This sprint finish photos shows just how close Michael O’Loughlin got to the Tour de l’Avenir stage win. Himself and the Italian beside him are not sprinting, they are being caught on the line after a day-long escape.
Michael O’Loughlin fantastic at Tour de l'Avenir
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Michael O’Loughlin has put in a fantastic ride at the Tour de l’Avenir; the Irish team enjoying a very strong stage 6 today.
O’Loughlin was clear in a two-man breakaway all day that was only caught on the finishing straight.
Just the very front of the peloton caught him on the line; the Irish champion taking 7th on the stage.
His team mate Mark Downey collected his third top 10 of the race, finishing in 6th place today.
And Matt Teggart, who held the climbers' jersey for three days before losing it yesterday, has retaken the polka dots.
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Just as Monday’s Tour de l'Avenir stage 4 belonged to Irish rider and breakaway hero Darragh O’Mahony, today was all about Michael O’Loughlin.
On the 139.1km trek from Montrichard to Saint-Amand-Montrond, O’Loughlin went clear very early with Italian Francesco Romano.
Michael O'Loughlin drives the two-man breakaway. Behind the leaders the peloton splits in the crosswinds.
They put their heads down and had three minutes with just 15km completed.
O’Loughlin was first over the top of the cat 2 Cote de Valencay. And back in the peloton Teggart got third place to get his jersey back.
The gap between the two leaders and the peloton would continue to grow; going north of four minutes.
Around the halfway point the peloton began to split in the crosswind. The Austrian team of race leader Patrick Gamper was among those keen to keep the pressure on.
O’Loughlin and Romano saw their advantage drop to roughly 2½ minutes.
But the two leaders continued to eat up the road and soon they had reinstated one of the minutes they had lost.
With about 55km remaining, and Michael O’Loughlin having taken the hot sport sprint as well as the climbers’ prime, they still had 3:30.
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Matt Teggart lost the climbers’ jersey yesterday after wearing it for three days. But he got it back today. Rubbing is racing; Mark Downey takes no prisoners on his way to 6th in the bunch sprint today.
Their lead then continued to get smaller; going to 2:50 with 40km remaining. But when the 25km to go marker came into sight and they still had 2:30 they were in with a real chance.
But from that point, the peloton clinically closed in on them. As a result, agony lay down the road for Michael O'Loughlin.
With 4km remaining the leaders still had 45 seconds. And they had 25 seconds with just 2km to the finish.
However, coming up the finishing straight they would get to within touching distance of the line when the head of the main field came around them.
The stage was won in a bunch sprint by Álvaro José Hodeg; riding for Colombia this week but having just joined QuickStep.
Downey would take 6th and Michael O’Loughlin 7th; the stage just 100 metres too long for the Irish road and TT champion.
Daire Feeley was next of the Irish in 37th; Teggart was 71st and Darragh O’Mahony 113th, all in the main field. Ryan Reilly would come home in 129th some 2:45 down.
Michael O’Loughlin at least had the consolation of a trip to the podium as be picked up the combativity award.
And that made for two Irishmen on the podium, with Teggart back up there to collect the climbers’ jersey.
He had been leading Valentin Madouas of the French national team, who has just signed for WorldTour team FDJ, by one point.
But yesterday Vasili Strokau of Belarus made the winning three-man escape and won the stage.
He also took climbers’ points to draw level with Teggart and took the jersey from him on count back.
However, when Teggart was third over the only climb of the day today behind the two leaders he took one point.
And that was enough to lift him back into the lead in the climbers’ classification.
Tomorrow, Thursday, is a rest day before three days in the Alps at Tour de l'Avenir.
Friday's stage 7 sees the riders tackle 118.4km from Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc to Hauteluce-Les Saisies.
There are two cat 2 climbs in the first half of the course. And the stage then concludes with a summit finish atop the cat 1 to Hauteluce Les Saisies.
Furthermore, Saturday's stage 8 takes in two cat 1 ascents – Comet de Roselend and Les Arc 1800. It then concludes at the summit of a cat 2 climb at Sainte-Foy Tarentaise.
The final stage 9, on Sunday, takes the Tour de l'Avenir riders up the HC Col de la Madeleine at the halfway point.
And it concludes with another summit finish up the cat 1 Col du Mollard.
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