View image in fullscreen Mathieu van der Poel crosses the line ahead of Filippo Ganna and Tadej Pogacar. Photograph: Roberto Bettini/EPA Mathieu van der Poel outsprinted Filippo Ganna and Tadej Pogacar to win his second Milan-Sanremo Classic on Saturday, claiming the first Monument race of the season, while the European champion Lorena Wiebes won the first staging of a women’s event since 2005.
Dutchman Van der Poel, winner in 2023 , came out on top in a sprint finish after the leading trio were involved in a game of cat-and-mouse close to the line, with Ganna finishing second and Pogacar having to settle for third.
The race began in rainy conditions, but the sun greeted the riders once they reached the Ligurian coast, with an eight-man group out ahead after an early breakaway. Once the peleton upped the pace the leaders were reeled in at the bottom of the Cipressa climb, where Pogacar, aiming for his first Milan-Sanremo win, made his move with only Van der Poel and Ganna able to keep pace.
The Slovenian pushed again on the Poggio di San Remo, and while Van der Poel stuck to Pogacar’s wheel, Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) looked like he had run out of gas. Van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) bided his time before hitting the front in the home straight to win his seventh Monument race.
“I felt really good actually at the end, the beginning was horrible with the rain and the cold but when we came down to the coast I started to […]
Continue reading the original article at: www.theguardian.com