It’s the sprinters’ time in Riom

June 11 ^th 2019 - 04:55

Following two demanding initial stages and on the eve of the individual time trial, GC contenders are unlikely to fight again. They’ll probably give way to the sprinters at the end of a 5000 meters long final straight line. One of them pulled out yesterday: Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis). Among the remaining fast men, Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain-Merida) finished in a worthy 23rd position in Craponne-sur-Arzon. Magnus Cort (Astana) also evidenced his good condition in the breakaway on stage 1 won by Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data) who may not be as fast as some but is a typical sprinter of the Dauphiné considering the racing conditions and his state of form just after his home race, the Tour of Norway. Three pure sprinters from three different generations are strong candidates for the stage win in Riom. The young one, Colombia’s Alvaro Hodeg, 22, doesn’t necessarily benefit from the train Deceuninck-Quick Step usually offer to their sprinters (and peloton speed regulator Tim Declercq abandoned yesterday). The old one, André Greipel, is eager to demonstrate that he can still win for his new French team Arkea-Samsic at the age of 36 ahead of the Tour de France. Ireland’s Sam Bennett, 28, has the best record this year with six victories under his belt, including two at Paris-Nice and one at the UAE Tour. He also has an excellent lead out man with Shane Archbold from New-Zealand.