A dramatic rain-soaked battle through Flanders on Sunday saw Dutch rider Niki Terpstra (Etixx-QuickStep) make a last-minute capture of the overall victory of the Eneco Tour, the last stage race of the 2016 UCI WorldTour. Oliver Naesen (IAM Cycling) and Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) round off the overall podium.
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Whilst overnight race leader Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing) crashed out of the running, Terpstra’s victory was forged from a three-man break - with Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data) and Naesen - that formed in the closing 50 kilometres of Sunday’s stage. Boasson Hagen, a former double winner of the Eneco Tour, claimed the final stage. With one race remaining, Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) has returned to the top spot overall in the individual UCI WorldTour individual rankings, ahead of Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team) and Chris Froome (Team Sky). Movistar Team remain top ranked team whilst Spain continue to head the nations ranking. The last UCI WorldTour race of 2016, Il Lombardia, takes place on Saturday October 1st.
France’s Thomas Voeckler (Direct Energie) has announced that he will be retiring next year after hopefully completely a final Tour de France, by which time he will be 38.
As of September 18, Italy has moved into the top five of the UCI World Ranking for nations, pushing Great Britain down from fifth to sixth. Top-ranked nation France, followed by Belgium, Spain and Colombia remain ahead of Italy overall. Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) remains in the lead of the individual World Ranking.
The 2016 UCI WorldTour has now completed 23,006.5 kilometres
Il Lombardia Saturday October 1st
1. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy) 2. Dani Moreno (Spain) 3. Thibaut Pinot (France)
First held in 1904, Il Lombardia is the last race on the UCI WorldTour calendar and the last of cycling’s five Classic Monuments of the season. It is usually around 240-260 kilometres long.
Held in northern Italy in the region of Lombardy, and organised by RCS Sport, its nickname is Classica delle Foglie Morte - the Race of the Falling Leaves.
Fausto Coppi holds the record for victories (five) followed by Alfredo Binda (four).
Considered a climber’s classic, this year’s edition of Il Lombardia contains 4,400 metres of vertical climbing, including two unprecedented climbs for the race, Sant’Antonio Abbandonato, followed by the ascent of Miragolo San Salvatore. These precede a tough, hilly, finish in Bergamo.
Vasil Kiryienka (35) of Belarus, rides with Team Sky. He turned pro in 2007 with the Tinkoff Credit Systems squad. A gifted time triallist and all-rounder, Kiryienka is the current UCI World Time Trial Champion as well as a winner of stages in the Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España and Vuelta al País Vasco.
Major results and wins
Stage races:
2015: Giro d’Italia, one stage 2013: Vuelta a España, one stage 2011: Giro d’Italia, one stage / Vuelta al País Vasco, one stage 2008: Giro d’Italia, one stage 2007: Vuelta a Burgos, one stage
One-day races:
2015: World Time Trial Championships, gold / National Time Trial Championships 2012: World Time Trial Championships, bronze 2006: National Time Trial Championships 2005: National Time Trial Championships 2002: National Time Trial Championships
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