Artem Schmidt (Netcompany Ineos) pulled off a fine heist at the Classique Dunkerque, launching a solo raid on the finishing circuit to upset the sprinters and win alone.
The 22-year-old US time trial champion took flight on the first passage of the uphill drag that led to the finish line, crossing it with a small advantage over the rest of the bunch.
By the time he’d returned, after a local loop of 13.7km, he was alone, having caught and dropped the final remaining breakaway rider and having put an enormous gap between himself and the peloton.
That gap reduced rapidly as Schmidt tied up and pedaled squares on that same uphill drag inside the final few hundred metres, but he’d done enough to spread his arms as he crossed the line.
The day’s breakaway went from the gun and comprised three riders: Van Rysel-Roubaix’s Leandre Huck plus the CIC Pro Cycling Academy duo of Axel Mariault and Jonas Walton. Their lead extended to six minutes in the early phases, but the likes of Cofidis and Lotto-Intermarché had things well under control and it fell steadily as the race went on.
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