June 4/09 20:50 pm - UCI Nations Cup-Ville de Saguenay U23

Posted by Editoress on 06/4/09
 

Stage 1 report by Dominique Perras

Frenchman Loic Desriac won the hilly 137 kilometre first stage of the Coupe des Nations-Ville de Saguenay in Quebec.  After almost 120 kilometres spent in a breakaway, Desriac was the lone survivor and barely managed to hold on to his lead at the finish by only one second over the charging field. Thanks to time bonuses, he now holds a five second lead over Denmark's Ramus Guldhammer and another French rider, Johan Lebon.

The stage was characterized by a major breakaway that took off less than 10 kilometres into the stage. The group gained a maximum lead of two minutes, and included three Americans (Stetina, Keough and King), one Canadian (Joanisse), two riders each from Colombia and France, and one representative each from Russia, Germany, Slovenia, Serbia and Denmark.  Break member Rickey Jorgensen (Denmark) gained enough points to grab the KOM jersey at the end of the stage.

With 30 kilometres to go, Desriac attacked on a small uphill, and only Gabor Kasa of Serbia could hold on to his wheel. With 10 kilometres remaining, Desriac then dropped his companion without even attacking, while all of his previous break companions were reabsorbed by the field. Desriac then managed to hold on to his lead, although Guldhammer and Lebon nearly caught him on the line.

Tomorrow is a relatively flat 159 kilometre stage around Jonquière, Québec.

The UCI Nations Cup-Ville de Saguenay is the fifth of six races in the UCI Nations Cup for the world's best riders aged 19 to 22 years old. It is the only event of this series to be held outside Europe. The Nations Cup-Ville de Saguenay will be held over five stages from June 4th to 7th.