Report-Results-Photos: Cancellera Makes it 3 in Roubaix

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It was Fabian Cancellera’s third win, his most satisfying he said after a battle royal in the finale to triumph in the Roubaix Velodrome

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2013_CancellerawinsRoubaixIt’s no easy feat to win Paris-Roubaix once, but ‘Spartacus’ likes a challenge and today (Sunday) he chalked up his third win in the Hell of the North but he was made to fight hard, real hard for it.

There was no riding away from his rivals like did int he E3 GP and Tour of Flanders and his previous win in Roubaix. Instead, he had to outsprint Blanco’s Sep Vanmarcke and skillfully, he forced his rival to the front and with lapped riders around them, Cancellera sprint past Vanmarcke to win his third cobblestone.

Crashing and collapsing to the ground after his huge effort, Cancellara, 32, took more than a moment to recover and savor his victory: “I was in another world of riding! I still don’t know how I did it” he explained. “I was dropped and pretty far back but then I started to move up.”

The TV pictures showed him going back to his team car and many thought it was over for him, surely he’d had enough. Bluffing said Scott Sunderland on Twitter and sure enough he was. “This is a race you can never give up on until the end” Fabian said. The Swiss rider had gone from the third group on the road to the leaders with only Quickstep’s Stybar able to go with him but a spectator soon saw to it that Stybar’s race was finished.

That left Cancellara and Vanmarcke to battle it out for the win. “I had to play with him in the end because I tried to go away but he followed so then I knew it was man against man” says Fabian. “I’m happy for the team and for me. Now I look forward to rest and a holiday. Mission accomplished,” said a satisfied Fabian Cancellara on TV.

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 Cancellara and Vanmarcke race through the crowds. PhotoSport International. uk usa asia.

The race (finale)
It was under clear skies that the 198 riders headed out on the 254km course for the 111th Paris-Roubaix and by the end, it was the second-fastest race in Roubaix history with a time of 5:56:13. Cancellara’s original move came with 50km to go when he upped the pace from a chase group and began the process of selection. An impressive Zdenek Stybar stayed with Cancellara as they chased down Vanmarcke and Stijn Vandenbergh but crashes took the Omega Pharma QuickStep teammates down (both seemed to be impeded by spectators), leaving the battle to be fought between Cancellara and Vanmarcke.

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PhotoSport International. uk usa asia.

With his Tour of Flanders win last week, Cancellara headed into the race as the clear favorite and in the position of having everyone ride against him. Cancellara: “It’s amazing having a third victory. When I see how in this race everyone was against our team, against me, I just had to do a selection.

The team came into a little bit of difficulty because we lost a few guys because of bad luck. But that’s Roubaix. It’s always nice to win alone but today there was pure fighting until the very end. I could not believe it when I crossed the finish line. My legs and my head wanted to bring me here.”

In the car for Fabian was 1988 Paris-Roubaix winner and team director Dirk Demol, encouraging Cancellara and reminding him he was the best: “I was nervous the whole day. We knew what we were facing. We knew we had the best rider and best team. But I told the guys this race wasn’t only for Fabian, it was for the whole team. We weren’t riding for second place, only the victory. I know Vanmarcke very well.

He’s from my neighborhood and I knew he would be a fighter. I told Fabian to ride to keep him working and not make any mistakes. He had to stay focused as we knew Vanmarcke could do a good sprint. It was too bad Stybar crashed. This was perfect for him. But this time others had the bad luck and we had the good. That’s the way it goes in Roubaix. Fabian feels this race. That really helps in a race. He’s good at that. Really good.”

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Cancellera was well looked after early on when there were some dangerous breaks up the road by his Radioshack Leopard trek team. PhotoSport International. uk usa asia.

ASO Race Report
They were all against him and still Fabian Cancellara managed to knock them out one by one to win Paris-Roubaix for the third time after a 254.5-kms demolition race in the dust on Sunday. The Swiss, already winner in 2006 and 2010, made it three in style, scattering the peloton in the Mons-en-Pevele sector before finding himself alone with Belgium’s Sep Vanmarcke in the finale.

On the famous velodrome, Spartacus was not to be tamed and he outsprinted his last rival standing to raise his arms again, one week after being crowned in the Tour of Flanders. Dutch champion Niki Terpstra took third place, 31 seconds behind.

13 in the lead
While several attempts took place from the start, the most serious initial break took place at km 17 in Noyon when 13 men broke clear in the wheel of Eloy Teruel (MOV). They were Gert Steegmans (OPQ), Bjorn Thurau (EUC), Bob Jungels (RLT), Gatis Smukulis (KAT), Jacob Rathe (GRS), Jens Debuschere (LTB), Frederik Veuchelen (VCD), Michael Morkov (TST), Evaldas Siskevicius (SOJ), Guillaume Boivin (CAN), Eloy Teruel (MOV), Clement Koretzky (BSE) and Benjamin Lemontagner (BSE).

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PhotoSport International. uk usa asia.

Their lead remained stable at around 35 seconds at kilometer 50, a mark the race reached after an hour. Led by teams Argos, Cofidis and Netapp, the peloton kept close and reined in 11 of the original escapees after 68 kilometers, leaving only Koretzky and Veuchelen in the front. The two were caught in turn after 73 kilometers when a third Bretagne-Seche rider, Benoit Jarrier, surged in turn.

Together on the cobbles
The peloton tackled the first cobbled sector (km 98.5) together and while Stijn Vandenbergh (OPQ), Marcel Sieberg (LTB) and Bert De Backer (VCD) tried to break in that first section, the bunch regrouped in sector #25 and #24. Team Sky’s Ian Stannard suffered a puncture at the worst possible time and was forced to chase behind the pack in the first four sectors.

The first serious casualty at kilometer 124 was Yoann Offredo, who rode into a median strip in the middle of the road and was forced out. Shortly before sector #23, Matthew Hayman (SKY), 2007 race winner Stuart O Grady (OGE) and and the unremittable Steegmans(OPQ) and Koretzky (BSE) – already part of the fist move -broke in turn.

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Forest of Arenberg. PhotoSport International. uk usa asia. 

Cancellara raises pace
Briefly chased by Andre Greipel (LTB), the four held a 1:20 lead over the peloton in the infamous Arenberg trench. In sector #16, Steegmans and Hayman parted company with Koertzky and O’Grady while Michael Schaer (BMC) tried to bridge the gap.

In sector #15 (km 178), a crash involved Geraint Thomas (SKY), Filippo Pozzato (LAM), Borut Bozic (AST) and Matthieu Ladagnous (FDJ). In sector #12 (km 190) Schaer caught Steegmans and Hayman while Damien Gaudin (EUC) broke with the peloton to try and catch the break.

He did so after 204 kms only to see the peloton back into the famous sector of Mons -en-Pevele (km 205). Fabian Cancellara chose the crucial sector to raise the tempo but the Swiss essentially dropped his own team-mates and found himself isolated with 11 other rivals, including three Omega Pharma Quick Step riders.

Belgian duo
The 12 were Zdenek Stybar (OPQ), Niki Terpstra (OPQ), Stijn Vandenbergh (OPQ), Damien Gaudin (EUC), Fabian Cancellara (RLT), Greg Van Avermaet (BMC), Bernhard Eisel (SKY), Lars Boom (BLA), Sep Vanmarcke (BLA), Juan Antonio Flecha (VCD), Luca Paolini (KAT) and Sebastian Langeveld (OGE).

The group split into three parts in sector #8 and Cancellara found himself in the third of those bunches until kilometer 226, when he made it back on the front on his own. At the same moment, Vandenbergh and Vanmarcke broke away. Cancellara was again forced to work to bridge the gap at the end of sector #6 when he moved behind the Belgian duo with Czech Stybar. The junction took place with 20 kms to go, leaving the Tour of Flanders winner against two Belgians and two Omega Pharma Quick Step riders.

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Final battle
In Le Carrefour de l’Arbre (sector #4), Vandenbergh saw his hopes ruined by a crash, leaving the way for the other three to battle it out for the podium places. His team-mate Stybar was also unfortunate as he nearly rode into a spectator and lost ground a mile later, leaving Cancellara and Vanmarcke to gear up for the final showdown. It was the usual cat and mouse game on the velodrome and the arch-favourite used his track stills better, staying in this rival’s wheel to surge on the line and collect his third cobble on the podium.

Reactions: Omega Pharma Quickstep – Stybar and co talk of their bad luck hitting spectators

Reactions: Strong showing from BMC finishes with 4th for Greg Van Avermaet 

RESULT
1 CANCELLARA Fabian RadioShack – Leopard 05:45:33
2 VANMARCKE Sep Blanco Pro Cycling Team ,,
3 TERPSTRA Niki Omega Pharma – Quick-Step 00:31
4 VAN AVERMAET Greg BMC Racing Team ,,
5 GAUDIN Damien Europcar ,,
6 STYBAR Zdenek Omega Pharma – Quick-Step 00:39
7 LANGEVELD Sebastian Orica GreenEDGE ,,
8 FLECHA Juan Antonio Vacansoleil – DCM ,,
9 KRISTOFF Alexander Katusha Team 00:50
10 TURGOT Sébastien Europcar ,,
11 HAUSSLER Heinrich IAM Cycling ,,
12 EISEL Bernhard Sky Procycling ,,
13 WYNANTS Maarten Blanco Pro Cycling Team ,,
14 BOOM Lars Blanco Pro Cycling Team ,,
15 BRESCHEL Matti Team Saxo-Tinkoff ,,
16 LEUKEMANS Bjorn Vacansoleil – DCM ,,
17 CHAINEL Steve AG2R La Mondiale ,,
18 TJALLINGII Maarten Blanco Pro Cycling Team ,,
19 CHAVANEL Sylvain Omega Pharma – Quick-Step ,,
20 VANDENBERGH Stijn Omega Pharma – Quick-Step ,,
35 HUSHOVD Thor BMC Racing Team @ 3.29
47 BOASSON HAGEN Edvald Sky Procycling
51 STANNARD Ian Sky Procycling
68 GREIPEL Andre Lotto Belisol Team @10.27
70 BAUER Jack Garmin – Sharp
79 THOMAS Geraint Sky Procycling @14.34
96 O’GRADY Stuart Orica GreenEDGE 20:37
108 DEMPSTER Zakkari Team NetApp – Endura 25.31
109 ROWE Luke Sky Procycling 26:16
115 DOWNING Russell Team NetApp – Endura ,,

 

 

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