Milan-Sanremo: Van Aert wins record edition

On Saturday, Van Aert won the sprint against last year's French winner Julian Alaphilippe in the 111th edition of the race, which was postponed from spring to mid-summer due to the corona pandemic.

The duo broke away on the climb to Poggio and after 305 kilometers - the longest distance in the history of Milan-Sanremo - saved a few seconds lead at the finish. “I'm super happy, that's unbelievable. Starting the second part of the season like this is crazy,” said van Aert, who secured Belgium’s first win since Andrei Tchmil in 1999.

Julian Alaphilippe narrowly missed victory. © APA/afp / MARCO BERTORELLO

The preliminary decision came on the last climb when Alaphilippe attacked and opened a hole. Only van Aert was able to follow, and together the duo rushed towards Via Roma, which was only sparsely filled due to the Corona restrictions. The first large chasing group couldn't quite get close. This left Australian Michael Matthews with only third place, with three-time world champion Peter Sagan following right behind. Changed route Everything was different this time at Milan-Sanremo. Temperatures of over 30 degrees made for a sweaty affair on the long journey, where the “Primavera”, i.e. the “journey into spring”, had sometimes become uncomfortable in previous years. The route also had to be changed significantly. The 130 kilometer long journey along the Ligurian coast alone had to be canceled because many places were blocked during the tourism season. This time we went more inland.

In addition, a diversion had to be installed at short notice. The violent storms in Alessandria in recent days made it impossible to drive through the town, which increased the distance from 299 to 305 kilometers. A record in the long history of the race. The last 40 kilometers of the route remained the same. And that's where things got serious on the Cipressa and Poggio climbs.

Another classic awaits next Saturday when the Tour of Lombardy takes place. Incidentally, a race that is normally run in autumn, but has now been brought forward in the completely revised racing calendar due to the corona pandemic.

Football

Italy

International leagues

International

Winter sports

Hockey

Tennis

Other sports

Motorsport

Cycling

Watersports

Events

Favorites

Milan-Sanremo: Van Aert wins record edition

Former cross world champion Wout van Aert is the man of the hour after the long Corona break in cycling. Just a week after his convincing victory in the Strade Bianche gravel race, the 25-year-old Belgian also celebrated his first major classic victory at Milan-Sanremo.

Suggestions

Comments (0)