Gilbert retains Paris-Tours crown

Eurosport - Sun, 11 Oct 18:31:00 2009

Belgium's Philippe Gilbert kept compatriot Tom Boonen at bay to win the 230km Paris-Tours classic for the second successive year.

Silence Lotto's Philippe Gilbert crosses the finish line ahead of Quick Step's Tom Boonen to win the Paris-Tours classic - 0

Winner of his first major one-day classic in the same race last season, Gilbert, 27, tucked into Boonen's slipstream when the Belgian champion attacked in the L'Epan climb, seven kilometres from the finish.

They were followed by Slovenia's Borut Bozic.

The three raced together until the final stretch when Gilbert broke away 300 metres from the line to fend off Boonen's challenge. Bozic settled for third place.

"When Boonen attacked, I replied immediately. Then it was up to the stronger guy. I'm not afraid of anybody in a man-to-man sprint," Gilbert said.

The win capped a great week for Gilbert as he also won the Coppa Sabatini on Thursday. The wins went some way towards healing his wounded pride after his sixth-place finish at the World Championships in Mendrisio, Switzerland.

"I was very disappointed about this sixth place at the Worlds and this is a fine revenge. I also have big ambitions for the remaining races of the season like the Tour of Piedmont or the Tour of Lombardy," Gilbert added.

Boonen also wanted to prove a point as his season has been overshadowed by the out-of-competition dope test he failed for cocaine in April.

"When Philippe surged, I was late to react then I found myself stuck behind Bozic and that was it," Boonen said.

The road season ends next weekend with the Tour of Lombardy.

Reuters

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  1. Gilbert really took a big step forward this year (even­ though it didn't show in his wins this season).­ From now on, he can win every one-day race there is. I­ espect him to take a serious shot at Milan-Sanremo in­ 2010. And Phil might beat Cunego on saterday,­ considdering his recent shape.

    From Bram, on Wed 14 Oct 3:49PM

  2. Thank God it wasn't another yawn-fest bunch sprint­ win for Columbia HTC........

    From pedro118118, on Mon 12 Oct 10:23AM

  3. Fantastic ride by Gilbert. Didn't panic in the­ sprint, even though there were two other good sprinters­ in the break. Boonen backed the wrong horse in the­ finale and Gilbert had 3 bike lengths in the blink of­ an eye. Impressive stuff. Don't really see him as­ a favourite for Lombardy though - that race is almost­ tailor made for Cunego.

    From pedro118118, on Mon 12 Oct 10:07AM

  4. At least Boonen knows why he hashed that sprint up and­ I give him props for being honest about it. Gilbert is­ awesome to watch. I hope he takes a major classic soon,­ maybe Lombardy over the Little Prince. That would be­ sweeeeeet. Paris Tours is a quality win but Gilbert­ needs a bigger win on his Palmares so he can get the­ love he deserves from the public outside of Belgium.

    From notbefore7, on Sun 11 Oct 9:22PM
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