Pip Sports Network

[Hadash]

Pip Sports Network

Eden Grace Weatherhead wins his 4th Tour de Valland
By Richard W. Wallace
Published: Zechyr 22, 1593


Eden Grace Weatherhead, after winning stage 9.


Lauren, Valland - Adwestene climber Eden Grace Weatherhead (Tyrus-Empire) won his fourth Tour de Valland, becoming the second rider to do so after late Jacques Gaudin who won in 1513, 1515, 1516 and 1520.

The 1593 Tour de Valland started with a 9.1 km individual time-trial, won by Keszarian Ferenc Racz (Anzcell Cycling). The time difference was big enough to allow the Keszarian time-trialist to wear the red jersey until stage 7 in his first Grand Tour.

The first week was dominated by teams such as NDM, Anzcell, Iskra Team, and Dido-GDC, who worked hard to avoid any breakaway in the next stages. On Stage 2, Frederik de Jong (Anzcell) defeated Florinthian Quentin Symonds (Dido-GDC) and Ceribian Sergo Gvarjaladze (Badgati) to win his first stage this Tour de Valland. The next stage, another Anzcell rider won in the final mass sprint, Nylander Michael Ahlgren who won his first Grand Tour individual stage after beating Oslanburgan Anders Mikkelsen (Luft Wurberg) in a close sprint. 23-year old Ceribian sprinter Sergo Gvarjaladze (Bagdati) won on stage 4, after surprisingly defeating Frederik de Jong and Quentin Symonds.

Frederik de Jong won his second individual stage this Tour de Valland on stage 5, defeating veteran Lomarren sprinter Francesco Gassendi (Yetech-Druzhberg) and Florinthian James McCabe (Dido-GDC). De Jong was close to win his third stage the next day, but he defeated in a close sprint by Oslanburgan Sven-Ole Wieth (Scholden-Gulcron).

On stage 7, a hilly stage which a complicated hill only 3 km before the finish, Adwestene Douglas Painswick (Tyrus-Empire) and Keszarian Ákos Körmöczy (Le Cycle Super) surprised the peloton with a strong attack. Körmöczy won the stage, becoming the new leader of the general classification. The peloton arrived 12 seconds later, Frederik de Jong coming third and further increasing his comfortable lead in the Points classification.

The first mountain stage arrived on stage 8. The young Videjszeme Jevgenijs Kalnins (Magram) proved to be the strongest rider in the breakaway in his first Grand Tour. Behind, the main group was reduced to nine riders, which included Eden Grace Weatherhead and Almas Cingur, the two main favourites to the final victory in Lauren. Nerysian Wulf Käufer (Luft Wurberg) surprised with an attack from 8 km to the finish. He would catch Kalnins to win the stage, his second individual stage in a Tour de Valland. He took the red jersey as well, with one minute and forty-nine second ahead of Kalnins. Jose Cardoso (MTS-Biassoni) was third at one minute and thirty seconds.

However, Käufer was not able to remain in the main group in the last climb the next day, and he lost the red jersey after losing more than four minutes. The next leader was Eden Grace Weatherhead (Tyrus-Empire), winning the stage after a last attack. Jose Cardoso climbed to the second place in the general classification, only twenty-two seconds behind the Adwestene champion. Goldecian Jack Marshall (Ogo Cycling) was third at fifty-seven seconds and leader of the Youth classification.

Stage 10, a long hilly stage, brought minor changes in the general classification, as several riders were surprised as the peloton broke away in the final 20 kms, with Cardoso and Marshall losing thirty seconds. The stage was decided in a mass sprint, Ander Vitecz (Yetech-Druzhberg) defeating Mordvanian Rein Warma (Iskra) in a close sprint. Stage 11 was calmer for the peloton, although it was surprised by an unexpectedly succesful breakaway. The stage was won by Adwestene Gerry Bowes-Heeley (Tyrus-Empire).

After the first ret day, either for bad luck or relaxation, stage 12 turned a complicated stage for Tyrus-Empire Team. Weatherhead was involved in a crash, and although he was not harmed, he was not able to connect with the main group, which was riding fast to stop the breakaway. His second group was virtually three minutes behind the peloton, although Tyrus-Empire worked hard to reduce the gap to a final one minute and one second. Jose Cardoso (MTS-Biassioni) took the red jersey by barely three seconds over Weatherhead. The stage was won by Francesco Gassendi (Yetech-Druzhberg) after defeating Mordvanian sprinter Miroslav Gradishar (Iskra Team) in a mass sprint. The next stage followed a similar script, with Nylander sprinter Chester Stenbeck gave the fifth stage win to Anzcell Team afte defeating Filip Nauer (Yetech-Druzhberg) and Kárdas Nyíregyházi (NDM) in a close sprint.

The high mountain returned on stage 14. A large breakway was formed, with important riders such as Amaury Servan (Nenergo), Soren Syndergaard (Luft Wurberg), Nylader Lars Brunewald (Magram), or Batavian Jaap Frisch (BataVelo), although all them far from the top 10 in the general classification. Behind, Almas Cingur (KyrzAir) and Ceribian Mukhran Chavchavadze (Magram) surprised with an attack shortly before the last climb. The stage was surprisingly won by 23-year old Roman Herzogenrath (Télecon Team). Weatherhead and Cardoso lost fifty secons to Chavchavadze and fourty seconds to Cingur, but remained in the two top positions in the general classification with the same time difference between them. Vallish Hippolyte La Chapelle (Vançotte) was third at forty one seconds and Herzogenrath climbed at the fourth place at forty-nine seconds -also leading the Youth classification. Chavchavadze was fifth now at one minute and fourteen seconds while Cingur was sixth at one minute and thirty seconds.

The peloton took a calmer attitude in the next day, as there was not much action until the first and only climb. Jevgenijs Kalnins and Oslanburgan Jonathan Geissler (ZMG-Nissen) were the first to attack. Soon Tuathal Seòras (United Strathae) followed. Meanwhile, the peloton, commanded by the Tyrus-Empire team, allowed them to march. After the first attacks, the leader Jose Cardoso dropped from the main group, now reduced to seven riders - Weatherhead, Almas Cingur, Soren Syndergaard, Mordvanians Rajko Kryzanek (Iskra) and Marcus Gucevicius (Vançotte), Lomarren Alessio Gagliardi (BataVelo), and Dyrheimer Roman Herzogenrath (Télecon Team). Jonathan Geissler attacked in the final 200 metres, defeating Seòras and Kalnins to win the stage. Eden Grace Weatherhead recovered the red jersey, now leading the general classification by thirty-seven seconds ahead of Roman Herzogenrath -one of the surprises of this Tour de Valland- and forty-five seconds ahead of Kalnins. Almas Cingur was now fourth at one minute and sixteen seconds.

On stage 16, succesfully controlled by Tyrus-Empire, the main group was soon reduced to nine riders. Eskkyan Amaury Servan (Nenergo) was the first to attack in the last climb. He could be able to catch the remaining riders from the breakaway until he reached his teammate Viktar Husevich, who worked for him in the final kilometres, with Servan patiently following his wheel until the last km, where Servan continued opposed to win the stage, and Husevich arriving fourteen seconds later. Behind, Weatherhead attacked and arrived forty seconds after Servan, and Kyrzbekistani Almas Cingur and Nylander Blaise Brunschvicq (ZMG-Nisse) arrived ten seconds later. As consequence. Weatherhead increased his lead to one minute and twenty-eight seconds to Almas Cingur, who now climbed to the second place in the general classification, while Hippolyte La Chapelle (Vançotte) was third at two minutes and fifty one seconds. Kalnins and Herzogenrath dropped to the fifth and eighth positions, respectively.

The last high mountain stage arrived on stage 17, in which Tyrus-Empire was not able to control the situation as the previous day. Nerysian Godomar Guur (MTS-Biassoni), seventh in the  general classification at four minutes and nine seconds in his first Grand Tour, attacked from a far, finding collaboration in Aivars Helmanis (Bagdati), Eskkyan Pierre Bonchamps (Le Cycle Super), or Max Pappenheim (Dido-GDC) in a large breakaway.

In the last climb, it was obvious that something was going wrong, as Weatherhead started to suffer at the back of the main group. Following the attakcs of Kalnins and Jonathan Geissler, Weatherhead dropped from the main group, and soon Cingur remained in the group who seemed to suffer as well. Only a few kilometres after, it was reported that Weatherhead was already losing a minute to the main group. Pierre Bonchamps (Le Cycle Super) would defeat Helmanis to win the stage, his sixth mountain stage in the Tour de Valland in his career. Godomar Guur arrived fourteen seconds later, climbing to the third position in the general classification. Weatherhead would surprisingly lose four minutes to Guur, only saving the first position for seven seconds over Cingur. Guur was close, with only the last ITT to come, at eleven seconds.

Stage 18 was expected to be a calm stage before the final individual time-trial, but MTS-Biassoni team was surprised when Guur lost contact with the group in the final kilometres as the peloton broke in two. The stage was decided in a mass sprint, in which Sven-Ole Wieth (Scholden-Gulcron) defeated Batavian Frederik de Jong (Anzcell Cycling) to win his 25th individual stage in the Tour de Valland in a close sprint. Godomar Guur lost thirty seconds, dropping from the podium to the fourth place, while the leader of the Youth classification, Jevgenijs Kalnins (Magram), was now third at thirty-seven seconds. As consequence, the final ITT was expected to be decisive and exciting, with four riders -none of them exactly a specialist against the clock- were fighting not only for the three places in the podium but to win the 1593 Tour de Valland.

Despite some tension in the early kilometres, Weatherhead consolidated his lead in the final ITT, improving Almas Cingur's time in twenty-four seconds - winning the 1593 Tour de Valland with a final lead of thirty-one seconds, barely three seconds more than the previous year. Nerysian Godomar Guur (MTS-Biassoni) improved Kalnins time in almost fifty seconds, therefore recovering the third position in the podium, the first for a Nerysian rider in more than twenty years.

Nentsian Viktar Husevich (Nenergo) did a great time-trial, only ending twenty seconds to the third place, ending at one minute and two seconds in the general classification. Jevgenijs Kalnins ended fifth at one minute and twenty-nine seconds, although he may find some comfort as he easily secured the Youth classification. The best Vallish rider was Hippolyte La Chapelle (Vançote), who ended at one minute and fifty-nine seconds in the general classification.

Weatherhead seemed more enraged than cheerful after finishing the stage, probably still realizing that he was closer than expected to lose everything in the final high mountain, despite he had written his name in the history of cycling, becoming the first rider to win four Tours de Valland in a row, and the second to win four Tours in seventy-eight years of history of the most important Grand Tour. He also won the Mountain classification for first time. Only a smile appeared on his lips when he congratulated to his teammate Gerry Bowes-Heeley, the winner of the stage.

Frederik de Jong (Anzcell Cycling) defeated Florinthian Quentin Symonds (Dido-GDC), Mordvanian Rein Warma (Iskra) and Kyrzbekistani sprinter Ilsat Alimur (KyrzAir) to win the final stage 20, his third stage this Tour de Valland. One year more, de Jong proved to the fastest sprinter in the peloton, although it is true that without the same authority than the previous seasons. Frederik de Jong also won the Points classification for fifth time, only one behind Richard Malone's record.