The Northern classics return on Sunday with the Dutch beer race: from Maastricht and Valkenburg, 254 km and 33 climbs. The king of Flanders great favorite: absent Van Aert, Pogacar and Alaphilippe. Appointment with the Roubaix Sunday, April 17, Easter
The great classics of the North are back, this time not in the usual order. The Tour of Flanders was always followed by Paris-Roubaix, but the Queen of the Classics with its 30 pavé sectors will wait for the gladiators on Sunday 17 April, Easter, to avoid coinciding with the first round of the French presidential elections. So Sunday 10 is the turn of the Amstel Gold Race, the Dutch classic in the hills of Limburg, on the border with Belgium. An electrocardiogram altimetry with 33 climbs: departure from Maastricht and arrival in Valkenburg after 254 kilometers, the start at 10.25. In 2021 success at Van Aert’s photo finish on Pidcock.
The riders will make three laps of a wide circuit that crosses Limburg. You will pass under the Valkenburg finish four times and then there will be a final loop of twenty kilometers with the climbs of Eyserbosweg, Keutenberg, Cauberg, Geulhemmer and Bemelerberg. In 2019 the Amstel was Mathieu van der Poel’s first major victory, who wore the national champion’s jersey: his comeback in the last two kilometers was fantastic. In 2020 the race jumped for Covid, then in 2021 the success of Van Aert.
The participants 25 teams and 173 runners at the start. Only one Italian team at the start: Bardiani-Csf Faizané, Bruno Reverberi’s Professional team. This time there will be neither Pogacar nor Van Aert, Alaphilippe and Roglic (the latter two engaged in the Tour of the Basque Country). In addition to the British Pidcock, Van der Poel’s most dangerous rivals will be the French Laporte and Madouas; the Slovenian Mohoric, winner of the Sanremo; Belgian Dylan Teuns, Swiss Marc Hirschi and Australian Michael Matthews, three times in the top five. The other Dutchman Tom Dumoulin is also to be followed. The Italians in the race are 17: eyes on Bagioli, Bettiol and Trentin. There are also Dancers, Aleotti, Baroncini, Leonardo Basso, Battistella, Boaro, Conti, Oldani, Battaglin, Fiorelli, Gabburo, Rastelli, Tonelli and Zana.
History The Amstel Gold Race was born in 1966 and on Sunday it celebrates the 56th edition: first winner the French Stablinski. Its sponsor is a famous beer, and in fact the iconic image of the race is the podium with the first three runners drinking with large mugs. For many years the name of the race had been changed to Amstel Gold Raas, by Jan Raas, the Dutch champion capable of winning it five times (from 1977 to 1980, and in 1982): none like him. In the roll of honor there are also Merckx (1973 and 1975), Hinault (1981), Museeuw (1994). Italy has conquered it seven times, the first with Stefano Zanini in 1996: previously only Moser (2nd in 1978), Fondriest (2nd in 1991), Biugno (2nd in 1993), Cenghialta had risen on the podium and Saligari (2nd and 3rd in 1994). Then the other successes: Michele Bartoli in 2002, Davide Rebellin in 2004 in the magic week in which Freccia Vallone and Liegi-Bastogne-Liegi also won, with Paolo Bettini third; Danilo Di Luca first in 2005, with Mirko Celestino third; Damiano Cunego in 2008. The last two Italian victories are by Enrico Gasparotto, in 2012 and 2016 (with Sonny Colbrelli third). Gasparotto dedicated the 2016 success to his teammate Antoine Demoitié, who died at Ghent-Wevelgem in an absurd situation: hit by a motorcyclist following the race after a fall.
April 9 – 4:57 pm
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