In a race that’s always uncertain this was a vintage finish with attacks over the Poggio, moves on the descent and more attacks on the way into Sanremo. Even the sprint finish was uncertain after Fernando Gaviria crashed and Nacer Bouhanni’s chain jumped with 150m to go. It left the way open for Arnaud Démare to deliver his long sprint and the first French win in Sanremo since 1995.
They’ve changed the rules but can they change the ruler? Peter Sagan won the points competition by such a large margin last year that he’s an obvious pick to win again.
Here’s a look at the contenders and pretenders for the points competition and a wider look at the sprinters and their teams too.
After a busy weekend of racing here is the table of the men’s and women’s national road race champions for 2014.
John Degenkolb throws his bike to the line to beat Arnaud Démare. After 233km there was only half a wheel between the pair. This was the moment the race was won.
Last year I nominated a dozen riders to watch in 2012, from promising neo-pros to Chris Froome and Vincenzo Nibali. Having looked at the six big names, now it’s time to review how the neo-pros got on in 2013.
Boonen’s Arab spring
The Tour of Qatar finished yesterday with Tom Boonen taking his fourth overall win. As much as the race is about sprint finishes, Boonen looked far more complete and thanks to his team, always in the right place at the right time. It’s good for him but does this translate to results in the crucial spring classics? It depends how superstitious you are…