THIS WEEK IN PRO CYCLING
Boonen collects final stage, overall in Qatar
World champion Tom Boonen (Quick Step) won the Tour of Qatar on Friday after capturing the fifth and final stage, a 151km run between Al Thakira and Doha.
The Belgian rider, who also won the first three stages, sprinted to the final victory ahead of Germany's Erik Zabel (Milram), and Italy's Fabrizio Guidi (Phonak).
The 25-year-old Boonen was deprived of a clean sweep this week only after Austria's Bernhard Eisel (Française des Jeux) took Thursday's fourth stage.
Boonen credited the weather with an assist in what appeared to be an easy victory.
"Because of the wind, which made breakaways difficult, this Tour of Qatar wasn't very difficult to control. My teammates worked efficiently and all I had to do was finish the good work in the sprint," he said.
The final stage got off to a fast start — a 14-man break attacked 10km into the day’s racing, and a second group of 13 shot off 8km later; neither made any serious headway.
At 31km, Sven Krauss (Gerolsteiner) had a dig, taking with him Christophe Meschenmoser (Skil-Shimano) and Jukka Vastaranta (Rabobank), and the three built a lead of 1:20 in just 4km. As the leaders began the first of 10 laps on the finishing circuit, they had a margin of nearly five and a half minutes — and that was the beginning of the end as the chase began in earnest.
With the gap chopped down to a half-minute, Phonak riders took the front and moved closer to the leaders. Nicolas Crosbie (Agritubel) bridged to the break, Krauss dropped off, and then Unibet teammates Erwin Thijs and Geert Omloop made the jump to the front.
It was all for naught — at the 137km mark, the five leaders were caught, and the Milram team moved to the fore, bolstered by Phonak.
In the penultimate lap, the pack shattered into several groups. Among the leaders were all the holders of the leading jerseys and a majority of Quick Step riders. In the final sprint, abetted by a tail wind, Boonen got a great leadout and once more showed Zabel his heels, with Guidi crossing third.
The overall and points win went to Boonen, with Zabel second and Switzerland's Aurelien Clerc (Phonak) in third. Matti Breschel (CSC) took the prize for best young rider while Phonak won the team classification.
Despite the ease of his win, Boonen feels there is still better to come.
"This race was above all a good test for the team in relation to sprints. On a personal level it will have helped me to perfect my condition. I can tell you I'm still not at my best.
"At Milan-San Remo I'll be 10 percent stronger, and for the Tour of Flanders I'll have improved by 20 percent," he said with a smile.
Top 10 results
1. Tom Boonen (B), Quick Step), 151.5km in 3:36:48 (41.928 km/h)
2. Erik Zabel (G), Milram, s.t.
3. Fabrizio Guidi (I), Phonak, s.t.
4. Bernhard Eisel (A), Francaise des Jeux, s.t.
5. Robert Hunter (RSA), Phonak, s.t.
6. Matti Breschel (Den), CSC, s.t.
7. Gorik Gardeyn (B), Unibet, s.t.
8. Aurélien Clerc (Swi), Phonak, s.t.
9. Stuart O'Grady (Aus), CSC, s.t.
10. Peter Wrolich (A), Gerolsteiner, s.t.
Overall
1. Tom Boonen (B), Quick Step, 17:02:20
2. Erik Zabel (G), Milram, at 0:11
3. Aurélien Clerc (Swi), Phonak, at 0:30
4. Robert Hunter (RSA), Phonak, at 0:40
5. Fabrizio Guidi (I), Phonak, same time
6. Matti Breschel (Den), CSC, at 0:41
7. Steven de Jongh (Ned), Quick Step, s.t.
8. Nicolas Jalabert (F), Phonak, at 0:43
9. Nick Ingels (B), Davitamon-Lotto, at 0:44
10. Aart Vierhouten (Ned), Skil-Shimano, s.t.
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