Quite a hectic sprint concluded the very first edition of the Classique Dunkerque this Tuesday. After safely controlling the race’s 193 kilometres, the peloton battled for victory in the streets of Lens. Paul Penhoët was unable to give it a go after being boxed in towards the final kilometre, but Matthew Walls managed to take ninth place on the line.
On the eve of the 4 Jours de Dunkerque, a brand-new event was on the riders’ menu this Tuesday as an “appetizer”. The Classique Dunkerque then featured 193 kilometres and a relatively flat profile, and only four riders decided to hit the front at the start. “On paper, it looked like a sprinters-kind of classic,” confirmed William Green. “On top of that, there wasn’t much wind today. We did have, however, a circuit finishing at thirty kilometres to go that was more difficult than it seemed.” The breakaway entered this circuit with a-minute gap over the peloton but couldn’t get over the final climb at the front. Everything came back together, although three men tried to take advantage of the last hill to launch other moves. “The pace was strong, but not strong enough to cause any selection, which suited us because our goal was really to have a sprint today,” added William. “Almost every major team had the same purpose, so there was a good chance it would come down to a sprint.”
“It isn’t a bad start”, William Green
A nearly complete peloton headed towards Lens, first going through a heavy downpour before reaching quite a technical final. Johan Jacobs, like other riders, experienced it the tough way as he crashed with about six kilometres to go. “The last ten kilometers were very physical, up and down, and with many corners,” William added. “So the plan was to stay close near the front of the peloton, but not on the front until the last three kilometres, where we knew it would be large roads. Clément and Cyril did some great work positioning at that point. It was perfect. Unfortunately, Paul was caught behind a crash a few moments earlier. He lost a lot of positions and spent a lot of energy to come back. He was up there in the final, but with just over a kilometre to go, he couldn’t follow Clément through a gap and that was it for him”.A messy sprint then took place in the streets of Lens, and Matthew Walls eventually sprinted for Groupama-FDJ, securing ninth place on the day. “We wanted to give him the opportunity to sprint anyway,” William explained. “We saw at the start of the season Down Under what he can do when given an opportunity. He’ll also have a few chances in the 4 Jours de Dunkerque starting tomorrow, and he needs to put the automatisms into practice. That’s what he did today. Top 10 isn’t a bad start for him in a very technical and dangerous final.” Pascal Ackermann took the victory, while a sprint is also expected tomorrow and the end of the first stage of the 4 Jours de Dunkerque.