Luca Paolini (Katusha) came fifth today in Milan-San Remo in horrible weather conditions after he tried to escape on the Poggio climb towards the end of the race.

After the race, he reflected on his performance with somewhat mixed emotions, "I think I did a good job today,” said the Het Nieuwsblad winner after the race. “I'm satisfied with my performance. I think I did a great job on the Poggio in order to close the gap in front and catch Chavanel and Stannard, but then in the last 2 km I paid for that effort. I'm a little disappointed because I always want to take the best possible result, but anyway I reached the finishing line together with great riders, in a group where theoretically two were faster than me. I did my best, so it's ok like this."