Maximilian Walscheid celebrated his first win of the season.
The professional cyclist from Heidelberg won the Grand Prix de Denain cobblestone race in a sprint ahead of the Belgian Dries De Bondt and the Frenchman Adrien Petit. One day after his second place at Nokere Koerse, the 28-year-old went into the race in north-east France as the top favourite. For Walscheid, it was his first success in the jersey of his new team Cofidis and his first victory since February 2020.
"I'm incredibly happy. We put in the best possible performance and I managed to finish," said Walscheid. The race over twelve cobblestone sectors was dominated for a long time by a five-man breakaway group around top star Primoz Roglic. "It was a difficult situation, I was a little worried that we wouldn't be able to catch the group," said Walscheid. A good two kilometres before the finish, however, the breakaway was caught and Walscheid was optimally placed in the sprint.
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