With the Cyclassics in Hamburg, another race on home soil was on the team’s program for this Sunday, standing at 204.7 kilometres long, with start and finish in the heart of the Hanseatic City of Hamburg. A flat and fast race with the Waseberg was the main topographical obstacle. The final 30km on the narrow streets of the Hamburg suburbs were characterised by a hectic race and a crash in the peloton, which made for additional chaos. After perfect work by Ide Schelling in an early breakaway and Patrick Konrad in the decisive group, Marco Haller punched through in the final sprint against W. Van Aert to ultimately take the win, a first for Marco in Hamburg, and also the very first win for BORA - hansgrohe at Cyclassics Hamburg.
Results
01. M. Haller 4:37:23
02. W. Van Aert +0:00
03. Q. Hermans +0:00
05. P. Konrad +0:04
From the Finish Line
“It’s basically a dream that came true for me! After Waseberg I told my team mate Patrick Konrad that we should just keep riding because even if we finish 4th and 5th it’s still better than making it to the line with the bunch. I had really good legs, Patrick did a great job on the final kilometer and so I was able to beat Wout in a long and hard sprint. “ Marco Haller
“Even though the other riders asked the boys what they were doing with their offensive way of racing, they were doing it just right. It was our plan to make the race as hard as we can and they executed that plan absolutely perfect. You also need riders who are ready to race like this. Look at Ide, you could really see that he likes that attacking style of riding. In the end Patrick and Marco worked together very well and did a great job taking home this win. Now it’s not true anymore that BORA - hansgrohe has never won this race.“ Rolf Aldag, Sports Director