Archie Ryan (Jumbo Visma Development) has animated the finale of Flèche Ardennaise after pulling clear in a select group containing some of the best U23 riders in the world.
The 20-year-old Irishman told stickybottle he got caught out a little in the attacks that further split the front of the race in the finale and had to settle for 11th place in the end. However, he was confident he was on the right track and felt bigger results were coming.
The race - some 168.6km starting and finishing in Stavelot, Belgium - saw an early breakaway caught by the select group that made the most of the hilly finish to split the remains of the peloton.
In that finale the riders face several climbs, beginning with La Gleize, which was 2.7km at 3.5 per cent average gradient. The riders crested that ascent - the 13th of the day - with 32km to go and it was followed by the Thier de Coo (1.3 km at 11.1 per cent), the Amermont (1.9 km at 7.3 per cent), the Renardmont (900m at 10 per cent) and the Stockeu, some 1km at 13.4 per cent and 10 km from the finish.
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Ryan took on the finale and his attacks pulled clear a four-rider group, also containing top British rider Thomas Gloag (Trinity Racing) and French sensation Romain Grégoire (Equipe continentale Groupama-FDJ).
However, after doing that damage on the climb, Ryan got caught on the wrong side of a split on the descent. When the group he was in spent too much time looking at each it allowed three riders go clear; Grégoire, Gloag and Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Soudal U23).
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While Ryan then went clear from the chasing group in a two-man move in pursuit of the three leaders, he was soon caught by a larger group behind on the run in to the finish. In the end Grégoire claimed the victory from Van Eetvelt and Gloag some 51 seconds up on the 10-man group Ryan was in.
Grégoire (19) was last year’s junior European champion on the road and also took silver in the Worlds road race. Before yesterday’s win, in recent weeks he also won U23 Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Giro del Belvedere (1.2U) and GP Palio del Recioto-Trofeo C (1.2U).
Ryan has also been in good form of late, and appears to have put behind him the ACL injury that saw him miss the full season last year. He was 7th overall at Istrian Spring Trophy in Croatia in March and claimed 6th on the queen stage. Ryan was also 7th in GP Palio del Recioto-Trofeo C.
