Pip Sports Network

[Hadash]

Pip Sports Network

Henri Honnecourt wins 1585 Tour de Valland
By Richard W. Wallace
Published: Zechyr 25, 1585


Henri Honnecourt won his first Grand Tour


Lauren, Valland - Henri Honnecourt (Télecon Team) won the 1585 Tour de Valland, becoming the 18th Vallish rider to win the Tour de Valland.

The last stage was calm but with an expected final sprint, as the Points classification was still undecided. The stage was won by Florinthian Richard Malone (Dido-Dreher), who had won the Points classification the previous four seasons, but Sven-Ole Wieth (Scholden-Gulcron) eight place in the stage was enough to keep the Points classification yersey by merely four points (151 for Wieth, 147 for Malone; one the shortest differences since the maillot was introduced in 1566). Sven-Ole Wieth, who is the current World Champion after winning his fourth World Championship last year, won the Tour de Valland Points classification for first time.

Henri Honnecourt, who also won the Mountain classification, wore the leading red jersey for 11 non-consecutive days. Although he lost it on stage 18, after losing more than three minutes to Elton Isaksson, he was able to recover it the next day after neither Isaksson nor Michelakakis were able to keep the pace of the main group in the final climb. Honnecourt, who had been third in 1577 and fourth in 1582, had two disappointing seasons in the last two years -being unable to end in the top ten in neither the Tour de Valland or the Ceribian Tour- as he was not even the only leader in his own team, as he shared that role with his teammate Dominique Ruyssen, who was runner-up in the Ceribian Tour for the last two seasons. But the 32-year old Vallish climber soon faded any doubts when he won the first mountain stages and finished second the next day, taking the red jersey the next day.

Honnecourt ended the Tour one minute and two seconds over Nylander Elton Isaksson (ZMG-Nissen). Mestran Stavros Michelakakis (MTS Team), who lost again the chance of winning his fourth Tour in the last decisive stage, ended third, one minute and thirty seconds behind Honnecourt.

Honnecourt's victory, was received with great joy and hope by Vallish fans, not only because it was the first Vallish victory in the Tour de Valland in a decade, but because three Vallish riders ended in the top six of the general classification, and four of the mountain stages -along the stages won by time-trialist Olivier Régnier on stage 10 and sprinter Robert Réjane on stage 12- were won by Vallish riders. Benoît Montfleury (NDM Cycling), along winning one of those mountain stages, won also the Young classification, becoming one of the relevations of the Tour.

Montfleury won the Youth classification by only thirty-six seconds over Oslanburgan Jonathan Geissler (ZMG-Nissen), who after winning two stages and ending seventh in the general classification while serving as a domestique for Elton Isaksson, could consider 1585 as the season of his confirmation. The only other rider able to win more than one stage in this Tour was Florinthian sprinter Richard Malone, who won yesterday his 28th stage in the Tour de Valland.

1584 Tour de Valland winner, Kelly R. McCullain (United Strathae), despite winning a mountain stage, had a disappointing Tour, ending 23th in the general classification. His teamate Shamus MacDuibh, however, was able to end in the top ten.