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Gesink Attacks and Wins Tour of California!
20 травня 2012
Rabobank rider Robert Gesink delivered a masterful performance on Saturday's queen stage of the 2012 Amgen Tour of California, seizing the race lead and locking up the overall title with a dazzling victory on the Stage 7 ascent to the summit of Mount Baldy.
Gesink, who spent the first half of the season recovering from a fractured femur he suffered in a winter training crash, proved that he’s back in top form with a stunning attack and win on the hardest climb of the weeklong state race.
Gesink’s win, on Stage 7 and in the overall, was the result of a terrific team effort by Rabobank. The tall Dutchman rode well in the Bakersfield time trial on Stage 5, finishing fourth on his Giant Trinity Advanced SL, 39 seconds behind TT winner Dave Zabriskie. For Saturday’s Stage 7, a short but grueling 126km ride from Ontario to the top of Mt. Baldy, the team focused on putting Gesink in position to make his move on the super-steep final 8 kilometers.
“The team was fantastic today,” Gesink said. “I did everything I could do finish off the nice work done by the guys.”
The 26-year-old Dutchman shed Zabriskie and the rest of the contenders on the steep ramps of Mount Baldy. He chased and caught leader John Darwin Atapuma and then outkicked the Colombian in the final meters to take the win on his Giant TCR Advanced SL.
The team controlled Sunday’s closing stage in Los Angeles, which took riders from Beverly Hills to downtown, and Gesink wrapped up one of the biggest wins of his career. In addition to Gesink's win, Rabobank's Wilco Kelderman won the Best Young Rider category and Australian Michael Matthews finished on the podium in Stage 4.
Gesink, who spent the first half of the season recovering from a fractured femur he suffered in a winter training crash, proved that he’s back in top form with a stunning attack and win on the hardest climb of the weeklong state race.
Gesink’s win, on Stage 7 and in the overall, was the result of a terrific team effort by Rabobank. The tall Dutchman rode well in the Bakersfield time trial on Stage 5, finishing fourth on his Giant Trinity Advanced SL, 39 seconds behind TT winner Dave Zabriskie. For Saturday’s Stage 7, a short but grueling 126km ride from Ontario to the top of Mt. Baldy, the team focused on putting Gesink in position to make his move on the super-steep final 8 kilometers.
“The team was fantastic today,” Gesink said. “I did everything I could do finish off the nice work done by the guys.”
The 26-year-old Dutchman shed Zabriskie and the rest of the contenders on the steep ramps of Mount Baldy. He chased and caught leader John Darwin Atapuma and then outkicked the Colombian in the final meters to take the win on his Giant TCR Advanced SL.
The team controlled Sunday’s closing stage in Los Angeles, which took riders from Beverly Hills to downtown, and Gesink wrapped up one of the biggest wins of his career. In addition to Gesink's win, Rabobank's Wilco Kelderman won the Best Young Rider category and Australian Michael Matthews finished on the podium in Stage 4.
