The American found himself out of contention after the peloton came through the last corner of the race, and was unable to mount a challenge as Mark Cavendish (Team Sky) went on to win the race.
While Cavendish made his single and most significant play inside the final 300 meters, Farrar had ridden a far more aggressive but ultimately unsuccessful race.
Having latched onto a dangerous move on the Oude Kwaremont, Farrar found himself in a strong position. With teammate Johan Vansummeren for company and Omega Pharma-QuickStep, BMC and Rabobank well represented, the move looked more than troublesome for the sprinters left behind.
However, a lack of cohesion, thanks in part to the presence of three Sky riders, meant that the group never gained much more than a minute on the peloton.
"I played my cards a bit on the Oude Kwaremont and took my chance in the front group there," Farrar told Cyclingnews.
"And it looked good for a little while and I was hoping it would stay until the end but it didn't and then the sprint didn't really go my way. I got boxed in and that was it."
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In this exclusive video interview with Cyclingnews Farrar talks about his race, the move on the Oude Kwaremont and his sprint finish.
Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.
