Niki Terpstra Wins Eneco Tour

Last updated : 25 September 2016 By CNS Sport

Niki Terpstra of Etixx Quick Step has won the Eneco Tour after Rohan Dennis who led the race going into the final day crashed.

The final stage was from Bornem to Geraardsbergen in Belgium and included plenty of hills, seventeen to be precise and lots of cobbles and was a stage that Nacer Bouhanni, Marcel Kittel,  Janse van Rensburg and Martin Elmiger failed to start.

Eneco Tour

It took more than sixty kilometres for the break to form and in it was Tim Wellens, Roy Curvers, Carlos Verona, Van Goethem, Winner Anacona, Tleubayev, Sarreau, Lars Petter Nordhaug and Antonini who were 2.30 ahead.

Through the Great Market in Geraardsbergen for the first time and the lead was at 2.38 heading for the Muur of Geraardsbergen, a climb which is 1100m long and has gradients of 8.7%.

Nordhaug took the Primus Combativity Checkpoint and the twelve points but the gap was coming down and with 65kms left, it was down to less than a minute.

Ten kilometres later and the gap was down to 39 seconds as the rain started to come down with Wellens, Curvers, Anacona, Nordhaug and Verona now leading.

Tim Wellens of Lotto Soudal, who started the day 1.01 down on race leader Rohan Dennis, decided the time was right to go it alone and he went away with Ancona trying to chase him, leaving the rest to be caught by the peloton.

With 48kms left, Rohan Dennis was sent crashing after a touch of wheels, taking a couple of riders including Lars Boom with him, just after Peter Sagan had attacked and had to wait for a team car to get to him.

Wellens was caught and a new group including Edvald Boasson Hagen. Jasha Sütterlin, Bob Jungels, Lutsenko, Naesen, Niki Terpstra and Chris Juul-Jensen took over taking a 22 second lead over a group containing Andre Greipel, Degenkolb, Debusschere and Izaguirre and 37 back to the peloton with 31.5kms left.

Rohan Dennis was now 1.32 down on the front runners as Peter Sagan made his way into the chasing group.

Onto the Golden Kilometre and Terpstra took the first three points and the second and the third set of three points.

Terpstra, Boassan Hagen, Naesen and Sutterlin pushed on before Sutterlin was dropped with 6.7kms to go and a lead of 45 seconds after Dennis abandoned

Niki Terpstra was the virtual leader of the race and going under the flam rouge, Terpstra, Boasson-Hagen and Naesen had a lead of 45 seconds.

Into the town of Geraardsbergen and it was Terpstra who led it onto the cobbles. Boasson-Hagen of Dimension Data, went on the right and took the win in 4.33.36 with Terpstra second and Oliver Naesen third, followed by Dumoulin and Van Avermaet.

Peter Sagan's group came in 45 seconds down but it was Niki Terpstra who took the overall victory.