Gerald Ciolek – MTN Qhubeka

As traditions follow, cycling has in 2013 witnessed a number of surprise winners. Some of the most important stage races, and the biggest classics, were won by riders whom not even the bookmakers had considered.

The first surprise winner of the season was Germany's Gerald Ciolek, who secured Pro Continental team MTN Qhubeka their biggest victory ever, and possibly such an important one, that it will take them several years to get close to anything like it.

Milan-San Remo 2013

“The Spring classic” is the first monument of a new season, and with its 298km it is also the longest professional race. A quick glance at previous winners will tell you that the race can be won by some of the more durable sprinters. Erik Zabel won it four times in the years 1997-2001, then there has been a single win by Mario Cipollini, Alessandro Petacchi, Mark Cavendish and Matthew Goss. Tough specialists Oscar Freire, Filippo Pozzato, Fabian Cancellara and Simon Gerrans, have also triumphed recently.

The fact remains, that every single of the last fifteen editions of the race have been won by a rider, who had already enjoyed significant individual success in professional cycling.

It was therefore extremely surprising that Ciolek managed to secure the single most important victory of his career during this season’s Milan-San Remo. Especially considering that he was accompanied to the finish by a select group of elite riders. Lets face it, who wants to arrive to the finish line in the company of Sagan, Cancellara, Chavanel, Paulini, Phinney, and Stannard?

In 2004 Ciolek was hailed as the German prodigy when he beat German superstars Robert Förster and Erik Zabel, and at the same time ended a series of T-Mobile German Championships that had lasted for twelve years. He was eighteen-years-old at the time, and though it was ten years ago he is still a somewhat young rider in cycling.

Ciolek had not won anything worth considering since his 2009 win, during the Vuelta, and his career looked like it would never reach the potential of his early years. Nonetheless, at the Milan-San Remo, he performed the Italian job to perfection, and has since enjoyed lots of success with victories in the Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen, Tour of Austria, Tour of Britain, and in Bayern-Rundfahrt.

We will have to wait until next season to see if Ciolek’s win during the Milano SanRemo was a fluke, but it does seem that the win was the start of his career resurging.

“It’s unbelievable,” said Ciolek after crossing the Milan SanRemo finish line. “This is an unbelievable success for us and just an incredible day. We just came here as a wildcard and now we’re standing here with the trophy. This is great. I knew I had to follow all the best riders on the Poggio and it worked out perfectly.

“When I chose this team, people wondered why I would join a Pro Continental team but it’s just been unbelievable. The coaching and staff on this team is so professional. I have never seen management care so much for the riders. I am happy to be on this team."

Was Ciolek’s win the most surprising of 2013?

Hardly (hint: Horner).

But it was a deserved win in the company of some of cycling’s finest riders. It was also an extremely important win, which happened onboard one of the smallest Pro Continental teams in cycling.

Merry Christmas and happy New Year to Ciolek, MTN Qhubeka, and all the rest of you.

;-)