French professional cyclist Paul Magnier has won the 29th edition of the Cyclassics in Hamburg. The 22-year-old triumphed in a thrilling sprint from a large group at the finish line in the city centre, following a race of just under 205 kilometres that started in the town of Buxtehude in Lower Saxony.
Magnier had won three stages at this year’s Giro d’Italia. He also benefited in the one-day race from the fact that top sprinters such as Jonathan Milan were not in contention in the final sprint. The Dutchman Mike Teunissen finished second, whilst the Australian Laurence Pithie came third. Henri Uhlig was the highest-placed German, finishing fifth.
Del Toro takes a minor tumble
Before the six-man breakaway group, led by German professionals Jonas Rutsch and Niklas Behrens, tackled the first of five ascents of the Waseberg – a 0.7-kilometre climb with an average gradient of 9.4 per cent – two professional cyclists were forced to withdraw following a crash. Among them was the Australian Michael Matthews, winner of four Tour de France stages.
This year’s third-placed rider, Isaac del Toro from Mexico, also took a brief tumble whilst accepting a feed bag, but was able to carry on quickly. Just under 15 kilometres from the finish and the final ascent of the Waseberg, the breakaway group’s advance was halted.
Top stars not taking part
The big-name stars, such as the five-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar from Slovenia and the Dane Jonas Vingegaard, were not taking part. Florian Lipowitz from Germany, who had a crash during the Tour, did not take part either. The race is primarily geared towards sprinters.
At the start of the race, a minute’s silence was observed in memory of the talented cyclist Finlay Tarling, who had passed away a few days earlier. The Welshman had been struck by a vehicle not involved in the race during the Tour of Portugal.
70-year-old man dies in amateur race
According to the organisers, there had been no major accidents in previous amateur races. However, a 70-year-old man died after suffering a fainting spell, as the police confirmed in response to an enquiry from the German Press Agency. He was resuscitated on the track whilst the race was still underway and later died in hospital.
The cycling season is drawing to a close. On Wednesday, the next edition of the Tour of Germany gets underway in the south-west with a prologue. A few days later, the Vuelta a España, the last of cycling’s three major Grand Tours, will start in Monaco.
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