:2015 Vattenfall Cyclassics

{{Infobox cycling race report

| name = 2015 Vattenfall Cyclassics

| series = 2015 UCI World Tour

| race_no = 23

| season_no = 28{{cite web |url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/uci-confirm-worldtour-calendar-2015 |title=UCI confirm WorldTour Calendar 2015 |access-date=4 January 2015 |work=Cycling News}}{{cite web|last1=Wynn|first1=Nigel|title=UCI WorldTour calendar 2015|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/uci-worldtour-calendar-2015-139813|website=cyclingweekly.co.uk|access-date=27 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219010335/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/uci-worldtour-calendar-2015-139813|archive-date=19 February 2015}}

| image = Cyclassics 2015 Großer Burstah 2.jpg

| image_caption = The peloton during the race

| date = 23 August 2015

| stages = 1

| distance = 221.3

| unit = km

| time = 4h 57' 05"

| speed = 44.7

| first = André Greipel

| first_team = {{UCI team code|LTS|2015}}

| first_nat = GER

| first_color =

| second = Alexander Kristoff

| second_team = {{UCI team code|KAT|2015}}

| second_nat = NOR

| third = Giacomo Nizzolo

| third_team = {{UCI team code|TFR|2015}}

| third_nat = ITA

| previous = 2014

| next = 2016
(EuroEyes Cyclassics)

}}

The 2015 Vattenfall Cyclassics was a one-day classic cycling race that took place in Northern Germany on 23 August. It was the 20th edition of the Vattenfall Cyclassics one-day cycling race, and was the twenty-third race of the 2015 UCI World Tour. The race started in Kiel and ended in Hamburg. The course was mainly flat; the race generally suits sprinters, such as the defending champion, Alexander Kristoff ({{UCI team code|KAT|2015}}).

Despite several attacks in the late part of the race, the outcome was decided in a sprint finish. Pre-race favourite Marcel Kittel ({{UCI team code|GIA|2015}}) was dropped on the final climb, while Mark Cavendish ({{UCI team code|EQS|2015}}) was caught up in a crash with {{convert|3|km|0}} remaining. Kristoff started the sprint, but André Greipel ({{UCI team code|LTS|2015}}) was able to follow him and come past to take his first victory in a one-day World Tour race. With Kristoff finishing second, third place was taken by Giacomo Nizzolo ({{UCI team code|TFR|2015}}).

Route and background

The Vattenfall Cyclassics was the only UCI World Tour race held in Germany during the 2015 season. To celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the race, the organizers picked a new route, starting on board of the ferry MS Stena Scandinavica in the harbour of Kiel,{{cite web|title=Kittel, Greipel, Martin: Staraufgebot bei den Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://velomotion.de/2015/08/kittel-greipel-martin-staraufgebot-bei-den-vattenfall-cyclassics/|website=velomotion.de|access-date=11 September 2015|language=German|date=17 August 2015}} and heading in a southwesterly direction towards Hamburg.{{cite web|last1=O'Shea|first1=Sadhbh|title=Cavendish, Kittel and Greipel match-up in German WorldTour race|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/vattenfall-cyclassics-2015/preview/|website=cyclingnews.com|access-date=11 September 2015|date=22 August 2015}} The overall distance was shortened from {{convert|247.2|km|1}} in the previous year to {{convert|221.3|km|1}}.{{cite web|last1=Axelgaard|first1=Emil|title=Vattenfall Cyclassics preview|url=http://www.cyclingquotes.com/news/2015_vattenfall_cyclassics_preview/|website=cyclingquotes.com|access-date=12 September 2015|date=23 August 2015}}{{refn|group=N|Please note that the source from cyclingquotes.com wrongly names Cologne as the starting point of the race.}} The final kilometers inside the city remained the same, with the finish line on Mönckebergstrasse. The course was largely flat, thereby suiting sprinters. However, the {{convert|0.7|km|1}} Waseberg with a gradient of up to 15% was to be climbed three times. The first ascent of the Waseberg came with {{convert|68.9|km|1}} left to ride, the second and third at {{convert|28.3|km|1}} and {{convert|15.5|km|1}} respectively. Race director Roland Hofer said of the course: "Although the race profile may appear more suitable for the sprinters, it can ultimately be won by all types of great rider, and it’s exactly this kind of race that’s needed for a well-balanced WorldTour."{{cite web|title=Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://www.uci.ch/road/news/article/vattenfall-cyclassics-168500/|publisher=UCI|access-date=11 September 2015|archive-url=https://archive.today/20150824195940/http://www.uci.ch/road/news/article/vattenfall-cyclassics-168500|archive-date=24 August 2015}}

The World Tour came to Germany in the midst of a "renaissance" in German cycling, with the latest successes rejuvenating the country's interest in the sport after a series of setbacks during the past, doping-stricken years. For the first time since 2008, German public broadcaster ARD decided to provide live footage of the race.{{cite web|last1=Leoni|first1=Achim|title=Kein Hauptsponsor mehr: Was wird aus den Cyclassics?|url=http://www.abendblatt.de/nachrichten/article205592341/Kein-Hauptsponsor-mehr-Was-wird-aus-den-Cyclassics.html|publisher=Hamburger Abendblatt|access-date=11 September 2015|language=German|date=22 August 2015}} The route from Kiel to Hamburg was also chosen to boost the two cities' joint bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.{{cite web|title=André Greipel, Marcel Kittel und Tony Martin: Deutsche Topstars starten in Hamburg|url=http://www.eurosport.de/radsport/eneco-tour/2015/andre-greipel-marcel-kittel-und-tony-martin-deutsche-topstars-starten-in-hamburg_sto4860101/story.shtml|publisher=Eurosport|access-date=11 September 2015|language=German|date=16 August 2015}} This was the last time the race ran under the name of Vattenfall Cyclassics, as Vattenfall announced that they would not extend their sponsorship. The energy provider had a significant role in the establishment of the race in 1996, under its earlier name HEW. The event was forced to search for a new sponsor to provide the estimated 800,000 Euro previously supplied by Vattenfall, about a third of the race's budget. From 2016 onward, the race was known as the EuroEyes Cyclassics in a two-year deal signed in July 2016.{{cite web|last1=Leoni|first1=Achim|title=Neuer Titelsponsor rettet Hamburger Cyclassics|url=http://www.abendblatt.de/hamburg/article207792223/Neuer-Titelsponsor-rettet-Hamburger-Cyclassics.html|publisher=Hamburger Abendblatt|access-date=26 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160826083538/http://www.abendblatt.de/hamburg/article207792223/Neuer-Titelsponsor-rettet-Hamburger-Cyclassics.html|archive-date=26 August 2016|language=German|date=6 July 2016}}

Teams

File:Cyclassics 2015 Großer Burstah 4.jpg (#1), André Greipel (#25), Tom Boonen (#52) and Giacomo Nizzolo (#125).]]

All 17 UCI WorldTeams are automatically entered and obliged to send a team to the race.{{cite web|url=http://www.uci.ch/mm/Document/News/Rulesandregulation/16/82/39/2-ROA-20150619-E_English.pdf |title=UCI Cycling Regulations: Part 2: Road Races page 110 article 2.15.127 |work=UCI |access-date=1 July 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150702030045/http://www.uci.ch/mm/Document/News/Rulesandregulation/16/82/39/2-ROA-20150619-E_English.pdf |archive-date=2 July 2015 }} Three UCI Professional Continental teams were also invited as wildcards.{{cite web|title=MTN-Qhubeka mit Wildcard zu den Hamburger Cyclassics|url=http://www.radsport-news.com/sport/sportnews_94799.htm|website=radsport-news.com|access-date=11 September 2015|language=German|date=4 August 2015}} All twenty teams entered eight riders each, meaning that 160 riders took to the course.{{cite web|title=Starterliste: 2015 / Profirennen (221,3 km)|url=http://cyclassics.r.mikatiming.de/2015/index.php?pid=startlist_list|publisher=Vattenfall Cyclassics|access-date=11 September 2015|language=German}}{{cite web|title=2015 » Vattenfall Cyclassics (1.UWT)|url=http://www.procyclingstats.com/race/Vattenfall_Cyclassics_2015-startlist|website=procyclingstats.com|access-date=11 September 2015}}

{{cyclingteamlist|title=UCI WorldTeams|year=2015|ALM|AST|BMC|OPQ|FDJ|IAM|LAM|LTB|MOV|OGE|GRS|GIA|KAT|BEL|SKY|TTS|TFR}}

{{cyclingteamlist|title=UCI Professional Continental teams|year=2015|BOH|CUL|MTN}}

Pre-race favourites

File:Peloton Vattenfall Cyclassics 2015 010.jpg, seen in the peloton during the race, was considered a favourite, but was later involved in a crash.]]

Given the nature of the course, a large number of sprint specialists came to the race, including local favourites Marcel Kittel ({{UCI team code|GIA|2015}}) and André Greipel ({{UCI team code|LTB|2015}}). Greipel came to the Cyclassics after having recently won a career-best four stages at the Tour de France, and another stage win at the Eneco Tour. Meanwhile, Kittel rode as captain for {{UCI team code|GIA|2015}}, while his teammate, 2013 winner John Degenkolb, went to compete in the Vuelta a España. Kittel had returned to competition after an illness just a week earlier at the Tour de Pologne, winning a stage. He would race with the support of his sprinter teammates Nikias Arndt and Ramon Sinkeldam.{{cite web|title=News shorts: Kittel returns to racing at Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/news-shorts-kittel-returns-to-racing-at-vattenfall-cyclassics/|website=cyclingnews.com|access-date=11 September 2015|date=22 August 2015}} Both Greipel and Kittel gave hope to the local fans for a German victory. Since the event was renamed from HEW Cyclassics into Vattenfall Cyclassics in 2006, Degenkolb had been the only German winner, in 2013. Coming into the race carrying his good form from the Tour de France, Greipel was seen as the more likely contender for race victory than Kittel. Gerald Ciolek ({{UCI team code|MTN|2015}}) and Rick Zabel ({{UCI team code|BMC|2015}}) were two more sprinters considered to have ambitions to win the race, while an attack by Tony Martin ({{UCI team code|OPQ|2015}}) was deemed "a distinct possibility". For Martin, it was the first race after he broke his collarbone while wearing the yellow jersey at the Tour de France.{{cite web|title=Martin and Cavendish lead Etixx-Quick Step at Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/martin-and-cavendish-lead-etixx-quick-step-at-vattenfall-cyclassics/|website=cyclingnews.com|access-date=11 September 2015|date=22 August 2015}}

The main non-German favourites for the win were the previous year's winner Alexander Kristoff, ({{UCI team code|KAT|2015}}) and Mark Cavendish ({{UCI team code|OPQ|2015}}). While Kristoff came from a "disappointing Tour de France", Cavendish could count on the support of teammates Mark Renshaw and Tom Boonen, who was preparing for the Road World Championships in late September.{{cite web|last1=Clarke|first1=Stuart|title=Etixx-Quick-Step send all-star team to Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/etixx-quick-step-send-all-star-team-to-vattenfall-cyclassics-187553|website=cyclingweekly.co.uk|access-date=11 September 2015|date=18 August 2015}} Arnaud Démare ({{UCI team code|FDJ|2015}}), who had won the race in 2012, was competing, as was 2011 winner Edvald Boasson Hagen ({{UCI team code|MTN|2015}}). Other riders in contention for the victory were Ben Swift, Elia Viviani (both {{UCI team code|SKY|2015}}), Michael Albasini ({{UCI team code|OGE|2015}}), Samuel Dumoulin ({{UCI team code|ALM|2015}}), Sacha Modolo ({{UCI team code|LAM|2015}}), Moreno Hofland ({{UCI team code|BEL|2015}}), and Giacomo Nizzolo ({{UCI team code|TFR|2015}}). {{UCI team code|TTS|2015}} aimed to defy the odds of a sprint finish, and named Matti Breschel as their captain.{{cite web|title=News shorts: Kristoff defends title and Breschel heads Tinkoff-Saxo in Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/news-shorts-kristoff-defends-title-and-breschel-heads-tinkoff-saxo-in-vattenfall-cyclassics/|website=cyclingnews.com|access-date=11 September 2015|date=22 August 2015}} Sam Bennett ({{UCI team code|BOH|2015}}) was named as a "very strong outsider".

Race report

File:Leading group 2015 Vattenfall Cyclassics.jpg

Shortly after the peloton left the ferry in Kiel's harbour, an early breakaway formed, including Jan Bárta ({{UCI team code|BOH|2015}}), Matteo Bono ({{UCI team code|LAM|2015}}), Alex Dowsett ({{UCI team code|MOV|2015}}), and Martin Mortensen ({{UCI team code|CUL|2015}}). The group was able to establish a lead of up to five minutes, while {{UCI team code|MTN|2015}} controlled the pace in the field for most of the day, before {{UCI team code|LTB|2015}} and {{UCI team code|OPQ|2015}} joined them at the front for their respective team captains. {{convert|60|km|1}} from the finish, the lead group had broken up, with only Bono and Mortensen left with a lead of less than one minute. With {{convert|43|km|1}} left to ride, the two were joined by former road race world champion Philippe Gilbert ({{UCI team code|BMC|2015}}), Manuele Boaro ({{UCI team code|TTS|2015}}), and Matthias Brändle ({{UCI team code|IAM|2015}}), now leading by about half a minute. 20 km from the finish, the peloton had caught the escape group, and a field of about 75 riders was set to ride for the race victory.{{cite news|last1=Westemayer|first1=Susan|title=Greipel wins bunch sprint in Hamburg|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/vattenfall-cyclassics-2015/results/|access-date=24 August 2015|work=Cyclingnews.com|date=23 August 2015}}

Another late attack came from Linus Gerdemann ({{UCI team code|CUL|2015}}) and Julian Alaphilippe ({{UCI team code|OPQ|2015}}), but they were unable to build a significant gap, and were reeled back in with {{convert|10|km|1}} to go. Meanwhile, favourite Marcel Kittel dropped out of the field at the last ascend of the Waseberg, ruling him out of contention. Mark Cavendish was involved in a crash with {{convert|3|km|1}} to go. While the sprint trains fought for the lead of the field, Cavendish touched wheels with another rider and was brought to the ground. He was able to continue and eventually finished 66th, but was unable to compete for the victory.{{cite web|title=Cavendish misses Vattenfall Cyclassics sprint after late crash|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/cavendish-misses-vattenfall-cyclassics-sprint-after-late-crash/|website=cyclingnews.com|access-date=11 September 2015|date=24 August 2015}} At the finish line, the victory was decided by a bunch sprint. Kristoff was the first to open the sprint, but Greipel was able to get around him to claim his first ever win in a one-day World Tour race.{{cite web|last1=Clarke|first1=Stuart|title=Cavendish felled in late crash as Greipel wins Vattenfall Cyclassics|url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/cavendish-felled-in-late-crash-as-greipel-wins-vattenfall-cyclassics-188188|website=cyclingweekly.co.uk|access-date=11 September 2015|date=24 August 2015}} Italian rider Giacomo Nizzolo claimed third for {{UCI team code|TFR|2015}}.{{cite web|title=Greipel gewinnt Vattenfall Cyclassics in Hamburg|url=http://www.abendblatt.de/sport/article205595435/Greipel-gewinnt-Vattenfall-Cyclassics-in-Hamburg.html|publisher=Hamburger Abendblatt|access-date=11 September 2015|language=German|date=23 August 2015}}

Results

File:Greipel Cyclassics.jpg (second from the right) in the peloton]]

{{cyclingresult|1|André Greipel|GER|{{UCI team code|LTB|2015}}|4hr 57' 05"}}

{{cyclingresult|2|Alexander Kristoff|NOR|{{UCI team code|KAT|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|3|Giacomo Nizzolo|ITA|{{UCI team code|TFR|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|4|Tom Boonen|BEL|{{UCI team code|EQS|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|5|Greg Van Avermaet|BEL|{{UCI team code|BMC|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|6|Arnaud Démare|FRA|{{UCI team code|FDJ|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|7|Matti Breschel|DEN|{{UCI team code|TTS|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|8|Ramon Sinkeldam|NED|{{UCI team code|GIA|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|9|Niccolo Bonifazio|ITA|{{UCI team code|LAM|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult|10|Rasmus Guldhammer|DEN|{{UCI team code|CUL|2015}}|+0"}}

{{cyclingresult end|source=[http://procyclingstats.com/race/Vattenfall_Cyclassics_2015 ProCyclingStats]}}

Footnotes

References

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20150909205921/http://www.vattenfall-cyclassics.de/index.php Official website]

Category:EuroEyes Cyclassics

Vattenfall Cyclassics