Tirreno-Adriatico: Mitchelton-Scott take team time trial victory

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Mitchelton-Scott put in a pitch-perfect ride to claim victory in the opening team time trial at Tirreno-Adriatico. Despite having to avert their course due to a spectator running into the road, the Australian team stopped the clock at 22:25 to beat Jumbo-Visma by seven seconds.

Michael Hepburn was the first of the five Mitchelton-Scott riders over the line and will wear the leader's jersey, while Adam Yates finished safely in the group to give him a solid advantage over his general classification rivals.

"I didn't expect to be in this position when I woke up this morning. We obviously had a great squad here for the opening stage," said Hepburn. "We were not targeting just the stage but also supporting Adam Yates on GC. Today we also got luck on our side. We're pleased with this result. Tirreno-Adriatico is one of my favourite races of the year. But I don't deserve the jersey any more than anyone else in the squad. I'm just really happy for the whole team."

Jumbo-Visma came into the day with confidence after their victory in the team time trial at the UAE Tour last month. With Primoz Roglic, Jos van Emden and Tony Martin in their seven-man line-up, the boys in yellow smashed the previous best time of Deceuninck-QuickStep by a massive 30 seconds. They had a tense wait as teams crossed the line, but with one team remaining Team Sunweb was their closest threat at 15 seconds.

Mitchelton-Scott were the last team to leave the start ramp and it was clear that they were on song as they went six seconds clear at the intermediate check. Damien Howson and Chris Juul-Jensen dropped off after doing big turns, but the team still had one more than the minimum of four as they entered the final kilometre.

The team looked certain of usurping Jumbo-Visma, but it almost came tumbling down as they rounded a corner to find a spectator running across the road with her dog. Thankfully, all of the riders were able to avoid the spectator and hardly missed a beat as they pushed on towards the line. Koen Bouwman (Jumbo-Visma) shook his head as Mitchelton-Scott came around the final corner, knowing that he and his teammates would not be paying a visit to the podium – at least for today.

How it happened

Tirreno-Adriatico started in the same manner it has done in recent years with a team time trial around Lido di Camaiore. The out and back route would ordinarily not pose too many issues for the riders but the rain that coated the roads would.

AG2R La Mondiale were the first of the 23 teams to start their effort on the 21.5km course, but with no big contender, their aim was just to get around with no major difficulties. EF Education First, the fifth team to go, set the early benchmark with a time of 23:21 and finishing with a full complement of seven riders.

Aside from the rain, the early part of the team time trial was marked by another incident with a pedestrian. Bora-Hansgrohe were well into their ride when a spectator crossed the road, walking into the path of their train. Most of the team were able to avoid the man, but Rafal Majka and Oscar Gatto collided with him. Both Majka and Gatto were able to complete the course but were battered and bruised as they crossed the line. The spectator was taken to hospital where it is reported that their condition is 'not worrying'.

EF Education First would enjoy around 20 minutes in the hot seat before they were bettered by Deceuninck-QuickStep. However, the Belgian team fractured slightly as they drove for the line with their fourth rider losing touch and crossing a few seconds after his teammates.

The rain cleared up as the stage continued, giving the later teams a full dry run through Lido di Camaiore. QuickStep could do nothing as they watched Jumbo-Visma make the most of the changing conditions to smash their time by some 30 seconds. Team Sky came home immediately after Jumbo-Visma but could only manage a time 40 seconds shy, giving Geraint Thomas plenty of work to do over the coming days.

Team Sunweb were the penultimate team to depart and with Tom Dumoulin in their ranks, they were one of the favourites for victory. However, they could only manage third at the intermediate time check and that is where they would finish, with just four riders, after everyone had completed their runs. Mitchelton-Scott enjoyed a set off five minutes behind them and would enjoy a near-faultless run until the incident with a spectator inside the final kilometre. Thankfully, it did not impact on the result as they crossed the line to take the victory.

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