Pierre Rolland put himself in the perfect position to take a surprise overall win in the Volta a Catalunya when he was part of the breakaway trio that distanced the race favourites by 2.40 in the opening stage.
"I had a great desire to do well," he wrote on Facebook after the stage. "In fact, I really had the heart to be at the front because the course lent itself to attacks as rainy weather was forecasted and as the finale was quite technical with a lot of turns.
"After 60km, I was part of a trio after 11 riders had been caught. 3 riders is not much but I had strong riders with me and the finale was to our advantage with the good lead that we had. I could not do anything against the CCC rider [Maciej Paterski] who was simply the fastest.
"I am now second on GC. I am well aware that it is very good, but I also know that the riders in this race are the best in the world. We'll have to take it step by step."
08.05: Navarra Women's Elite classic |
09.05: Circuit de Wallonie |
11.05: Tour du Finistère |
11.05: GP de la Ville d'Oran |
11.05: Silesian Classic |
11.05: Jelajah Cycling Series Surakarta |
08.05 - 12.05: Tour de Hongrie |
08.05 - 12.05: Flèche du Sud |
09.05 - 12.05: Vuelta a Catamarca Internacion... |
10.05 - 12.05: Tour de Kumano |
Jai HINDLEY 28 years | today |
Santiago Alejandro ESPINDOLA 30 years | today |
Eli HUSTED 22 years | today |
Diána SZUROMINÉ 41 years | today |
Amy CUNDY 28 years | today |
© CyclingQuotes.com