14 juni 2012
- 17 juni 2012
Ster ZLM Toer
Koen took part in the
Ster ZLM Toer from June 14th to 17th. With sprinters such as Mark
Cavendish, Andre Greipel and Marcel Kittel lining up for four flat
stages, the race looks set to be decided mostly in mass sprints.
The stage in the Ardennes and in Limbourg should turn out to be the
most important for the general classification.
On Thursday June 14th the
Ster ZLM Tour kicked off with a 151 kilometre stage from Eindhoven
to Geleen. For Koen and his teammates the stage was perfect to set
up their star sprinter Marcel Kittel for the win. Kittel rounded
off the work of the team to perfection when he bested none other
than Australian Mark Renshaw and World Champion Manxman Mark
Cavendish in the streets of Geleen. Koen crossed the line in 59th
place.
Koen was one of the main
men in the sprint train that delivered Kittel to the line. "Sky
took the head of the peloton early, but they didn't have the
highest tempo, so we were able to organise ourselves early for the
sprint and I ended up riding at the front for a long time," Koen
said afterwards on the organiser's website. "It's great that we
have won, as this was our first test in preparation for the Tour de
France."
After the four breakaway
riders of the day were caught with three kilometres to go to the
end of the second stage in the Ster ZLM which started and finished
in Schimmert after a distance of 166.9 kilometes, the peloton set
itself up for a mass sprint. The stage ended in a mass sprint but
the peloton broke into pieces in the final kilometres due to a
crash. The crash happened just as the final breakaway rider was
caught. Koen was not able to work for Kittel as well as he would
have hoped as he had had a flat tyre with 15 kilometres to go and
getting back took a bit out of him. Luckily Koen was ahead of the
crash and was not affected by it. He was obstructed later by a
rider that fell. The sprint was taken by German Andre Greipel ahead
of Cavendish and Renshaw. Kittel came 6th. Koen crossed the line in
32nd place, 22 seconds down on Greipel. Due to Koen being hindered
by a crash in the final hundred metres, his recorded time was given
as the same as the first group at 6 seconds of Greipel.
Four riders went on the
attack early in the stage from Verviers (Belgium) to La Gileppe
(Belgium). After 120 of the 184 kilometres of the queen stage, the
leading four were joined by two RadioShack riders, Ben Hermans and
Jan Bakelants. After 136 kilometres and the fourth mountain sprint,
the group fell apart. Bakelants went with 25 kilometres to go. With
a little more than a kilometre to go he was caught by a much
depleted peloton. Spaniard Juan Antonio Flecha led out the sprint
for his teammate Mark Cavendish. Lars Boom was in Cavendish's wheel
and Koen followed Boom's wheel. Boom went on the inside in the
final corner while Flecha went around Flecha. Koen sprinted behind
Cavendish but was edged out by Flecha who closed the door on Koen
who couldn't get any further than fourth place, and thus missed out
on the bonification seconds. Boom won the stage ahead of the Sky
duo Cavendish and Flecha.
In the general
classification, Cavendish still leads. Boom is now second overall,
8 seconds down. Flecha is in 3rd with 14 seconds down while Koen is
now 18 seconds down on Cavendish.
Sunday's stage went from
Schijndel to Boxtel where the riders would go to Koen's town,
Liempde. A sprinter's stage. As Koen said in advance of the stage,
the Argos-Shimano team would work to set up Marcel Kittel for the
win. The four breakaway riders of the day were caught in time by
the work of Team Argos Shimano amongst others. In the final Koen
and his teammates delivered Marcel carefully to the finish in the
streets of Boxtel and Liempde. Kittel didn't let his teammates down
and won with a bike's length ahead of Mark Renshaw and Jurgen
Roelandts. Koen finished ahead in 23rd place. In the final general
classification, which was won by Mark Cavendish ahead of Lars Boom
and Jurgen Roelandts, Koen finished in an excellenet 7th
overall.
Photo: Koen on the
climb in the stage from Verviers to La Gileppe (with thanks to Cor
Vos)
