Adam Blythe wins the Circuit Franco-Belge
British cyclist Adam Blythe has won the four-stage Circuit Franco-Belge on Sunday after winning two of the four bunch sprints with the help of his team, Omega Pharma-Lotto. He first won stage one of the
event, but Team Liquigas nearly took the jersey from him in stage and nearly took the event home from there. The Briton came back to win stage three and his team rallied around him in stage four to make sure he didn’t lose the jersey again.
"It was a very difficult day for me," said Blythe. "My teammates told me at the beginning of the race that they would do everything in their power to keep the leader's jersey. When I punctured, I panicked
a bit but through the work of my team-mate Olivier Kaisen I was back in the peloton. This victory is the most beautiful victory of my career.”
The race kicked off on Thursday with the 187.3km stage one, characterized by a series of early attacks for the first third of the race. Marco Marcato, of Vacansoleil, was responsible for most of the attacks,
and ultimately succeeded at the 59km mark, leading a five-man breakaway to a five minute lead over the peloton before the sprinters eventually reeled them in at 5km from the finish. Marcato finished the race in the climber’s jersey.
Blythe, of Omega Pharma-Lotto, won the first stage at the head of a bunch sprint and raced the second stage on his 21st birthday. Team Liquigas took an impressive 1-2-3 victory in stage two.
The Italian team took four of the top five spots in a five-man group two seconds ahead of the peloton. The 189.3km stage was won by Jacopo Guarnieri, who also took the leader’s jersey from Blythe. Blythe finished in 29th, as part of the 95-rider
group two seconds behind the top-five.
"I owe my victory to the fantastic work of the team,” said Guarnieri to Sporza after the second stage. “This is my first win in Belgium, the cycling country par excellence. My dream is one day to compete
for a win in the in the Flemish races."
In the 158km stage three, Blythe sprinted to the finish ahead of Wouter Weylandt, gaining eight seconds on Guarnieri. Weylandt, for Quick Step, went on to win the fourth stage while Sep Vanmarcke and Jakob
Fuglsang gained time and pushed Guarnieri off the podium. Vanmarcke and Fuglsang finished in second and third overall, respectively, though Guarnieri’s Team Liquigas won the team classification.
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