Drama in Monument as Roglic wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège

In a drama filled finished, Primoz Roglic nicked the win from world champion Julian Alaphilippe who celebrated early and then was later relegated from second plac

Drama in Monument as Roglic wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège

The Slovenian Primoz Roglic from Team Jumbo-Visma has won his first monument after a memorable sprint. World Champion Julian Alaphilippe seemed to be heading for the victory, and put his hands in the air whilst Roglic’s throw of the bike took the victory from the World Champion. The new world champion was later relegated afterwards due to an irregular sprint.

It is the second victory in a monument for Team Jumbo-Visma this year. Wout van Aert triumphed in Milan-Sanremo at the beginning of August.

The breakaway of the day was controlled at the start of the race by, among others, Tom Leezer. The Dutchman rode his last race as a professional cyclist. Roglic was then constantly held in front by his teammates in the final. After some minor attacks on the Côte des Forges, the peloton fell apart on the decisive Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons. Tom Dumoulin kept the pace high, after which Alaphilippe attacked. Roglic, Marc Hirschi and Tadej Pogacar joined at the top. The four men stayed ahead and sprinted for the win. Roglic ultimately triumphed.

“This is unbelievable. It was so close”, Roglic said. “You should never stop believing and always keep going in the last centimetres. It’s a great feeling. I am very happy to be able to win again and I am very proud of the team. Tom was very strong on the final climb and the other riders also did a great job. It was the first time that I started here. It was on my wish list to win a monument and I succeeded.”

Other Reactions

Julian Alaphilippe: “I felt good today, wanted to do a nice race and had a very strong team around me, who did a great job, protecting me the entire day. Then I attacked on the steepest part of Roche-aux-Faucons, made a selection there and opened a gap together with the other guys. We worked well together, kept our advantage over the chasers and I felt confident going into the final kilometer”, Alaphilippe explained. “I started my sprint at 200 meters to go, but then I made that mistake, for which I take full responsibility. I am aware that my swerve caused a problem to the other riders and I apologise for that, but I want to underline that I didn’t do it on purpose. I accept the jury’s decision and all I can do now is focus on the next races.”

Marc Hirschi: Actually I had a really good day today. I don’t know what happened in the final sprint. I haven’t seen the images as of now, so it’s hard to say anything about it. For sure [Julian] Alaphilippe touched my wheel. But it’s the way he sprinted, it just happened. I was close to his wheel and he moved a little bit sideways. I didn’t expect this results on the Ardennes Classic. It’s only my second time here and, although I came in good shape from the Tour de France, I didn’t think I would do so well. I look forward to come back for more next year.

Tadej Pogačar: I have some mixed feelings after that finish. I felt really good all day long. My team worked hard and I was able to make the final selection. In the final straight I felt great when I started sprinting; I was going for the win and a moment changed everything. I’m glad I managed to avoid crashing and finish the race.

It was a real pleasure to participate in Liège-Bastogne-Liège. This is a great race. On my debut last year I was 18th and I felt super good. To be here today contending for victory has been really amazing. For sure, I want to come back and try my luck again.

Result
1 Primoz Roglic Team Jumbo – Visma 6:32:02 500
2 Marc Hirschi Team Sunweb + 00 400
3 Tadej Pogacar UAE Team Emirates + 00 325
4 Matej Mohoric Bahrain-McLaren + 00 275
5 Julian Alaphilippe Deceuninck-Quick Step + 00 225
6 Mathieu van der Poel Alpecin-Fenix + 14 175
7 Michael Woods EF Pro Cycling + 14 150
8 Tiesj Benoot Team Sunweb + 14 125
9 Warren Barguil Team Arkea-Samsic + 14 100
10 Michal Kwiatkowski INEOS Grenadiers + 14 85

11 Daniel Martin Israel Start-Up Nation + 14 70
53 Ben Tulett (youngest rider in the race)
70 Ethan Hayter
79 Connor Swift
80 Mark Donovan
118 Scott Thwaites

Full Result Here