Clasica San Sebastian - Tony Gallopin disappointed after finishing second again
Jul 30 2017 01:59 am CET
SUBSCRIBE TO RSS FEEDSTony Gallopin of Lotto-Soudal accepts his second place in the Clasica San Sebastian but was still disappointed after finishing as runner-up for the second year in a row.
Gallopin joined Mikel Landa of Team Sky in an attack on the last climb of the day. The two were then joined by another three riders.
At the finish, Sky rider Michal Kwiatkowski did what was expected from him to take the win ahead of Gallopin and defending champion Bauke Mollema of Trek-Segafredo.
"The team did an excellent job today," the Frenchman said. "Tiesj, Jelle and I were in a good position when we got at the foot of the last climb. My legs felt very good. When Landa attacked I followed. I know the climb and I knew the last three hundred metres would be less steep, so I joined his attack.
"Unfortunately Landa’s teammate Kwiatkowski was riding behind us, so he didn’t cooperate with Mollema and me. When Dumoulin closed the gap as well, I feared that he would cooperate with Mollema.
"After Kwiatkowski had come back in the descent, I focused on the sprint. I started the sprint early, maybe too early. But Kwiatkowski was the fastest, so I can accept it. Although it is disappointing to finish second in this race for the second year in a row.
"The team was very strong today. We had five riders at the front in the finale and the others had done their job beforehand, like Rémy Mertz who had pulled in the bunch. Lars Bak and Tosh Van der Sande made sure we could start the last climb in a good position. It’s very nice this way. My next race will be the BinckBank Tour. I feel strong after the Tour and hope to keep it this way for a while."
