Argos Shimano's John Degenkolb has sprinted to a well-deserved victory today at the Vattenfall Cyclassics in Germany. .
Degenkolb was fastest to the line at the end of the 246km race in Germany, making that 19 wins now for the Team Argos-Shimano men’s team in 2013.
This is Degenkolb’s second win of the year, the first of which came at the Giro d’Italia, and today, like in Italy, he profited from strong team work in the run in to position his perfectly to finish off the job in the final few hundred metres.
The race saw four riders move clear early on before gradually being reeled back in, only for more attacks to go including a dangerous four man move which was only neutralised inside the final 10km.
The team were hampered by a crash involving Koen de Kort (NED) but held their nerve at the finish to drop Degenkolb off where he beat Andre Greipel (Lotto Belisol) to the line, raising his hands triumphantly.
“The team did a great job the whole day today,” said an ecstatic Degenkolb at the finish. “I felt really good during the race and had some good power left at the finish and the team believed in me today.
“On the run-in the team were great. We had to bring back a strong move and then they dropped me of perfectly for the sprint.
“It was a hectic one as it was quite narrow but that is the perfect sprint for me. If the sprint was after 180km I would be not have been able to win, but after such an exhausting long race I can do this.
“In the final metres I followed my instinct and went with 220m to go and it was just the right time for me to hold on and beat Greipel.
“This win is a big highlight for me, winning one of the biggest races in my own country means a lot to me.”