Merlier wins European Champs as Milan blows big team effort | Video

Tim Merlier has won gold at the European Road Race Championships after Jonathan Milan could not capitalise on all the work done by his Italian team

Tim Merlier may have been vying for protected rider status with Belgian team mate Jasper Phililpsen at the European Championships but he did his own thing and dominated the final sprint to win.

With Jordi Meeus leading out Philipsen, Merlier launch his sprint from the other side of the bunch and once he kicked his first effort was so powerful the destination of the gold medal looked done and dusted after 223km of racing into Hasselt, Belgium.

Though Olav Kooij (Netherlands) ran Merlier reasonably close on the line, the Belgian's final effort was simply too good. Just behind them, Philipsen lost out on bronze on the line when young Estonian, Madis Mihkels - the 21-year-old who rides for Intermarché-Wanty - pipped him on the line for the final medal.

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One of the big stories of the race was just how badly Jonathan Milan bombed at the finish. His Italian team planted themselves on the front of the peloton for much of the final 20km.

But when the time came as the race approach the final couple of kilometres, the Belgians moved through to take over at the front at the last, and Milan was pushed backwards, not even making the top 10 on the day.

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While Milan bumped into the riders just ahead of him as he tried to squeeze through a gap - and almost crashed - he was out of the sprint for victory at that stage after he and his team mates were simply brushed aside in the final having done so much work on the front.

More to come.

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