SAN REMO, Italy — Gerald Ciolek surprisingly won the Milan-San Remo classic on Sunday, sprinting to victory in a race which was heavily affected by bad weather conditions in Northern Italy.
Ciolek edged out favourite Peter Sagan, surging past the Slovakian in the final meters to win the 298-kilometre (185-mile) race in 5 hours, 37 minutes, 20 seconds.
Fabian Cancellara, who won the season’s opening single-day classic in 2008 and was runner-up in the past two editions, finished third.
The race had to be shortened by about 45 kilometres, cutting out the Turchino pass and the crucial Le Manie climb, because of heavy rain and snow along the route that forced several cyclists to withdraw from the race.
Team buses had to transport the riders from the 117K point, with the race restarting 130K from the finish.
“It’s unbelievable,” Ciolek said of MTN-Qhubeka’s first victory at a WorldTour level. “This is an unbelievable success for us and just an incredible day. We just came here as a wildcard and now we’re standing here with the trophy. This is great. I knew I had to follow all the best riders on the Poggio and it worked out perfectly.
“When I chose this team, people wondered why I would join a Pro Continental team, but it’s just been unbelievable. The coaching and staff on this team is so professional. I have never seen management care so much for the riders. I am happy to be on this team.”
Tom Boonen, 2011 winner Matthew Goss and Vincenzo Nibali were among the cyclists who abandoned the race, and there were even reports of tears in the peloton because of the extreme cold.
“I think my decision says enough,” a furious Boonen said just after quitting. “This is partly a precaution, but also a statement to the organization. They knew long enough that there was so much snow on the road. What happens now is the organization’s own fault. Have you ever wanted to bicycle through the snow? There are nicer things than this. I’m completely frozen.”
Matteo Montaguti, Diego Rosa, Filippo Fortin, Maxim Belkov, Lars Bak and Pablo Lastras were the early leaders, pulling away after 13K and building a lead of over 12 minutes.
As the race went on it was announced that the Turchino climb would be bypassed and the Manie swiftly followed.
The Manie, where 2009 winner Mark Cavendish was edged out last year, could have been crucial as it is traditionally where the contenders emerge and several of the sprinters are dropped.
The six leaders had an advantage of 7 minutes, 10 seconds over the peloton as it rolled into the neutralized area.
The race restarted two hours later with the news that Boonen was one of the cyclists to pull out during the break. Goss swiftly followed him, with the Australian in too much pain after an earlier crash.
Nibali, who finished third last year, and had an outside chance of adding to his victory in the Tirreno-Adriatico, retired from the race 38K from the finish.
The peloton began reeling in the escapees in earnest. Bak, Belkov and Rosa were the last to be caught, with 30K remaining.
World champion Philippe Gilbert attacked on the descent of the Cipressa but he was swiftly swallowed back up by the peloton.
Eduard Vorganov, Ian Stannard and Sylvain Chavanel were the next to break and they built up a gap of 27 seconds going onto the final, decisive Poggio climb.
Chavanel and Stannard pulled free but were caught halfway down the 6K descent into San Remo by Sagan, Cancellara, Ciolek and Paolini.
Sagan looked to have won but had started sprinting slightly too early, and a late surge allowed Ciolek to cross the line half a wheel in front for the biggest win of his career.
“Maybe today wasn’t my day,” Sagan said. “Races are won or lost, but you always have to try. It was the first classic of the season, the first goal. I came to compete and I take it as a good signal for the next races.
“It was a very strange race. Cold, snow, rain, then the transfer in the bus. Certainly Ciolek was a surprise, but San Remo is that kind of race. You think about the favourites and then an outsider wins. I expected something from Cancellara at the end, I thought I was the fastest but I underestimated the group. I did too long of a sprint and I paid the price. I’m disappointed but it’s all experience.”