E3 Harelbeke
In the World Cup soccer, the half finals are always more exciting than the final game. Today, the same was true in cycling. The E3 Saxo Bank Classic (aka Harelbeke) provided lots of spectacle with many attacks and counter attacks.
Team Deceuninck-Quickstep masterfully controlled the race when they sent Danish champion Kasper Asgreen on the attack at the Boigneberg. Mathieu van der Poel (MVDP) was strong, but was quickly isolated. Wout Van Aert foolishly squandered his energy and had to let MVDP and others go. A flat before the Taaienberg didn’t help either. Zdenek Stybar was probably the strongest today. And the AG2R brothers, Naessens and Van Avermaet, contrary to popular commentary, played it smart at the end. Many believed that in the final 10km they should have countered an attack by Asgreen, when he went for a second time. I beg to differ: that would have served primarily MDVP. Let him or Langeveld solve it. It was also good to see US hopeful Quinn Simmons present again.
In the end, that second attack by Asgreen was the right one and ultimately a robot handed Kasper Asgreen the winner medal.
There was other cool new technology in this race: a new and safer type of pillar protection and shock absorbing sprint bumper.
Sunday: Gent-Wevelgem. No MVDP. Yes, Van Aert. But also Has Pedersen, Sam Bennett, Tim Merlier and many others.