Philip Deignan shrugged off a tough day at the Worlds, but team management said his waiting for Dan Martin cost him dearly at a crucial time (Photo: Sean Rowe)
By Brian Canty
In Ponferrada
It may have been his long overdue return to an Irish jersey at a World Championships after a five-year absence, but the elite men’s title decider in Spain was an unremarkable one for Philip Deignan.
The Team Sky man called it a day with two laps remaining and was among the majority of starters who did not complete today's whopping 254-kilometre championship race.
He told stickybottle he had not felt good all day, adding the decision to withdraw was an easy one in the end.
"I've been better, it was a tough day, a wearing down process like always at the worlds,” Deignan said afterwards, his face caked in mud from the near six hours he had been in the saddle.
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"It was tricky with the weather and the conditions and I was only feeling pretty average. I wasn't able to do much today. I knew with a couple of laps to go I'd be in trouble.”
Getting ready for the off this morning at what was his first World Championships since 2009; a broken collarbone keeping him out last year (Photo: Sean Rowe)
It has been a superb year to date for Deignan. He has ridden extremely will in the service of his team in the Giro d'Italia, Tour de Suisse and the Vuelta a Espana, amongst many other races; cementing his reputation as one of the best climbing team riders in the business.
He felt it was perhaps the long season that left him feeling so average today. While the elements were not kind to the riders, soaking them for much of the race, the Donegal man did not feel the weather was his undoing.
"It wasn't too cold,” he said.
“When it's wet it's always difficult; it makes it more challenging but at least it wasn't too cold. I'll just forget about this one as quickly as possible.
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"I don't think the weather would have changed much, to be honest. Maybe it would have been a bigger group coming to the finish.”
“I saw Dan (Martin) come down there, he looked pretty bad and he wasn't moving, so that's a pity.”
Looking pretty shattered going through the start-finish area just before he abandoned with two laps remaining (Photo: Sean Rowe)
He cited general fatigue as his enemy today.
"It's probably a mix of it being a long season and the Vuelta as well; just one of those days."
He made no mention of his team duties hampering his personal performance today. However, team manager Kurt Bogaerts felt those responsibilities contributed to Deignan becoming detached from the greatly depleted peloton with two laps of 14 remaining.
“Philip waited at the end of the group for Dan,” Bogaerts said, referring to the crash that ended Martin’s chances of a tilt at the title.
“But it was full racing when the crash happened. While he was waiting at the end, the group split, and Philip ended up in the split.”
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