Orica-GreenEDGE were riding for Aidis Kruopis in the first stage of the Bayern Rundfahrt. Unfortunately, their train was held up behind a crash and so they came away from the stage empty-handed.

The ORICA-GreenEDGE sprint train was caught behind a crash inside the final three kilometres of the opening stage of Bayern Rundfahrt. Heinrich Haussler (IAM Cycling) won the mass sprint. Daryl Impey, winner of Bayern Rundfahrt stage two last year, was the first across the line for ORICA-GreenEDGE in 32nd place. Because the incident occurred within the final three kilometres, all involved were awarded bunch time.

“We had planned to help Aidis [Kruopis] in the sprint today,” said Assistant Sport Director Julian Dean. “The boys were all stuck behind the crash with two kilometres to go, and that was basically race done for them. No one went down, but they were all caught out by it.”

It was a long, rainy day in the saddle. A trio of riders moved clear of the bunch in the opening kilometres. Julian Kern (Ag2r La Mondiale), Dominic Weinstein (Rad-Net Rose) and Jan Niklas Droste (Heizomat) stretched out their advantage to four minutes as MTN Qhubeka and NetApp Endura set a steady tempo on the front of the bunch.

In the closing kilometres, a mix of teams combined forces to shut down the break and ensure a field sprint in Freilassing. Five kilometres from the finish, it was gruppo compatto. The Australian outfit was readying for the sprint when the crash derailed plans.

“It was a pretty miserable day,” said Dean. “It rained nearly the entire day. Despite the atrocious weather conditions today, the guys were in good spirits and happy to be back racing.”

“We have quite a mix of objectives here with Gerro [Simon Gerrans] and Impey getting ready for the Tour and Bewley returning from injury,” Dean added. “Christian is back from a long break, too. We’re trying to balance things out so that everyone can find their way back into competition in a way that supports their longer term goals.”