Team Giant-Shimano had hoped to earn a few national titles in yesterday's national road race championships and the team was particularly hopeful for the German and Dutch races. In the end, however, silver medals for John Degenkolb and Luka Mezgec were their best results. Below we give a round-up of their performances.

The Netherlands

Tom Veelers was the highest finisher at the Dutch National Road Race Championships today after a tough race around Ootmarsum. Team Giant-Shimano missed out on a podium after a lone-leader stayed ahead of the chasing bunch to take the champion’s jersey.

The team were well represented early in the day’s early move with Brian Bulgac and Tom Stamsnijder together with Development Team rider Lars van der Haar in the escape of 15.

This group was then joined by a chase group of 10 in the second half of the race which included newly crowned Dutch time trial champion Tom Dumoulin, as well as Ramon Sinkeldam. This move came about following a crash near the front of the bunch involving Roy Curvers, Koen De Kort and Daan Olivier from the team.

From here the front of the race split immediately and Bulgac, Sinkeldam and Dumoulin were left out front. The attacks kept coming and Dumoulin was riding strongly to help keep the group together for Sinkeldam but eventually Sebastian Langeveld (Garmin-Sharp) broke clear and managed to hold on to a lead of over 30 seconds all the way to the finish

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Behind him everything came back together with just two kilometres to race. De Kort tried to set up Tom Veelers for the sprint but it did not quite come together as hoped and Veelers ended up in fourth.

After the finish, Dumoulin said: “It was a pity that we did not make the podium today as we rode a good race but in the end Langeveld was too strong. I did not have the legs to go when he attacked and once he had a gap we couldn’t bring him back.”

Sinkeldam added: “Langeveld attacked at a good moment and you had to be feeling really strong to go when he did. I did not have the legs to follow at that point and after it we didn’t have the strength to bring him back.”

“I am really disappointed,” said De Kort after the race. “I felt really good but was involved in a crash the moment that Langeveld attacked so there was nothing I could do. There was a lot more possible for me today but it was not to be. Hopefully I can recover well now before the Tour starts next weekend.”

In the German championships, John Degenkolb sprinted to a silver medal but did not quite have the speed to come around Andre Greipel (Lotto Belisol) at the finish.

Teammate Marcel Kittel was suffering from slight cramps during the race and did not have the legs to follow. The team, including Simon Geschke, Johannes Fröhlinger and Nikias Arndt, along with Development Team riders Jan Brockhoff and Max Schachmann, worked well together to bring back a powerful breakaway during the race and then to help get Degenkolb into position for the finish, but he was denied by a faster Greipel on the line.

“The race actually went very well for us today apart from the bitter sweet result at the end,” Geschke said after the race. “We could execute the plan we had as a team perfectly, but unfortunately Marcel wasn’t there at the finish and then Greipel was too fast at the end. It was a fair sprint and there was not much we could do about that.”

Sweden

Development Team Giant-Shimano rider Fredrik Ludvigsson raced to fourth place at the Swedish Road Race in Kinnekulle today. Both Fredrik and his older brother Tobias Ludvigsson admitted they were not feeling 100% but they both raced a good race and in the end came up against a stronger rider on the day.

“Fredrik got away with two others and behind the peloton was looking towards Tobias to work,” said Team Giant-Shimano coach Aike Visbeek after the race. “Michael Olsson (Team Ringeriks – Kraft) was the strongest man on the day and he bridged up to these guys alone on the climb.

“Fredrik gave it a good fight and got away on his own towards the end but they eventually brought him back and Olsson won again.”

Tobias added: “It was difficult out there today. We tried to make it a real hard race from start to finish but I personally didn’t have the legs to be up there for the win. At least we tried and rode as a team.”

Belgium

Dries Devenyns today finished in the front peloton that sprinted out the Belgium road title today in Wielsbeke. After 250.2km of racing a peloton of 69 riders came in to the finish together to fight for the right to wear the national champion’s jersey for the next 12 months and Jens Debusschere (Lotto-Belisol) was the fastest to the line.

Devenyns said after the race: “It was a new and slightly weird experience for me today being the only rider from the team on the start line. In a sense the race was easy but it was also very hard at the same time!

“It was very fast all day and there was heavy rain early on which made things difficult on the course as it was flat with many corners. In the end the legs felt good but the big teams with a lot of riders controlled the race and it was hard to really make an impact.”

France

Warren Barguil sprinted to 12th in the bunch kick at the end of the French National Championships today. Earlier in the day Thomas Damuseau was part of the day’s breakaway which was 26 riders strong. The peloton never really let the break get much of an advantage and this caused the front group to split. Five riders moved clear but with 40km to go the gap was no more than 30 second, led by FDJ.fr.

Intent on bringing the race back for a bunch sprint, FDJ.fr brought front of the race back together and despite numerous attacks they succeeded in achieving their sprint. Arnaud Démare (FDJ.fr) proved fastest, while Barguil finished well to take 12th.

Slovenia

Luka Mezgec took Team Giant-Shimano’s second silver medal of the day as he finished second at the Slovenia National Championships. Mezgec found himself alone against two riders of the same team in the final and did his best to fend off the attacks but in the end he couldn’t keep his hold on the race and one rider got away before Mezgec won the sprint for second.

“The race was really hard today and even harder when you’re on your own,” said Mezgec after the championships. “There was initially a break of three ahead with 2’30″ before I attacked and went away with one other rider. We got across and then with four laps to go there was just two guys from Adria Mobil left with me so I was up against it. They attacked again and again and finally with three kilometres to go one guy stayed away. I managed to outsprint the other for second but it was a tough day in the saddle.”