Van Poppel takes wild sprint win
Sunday 1 May 2016 17:39, UK
Danny van Poppel edged out a superb sprint victory after a photo finish to stage two at the Tour De Yorkshire.
Danny van Poppel edged out a superb sprint victory after a photo finish to stage two at the Tour De Yorkshire.
The Dutchman timed his run to perfection in Doncaster, squeezing down the left-hand side of the road to narrowly fend off race leader Dylan Groenewegen by the slenderest of margins.
His first victory in Team Sky colours also saw Van Poppel elevate himself up to second overall, six seconds back on compatriot Groenewegen (LottoNL-Jumbo) after a pair of chaotic sprints in the race's opening two days.
Team Sky were content to sit back for much of the event's 135.5km middle stage, before finally hitting the front as a group with 3.5km to go.
"The team did a great job, that's the first thing to say," said Van Poppel after the race. "We were really motivated. The last two kilometres it was raining and really hectic. The team did the best they could to really take care of me and then in the last few hundred metres Dylan came really close, but I just knew that I'd won. It was a hectic few minutes.
"I've had a knee injury and this is maybe my ninth or 10th race (this year). I really needed this victory. There have been some hard times but now I think I'm back! It's my first victory for Team Sky and it's really cool to ride for this team."
Gianni Moscon and Andy Fenn both finished inside the top 20 after strong work in the sprint, while Lars Petter Nordhaug and Nicolas Roche both sit at 16 seconds back heading into Sunday's deciding stage.
