Last year the joke was bitter. And when the photo finish attributed the Amstel Gold Race to Wout Van Aert At the expense of Tom Pidcock, the Ineos Grenadiers were quite disappointed. So this time Kwiatkowski remained cool, preferring to think he had lost, while a few meters away Cosnefroy celebrated with confidence.Like Alaphilippe at Liège in 2020, but without the shadow of a suspension.
«I learned from Pidcock that you always have to wait for the photo finish “—said the Pole—but I admit it was all very confusing. First disappointment, then joy. Especially after such a tough race.”
Return from Covid
Kwiatkowski is not just anyone who can be carried to a narrow finish. And if he won the world championship at a very young age by arriving alone, when he found himself in the 2017 Sanremo sprint with Alaphilippe and Sagan, he played it like a magician on the track and left them licking their wounds. Instead at the Amstel in 2015, wearing the rainbow jersey, he sprinted past Valverde and MatthewsBut this time the Pole admitted that he had really finished on the limit.
“The last fifteen meters,” he said, “were immensely difficult. I was confident I would win, but it was really tough.I had realized that cosnefroy He had worked hard. With Pidcock behind us, it wasn't up to me to set the pace. In any case, this victory is very gratifying. I had Covid, I had a high fever, people around me got sickIt's been a tough time. Being able to win this race that I love so much for the second time is fantastic for me and the team."
Looking closely at the team Ineos Grenadiers the moment is golden, after the calls from Martinez and Rodriguez from the Basque Country.
Kwiatkowski played his cards well, forcing Cosnefroy to shoot almost alone The public returns to the Amstel and the streets fill up with people Cosnefroy's belief that he had won lasted a long time. Then came the cold shower... Cosnefroy was smiling on the podium. Benoot came in third.
Kwiatkowski played his cards well, forcing Cosnefroy to shoot almost alone The public returns to the Amstel and the streets fill up with people Cosnefroy's belief that he had won lasted a long time. Then came the cold shower... Cosnefroy was smiling on the podium. Benoot came in third.
Vdp towards Roubaix
Who instead showed his flank to a condition that is not yet optimal and without much running in the legs, it was Mathieu Van der Poel, fresh winner of the Flanders and arrived fourth, 20 seconds behind the winner.
«In the end – commented the Dutchman, who by winning the Amstel introduced himself to the great cycling – I was where I was supposed to be in the final, but in a race like that you really have to be superEspecially when you're in the leading group and have to react to every unexpected event. And I wasn't great today. The Amstel has longer climbs than the Walls of Flanders. I was good, but not good enough».
Van der Poel will also be at the start of Paris-Roubaix next Sunday to try and add the Hell of the North to his list of victories for the first time.
Rastelli in the group of seven who started after about ten kilometers and in the lead for 20 walls Trentin was the best of the Italians, but far from the top. Here with Van der Poel.
Rastelli in the group of seven who started after about ten kilometers and in the lead for 20 walls Trentin was the best of the Italians, but far from the first
And what does Van Aert do?
"Another sad Sunday," wrote Wout van Aert on Instagram, forced to skip the Amstel Gold Race after the Tour of Flanders. And since the only thing anyone around here expects is a duel between him and Van der Poel, Roubaix has long seemed like the right opportunity. But perhaps it won't be..
«I read somewhere – explained Richard Plugge, coach of Jumbo Visma – that Wout's chances of participating are fifty-fifty, but you can't say that. We are examining how the situation develops further and based on that we will make a decision. I would prefer my riders to take another two, three or even five weeks off after Covid, so we can be on top of things later. It's still very difficult to estimate the impact of the disease. I myself had Covid two years ago and it bothered me a lot. So we really have to make sure that everything is in order at all levels. Even with the heart».
