Team Sky's Ian Stannard has become the first ever English winner of the Omleep Het Nieuwsblad in Gent, Belgium.
The opening Spring Classic took place on a foggy, horrible day as the fiield left St Peters Square in a race of 198kms and a number of hills.
Cyril Lemoine (Cofidis), Frederik Veuchelen (Wanty), Stijn Steels (Topsport), Maciej Paterski (CCC), Christophe Laborie (Bretagne-Séché Environnement), Andreas Schillinger (Netapp), Aliaksandr Kuchynski (Katusha), and Ramon Sinkeldam (Giant Shimano), dominated the early break and were able to stay away for 150kms.
Sep Vanmarcke (Belkin), Matteo Trentin (Omega Pharma-Quick-Step) and Nikki Terpstra (Omega Pharma-Quick-Step) all tried to get away on the Taaienberg, Eikenberg and Wolvenberg climbs but were brought back.
Terpstra. Lars Boom. Edvald Boasson Hagen, Van Bilsen and Arnaud Démare attacked on the Paddestraat, with 30km to go to the finish before Boom and Vanmarcke tried to get away again.
With seventeen kilometres to go, around twenty riders had any hope of taking the victory. On the road to the finish line in Gent, ian Stannard of Team Sky and Greg Van Avermaet of BMC escaped.
There was to be no catching them and although there was a bit of cat and mouse, Ian Stannard timed his move to perfection to pass Van Avermaet and win in a time of 4.49.55.
Twenty four seconds later, Boasson-Hagen came home third, followed by Vanmarcke, Terpstra, Drucker, Phinney, Devenyns, Echeguibel, Demare and Britain's Luke Rowe of Team Sky in eleventh place.
“I knew the guys behind us had dropped off a bit so it was just about playing it right,” Stannard told Sporza. “I felt strong on the lead-in and I was confident for the sprint. I knew 300 metres [was a good distance]. I needed to wind it up a little bit and not have it be super fast.
“It worked out well. I knew I had to try and hit him as hard as I could and I was able to get a gap.”
Pictures - http://photos.grahamwatson.com/Other-1/Omloop-Het-Nieuwsblad/37363200_mDRwcq#!i=3100347253&k=5C5kTLc