This Monday, the 78th edition of the Tour de Pologne (2.UWT, 9-15/8) started on the Castle Square in Lublin. Three riders started the 218 kilometer stage with an offensive mindset The trio had an advantage of almost 7 minutes on the hilly roads in the Lublin region. Their adventure lasted until the last hills in the final 35 kilometer were in sight. Many attacks involving Pieter Vanspeybrouck or Taco Van der Hoorn animated the final, but eventually the race ended in a bunch sprint on the uphill finish in Chelm. The peloton passed the finish line with 8 kilometer to go and at the end of this local lap, José Alvaro Hodeg tried to win the stage with a late attack. But, German rider Phil Bauhaus pipped him on the line. The Eritrean rider Biniam Girmay Hailu made a nice debut with Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux by finishing 8th.
I’m happy to start this Tour of Poland with good results. Pieter and Taco followed the attacks in the final race hour. Georg was attentive on the local lap, but the chaos and high speed made it impossible to attack. So the race finished with a sprint, in which Biniam, Quinten and Lorenzo finished in the front and there were no time gaps ahead of Georg. An 8th place is a nice debut for our young Biniam. In short, all riders did a good job. We’ll choose the same leaders tomorrow, although the final will be a little harder. They’ve shown today that they’re ready for this week.
