Tony Martin won the final time trial of Volta ao Algarve by more than one minute while team mate Michal Kwiatkowski clocked the second best time. The two Omega Pharma-QuickStep riders also topped the final GC.
"I am really happy," Martin said after today’s 34.8 kilometer fight against the clock. "I was really looking to have a good day, and I had a good feeling immediately this morning during the reconnaissance. The parcour was really hard, with a lot of technical parts and little climbs where it was necessary to relaunch the action every time. Fortunately, it didn't rain during the TT. It rained a little bit before, but it stopped before so we had good conditions on the course during the TT. I really pushed a lot, and everything was perfect. There was a perfect approach to the race, and the result was because of all of these things."
"I also think I built my victory in the GC yesterday on the climb," Martin said about Alto do Malhao, the summit finish of Stage 3. "My condition is better than last year at this moment. I knew it was possible to not lose a lot of time from the best climbers, and my team and I made sure of it. Today I was really motivated to go for the GC. I already won this race in 2011. I won the TT and the GC. I have to say this kind of race, with an uphill finish, a TT, and sprint stages in the beginning is perfect for me. It's the kind of race I like and I am always looking for. I hope this victory helps me and the team continue to get good results during the season. I'd also like to thank my team and my teammates. They really protected me and Michal for the entire week. With the bad luck of Cav in the sprints, we really focused on the GC and the TT. Fortunately, we were successful. This is not just an individual victory, but a team victory."
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