THIS WEEK IN PRO CYCLING
Metlushenko sprints to win in Univest Criterium of Doylestown
Ukrainian Yuri Metlushenko (Amore e Vita-McDonalds) won his second North American sprint finish of 2008 on Sunday, pulling away from the field in the final 200 meters to take the Univest Criterium of Doylestown in Pennsylvania.
Jake Keough (Kelly Benefits Strategies-Medifast) took second with Yosvany Falcon (Toshiba-Santo) third, and Swede Frederik Ericcson (Cykelcity.se.-Klehr Harrison) claimed the overall omnium championship to provide a truly international finish to the 11th annual Univest Grand Prix.
“It was a fast, fast race,” Metlushenko said through an interpreter. “I thank Doylestown, I thank America, I thank God.”
The Amore e Vita-McDonalds team decided in a team meeting Sunday morning that it would chase any break and the strategy paid off, Metlushenko said.
That’s not to say there were no breaks in the 36-lap, 52.5 mile race. Time Pro Cycling and Team Tecos-Alderfer Auction kept the action hot and the pace fast throughout. However, none of the efforts succeeded and the field went into the final five laps together.
“It was a race that started out wide open,” said Keough. “You kept thinking things would break up but they never did. The course was so hard that all the strong riders were at the front. Anything that got away was dangerous.”
Ericsson, who finished second Saturday at the Univest Grand Prix, finished 12th in the criterium on Sunday. Saturday winner’s, Lucas Euser (Garmin-Chipotle) did not start on Sunday because his team was headed to the Tour of Missouri.
Ericsson, an amateur who works as a professional trainer in his home country, praised the race courses, organization and crowds.
“I didn’t expect this many spectators in the United States,” he said with a grin. “We’re thrilled, of course. The team has been riding great the whole season. We didn’t know how the jetlag would affect us, but we did all right.”
The sunny, breezy weather for the Univest Criterium of Doylestown was the diametric opposite of Saturday’s conditions. The Univest Grand Prix was ridden in the rain and wind as the remnants of Tropical Storm Hanna blew through eastern Pennsylvania, but the conditions made little difference to the racers.
“It was a fantastic, fantastic race,” said Johan Lindgren (Cykelcity.se.-Klehr Harrison), who won the Saab Lap Leader and Leidy’s Best Sprinter awards on Sunday.
