK | BEL | LTB | |
DNF | Sander ARMEE | BEL | LTB | |
DNF | Bart DE CLERCQ | BEL | LTB | |
DNF | Tosh VAN DER SANDE | BEL | LTB | |
DNF | Johannes FRÖHLINGER | GER | GIA | |
DNF | Cheng JI | CHN | GIA | |
DNF | Thomas PETERSON | USA | GIA | |
DNF | Thomas LÖVKVIST | SWE | IAM | |
DNF | Jérôme PINEAU | FRA | IAM | |
DNF | Alberto BETTIOL | ITA | CAN | |
DNF | Michel KOCH | GER | CAN | |
DNF | Jean Marc MARINO | FRA | CAN | |
DNF | Michal GOLAS | POL | OPQ | |
DNF | Tony MARTIN | GER | OPQ | |
DNF | Serge PAUWELS | BEL | OPQ | |
DNF | Fumiyuki BEPPU | JPN | TFR | |
DNF | Andy SCHLECK | LUX | TFR | |
DNF | Calvin WATSON | AUS | TFR | |
DNF | Victor CAMPENAERTS | BEL | TSV | |
DNF | Edward THEUNS | BEL | TSV | |
DNF | Arthur VAN OVERBERGHE | BEL | TSV | |
DNF | Otto VERGAERDE | BEL | TSV | |
DNF | Yukiya ARASHIRO | JPN | EUC | |
DNF | Natnael BERHANE | ERI | EUC | |
DNF | Erick ROWSELL | GBR | TNE | |
DNF | Daniel NAVARRO GARCIA | ESP | COF | |
DNF | Edwig CAMMAERTS | BEL | COF | |
DNF | Julien SIMON | FRA | COF | |
DNF | Jacques JANSE VAN RENSBURG | RSA | MTN | |
DNF | Ignatas KONOVALOVAS | LTU | MTN | |
DNF | Jim SOGENZO | RSA | MTN | |
DNF | Jay Robert THOMSON | RSA | MTN | |
DNF | Jérôme GILBERT | BEL | WGG | |
DNF | Michel KREDER | NED | WGG | |
DNF | Björn LEUKEMANS | BEL | WGG | |
DNF | Marco MINNAARD | NED | WGG | |
DNF | Juan Esteban ARANGO CARVAJAL | COL | COL | |
DNF | Fabio Andres DUARTE AREVALO | COL | COL | |
DNF | Rodolfo Andres TORRES AGUDELO | COL | COL | |
DNS | Carlos Alberto BETANCUR GOMEZ | COL | ALM | |
DNS | Christopher FROOME | GBR | SKY |