Results: 47th Tirreno – Adriatico – Stage 1

Australian Team Greenedge won the opening battle in the Italian classic stage race Tirreno – Adriatico ahead of Radioshack-Nissan, Garmin and Team Sky in 4th

Matt Goss Wears Leader’s Jersey After Stage 1

GreenEDGE earned its first European win in convincing fashion as it stormed to team time trial victory on the opening stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. Matt Goss led a blur of green and gold across the finish line in Donoratico to pull on the inaugural Magila Azzurra.

“Today was an absolute dream start,” said Goss. “It was an amazing team effort. We did everything right from start to finish. The team specifically prepared for this stage, and this definitely paid of today.”

GreenEDGE covered the 16.9 kilometer course in 18:41, 17 seconds faster than RadioShack-Nissan Trek and Garmin-Barracuda who were separated by fractions of a second in second and third. Sports Director Matt White, who had clearly outlined a stage win today as a goal for GreenEDGE, was elated with the team’s performance.

“It was obviously always going to be a big moment for us to take that first win in Europe, and this is an important race,” said White. “To beat the best teams in the world is a big feat. To win here is huge. It shows we have a well-rounded team.”

Stuart O’Grady led GreenEDGE down the start ramp in San Vincenzo. With several pre-race favourites out on the road or already across the line, the team knew they were on pace for the win. “The boys knew coming into the finish that we were way up high on Sky and Garmin,” noted White. “They knew they were riding a winning time, and they nailed it.” With a stage well-suited for the sprinters tomorrow, it was determined Goss could assume responsibility to get himself across the line ahead of the rest.

“I’m proud to be the first guy crossing the line for team,” added Goss. “It’s a great feeling to be back on the podium. It’s an especially huge honour to stand on the podium at Tirreno with the rest of the team.”

White believes the team’s performance in the last 24-hours shows the depth of the team and bodes well for all that is to come. “We were unlucky yesterday not to win with Simon [Gerrans] in Paris-Nice,” he said. “To nearly nail a win in the two biggest stage races of the spring in 24 hours is huge. This is a very proud moment.”

Team Sky, with World Champion Mark Cavendish could only manage 4th in the test against the watch. Photo: John Pierce/PhotoSport International UK USA Asia

Team Sky Reactions: “It was a good start. The guys had a good TTT and I think in my eyes they put in a really good ride today. We can be really happy with this result,” Sports Director Servais Knaven said after the stage. “The guys couldn’t have gone much faster. All the teams will probably have some things they can improve. Mathew Hayman was a bit sick the other day so he is not 100 per cent yet but everyone did a good job out there.”

“It was a tricky start with some roundabouts. There was a long straight, flat road up until kilometre eight but then it went uphill for three kilometres. It wasn’t steep but still not easy. It was a good start to the week. Fair play to GreenEDGE they did a brilliant performance today. That says something so congrats to them.”

Radioshack Nissan Trek meanwhile relied on the big engine of Fabian Cancellara as well as Daniele Bennati and Hayden Roulston to drive them along to second place on the stage, 17 seconds behind the Green and Gold of GreenEdge.

“Everyone went beyond our expectations,” said Swiss champion Fabian Cancellara. “No one knew we could do so well and that’s why we can be so proud of our performance today. That’s my personal opinion. It started with Giacomo. I didn’t know he’d be able to stay with us so long. Then Gregy Rast did longer pulls with us than is normal for his past TTT experience. Then Chris and Popo… just everyone. I did big pulls, which was expected, but maybe more than normal. That’s it – everyone did more than normal.”

“We didn’t do much specific training for this, we didn’t over emphasize it. It’s not that we weren’t professional about it; of course we were. But we didn’t put added stress on it. We were going for the win today, for sure,” Fabian concluded. A second place finish bodes well for the upcoming week of racing, putting several team riders in good starting positions ahead of other top contenders.

“We finished second behind a super-strong GreenEdge,” said team director Dirk Demol. “We have to be honest: over a 17km course they did 17-seconds faster than us. That is a really great ride. For us, I cannot see a place we could have gone faster. The team was going smooth. Perhaps we lost two riders a little bit early so we were down to six for the second half and that’s still a long way to go. It was a prestigious stage and we made the best of it. Maybe if we had come down earlier to practice more on the course, but really, 17 seconds is a lot so we have to be happy that only one other team beat us. It really was a good job by the team.”

“I think the team had a super ride,” said Kiwi Hayden Roulston. “For me personally it was my first time on the time trial bike and for the team it was the first time we rode hard together. I think we can all be proud. With just a few small changes we can improve quickly. It was a good first test for us. Everyone gave their best and when that happens, you can’t ask for more. Now the race begins.”

RESULT

1 GreenEdge Cycling Team  00:18:41
Matthew Goss GreenEdge Cycling Team

Stuart O’ Grady GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41
Sebastian Langeveld GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41
Jens Mouris GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41
Baden Cooke GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41
Tomas Vaitkus GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41
Svein Tuft GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41
Cameron Meyer GreenEdge Cycling Team 00:18:41

2 RadioShack – Nissan @ 17 seconds

Fabian Cancellara RadioShack – Nissan
Daniele Bennati RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
Tony Gallopin RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
Chris Horner RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
Gregory Rast RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
Giacomo Nizzolo RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
Yaroslav Popovych RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
Hayden Roulston RadioShack – Nissan @ same time

3 Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time

Tyler Farrar Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
David Millar Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
Ramunas Navardauskas Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
Robert Hunter Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
Alex Rasmussen Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
Andrew Talansky Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
Johan Vansummeren Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
Fabian Wegmann Team Garmin – Barracuda @ same time

4 Sky Procycling 00:23

Mark Cavendish
Edvald Boasson Hagen Sky Procycling @ same time
Bernhard Eisel Sky Procycling @ same time
Jeremy Hunt Sky Procycling @ same time
Mathew Hayman Sky Procycling @ same time
Thomas Löfkvist Sky Procycling @ same time
Ian Stannard Sky Procycling @ same time
Christopher Sutton Sky Procycling @ same time

5 Astana Pro Team 00:30

Roman Kreuziger
Fredrik Kessiakoff Astana Pro Team @ same time
Borut Bozic Astana Pro Team @ same time
Enrico Gasparotto Astana Pro Team @ same time
Maxim Iglinskiy Astana Pro Team @ same time
Dmitriy Muravyev Astana Pro Team @ same time
Simone Ponzi Astana Pro Team @ same time
Paolo Tiralongo Astana Pro Team @ same time

6 Team Saxo Bank 00:38

David Tanner
Rafal Majka Team Saxo Bank @ same time
Mads Christensen Team Saxo Bank @ same time
Manuele Boaro Team Saxo Bank @ same time
Nicki Sørensen Team Saxo Bank @ same time
Sergio Miguel Moreira Paulinho Team Saxo Bank @ same time
Bruno Manuel Silva Pires Team Saxo Bank @ same time
Matteo Tosatto Team Saxo Bank @ same time

7  Acqua & Sapone 00:39

Stefano Garzelli
Carlos Alberto Betancurt Gomez Acqua & Sapone @ same time
Massimo Codol Acqua & Sapone @ same time
Danilo Di Luca Acqua & Sapone @ same time
Francesco Ginanni Acqua & Sapone @ same time
Vladimir Miholjevic Acqua & Sapone @ same time
Danilo Napolitano Acqua & Sapone @ same time
Fabio Taborre Acqua & Sapone @ same time

8 Katusha Team 00:40

Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver
Oscar Gomez Freire Katusha Team @ same time
Pavel Brutt Katusha Team @ same time
Mikhail Ignatyev Katusha Team @ same time
Vladimir Gusev Katusha Team @ same time
Daniel Moreno Fernandéz Katusha Team @ same time
Joan Horrach Rippoll Katusha Team @ same time
Luca Paolini Katusha Team @ same time

9 Ag2R – La Mondiale 00:43

Rinaldo Nocentini
Manuel Belletti Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time
Steve Houanard Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time
Kristof Goddaert Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time
S̩bastien Hinault Ag2R РLa Mondiale @ same time
Christophe Riblon Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time
Lloyd Mondory Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time
Matteo Montaguti Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time

10 Lotto – Belisol Team 00:45

Andre Greipel
Jens Debusschere Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
Gert Dockx Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
Vicente Reynes Mimo Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
Jurgen Van De Walle Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
Marcel Sieberg Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
Jelle Vanendert Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
Frederik Willems Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time

11 Lampre – ISD 00:46

Michele Scarponi
Alessandro Petacchi Lampre – ISD @ same time
Davide Vigano Lampre – ISD @ same time
Danilo Hondo Lampre – ISD @ same time
Adriano Malori Lampre – ISD @ same time
Przemyslaw Niemiec Lampre – ISD @ same time
Alessandro Spezialetti Lampre – ISD @ same time
Simone Stortoni Lampre – ISD @ same time

12 Farnese Vini – Selle Italia 00:47

Filippo Pozzato
Oscar Gatto Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time
Francesco Failli Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time
Diego Caccia Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time
Luca Mazzanti Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time
Kevin Hulsmans Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time
Elia Favilli Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time
Luca Ascani Farnese Vini – Selle Italia @ same time

13 Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team 00:51

Johnny Hoogerland
Kenny Van Hummel Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time
Matteo Carrara Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time
Stijn Devolder Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time
Pim Ligthart Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time
Wout Poels Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time
Mirko Selvaggi Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time
Marco Marcato Vacansoleil – DCM Pro Cycling Team @ same time

14 Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time

Dario Cataldo
Gerald Ciolek Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
Bert Grabsch Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
J̩rome Pineau Omega Pharma РQuickstep @ same time
Gert Steegmans Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
Niki Terpstra Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
Serge Pauwels Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
Peter Velits Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time

15  Liquigas – Cannondale 00:55

Vincenzo Nibali
Peter Sagan Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
Valerio Agnoli Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
Federico Canuti Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
Maciej Bodnar Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
Mauro Da Dalto Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
Kristjan Koren Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
Daniel Oss Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time

16 Rabobank Cycling Team 00:57

Steven Kruijswijk
Lars Boom Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
Matti Breschel Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
Juan Manuel Garate Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
Paul Martens Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
Michael Matthews Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
Bram Tankink Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
Maarten Tjallingii Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time

17 BMC Racing Team 00:58

Cadel Evans
Philippe Gilbert BMC Racing Team @ same time
Alessandro Ballan BMC Racing Team @ same time
George Hincapie BMC Racing Team @ same time
Marco Pinotti BMC Racing Team @ same time
Manuel Quinziato BMC Racing Team @ same time
Michael Schar BMC Racing Team @ same time
Greg Van Avermaet BMC Racing Team @ same time

18 Colnago CSF Bardiani 01:09

Sacha Modolo
Domenico Pozzovivo Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time
Enrico Battaglin Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time
Stefano Pirazzi Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time
Angelo Pagani Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time
Marco Coledan Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time
Filippo Savini Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time
Gianluca Brambilla Colnago CSF Bardiani @ same time

19 Movistar Team 01:11

Giovanni Visconti
Pablo Lastras Garcia Movistar Team @ same time
Andrey Amador Bakkazakova Movistar Team @ same time
Rui Alberto Faria Da Costa Movistar Team @ same time
Jose Herrada Lopez Movistar Team @ same time
Benat Intxausti Movistar Team @ same time
Francisco José Ventoso Alberdi Movistar Team @ same time
Branislau Samoilau Movistar Team @ same time

20 Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat 01:18

Arnaud Gerard
Anthony Roux Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time
Thibaut Pinot Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time
Gabriel Rasch Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time
Dominique Rollin Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time
Benoit Vaugrenard Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time
Arthur Vichot Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time
William Bonnet Equipe Cycliste FDJ – BigMat @ same time

21 Euskaltel – Euskadi 01:25

Gorka Verdugo Marcotegui
Jon Izagirre Insausti Euskaltel – Euskadi @ same time
Mikel Landa Meana Euskaltel – Euskadi @ same time
Pablo Urtasun Perez Euskaltel – Euskadi @ same time
Egoi Martinez De Esteban Euskaltel – Euskadi @ same time
Ruben Perez Moreno Euskaltel – Euskadi @ same time
Juan Jos̩ Oroz Ugalde Euskaltel РEuskadi @ same time
Amets Txurruka Euskaltel – Euskadi @ same time

22  Colombia – Coldeportes 01:45

Fabio Andres Duarte Arevalo
John Darwin Atapuma Hurtado Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time
Robinson Eduardo Chalapud Gomez Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time
Johan Esteban Cháves Rubio Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time
Wilson Alexander Marentes Torres Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time
Jarlinson Pantano Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time
Luis Felipe Laverde Jimenez Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time
Victor Hugo Pena Colombia – Coldeportes @ same time