Czech champion almost lost his teeth before Italian race
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Zdenek Stybar (Etixx-Quickstep)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Etixx-Quickstep) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-QuickStep)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tom Boonen and Zdenek Stybar mug for the camera(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Peter Sagan and Zdenek Stybar(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Zdenek Stybar has made himself another important facet of the Etixx-Quick Step Classics ambitions, thanks to his Strade Bianche victory this year, in addition to his high finishes in Paris-Roubaix in the past two years.
The Czech champion reveals that he almost lost the replacement teeth that he wears - because of a face-first crash into the barriers in the Eneco Tour - before the Strade Bianche when his fixture came loose, and he had to scramble to find a dentist to fix it up.
It's a good thing his smile was perfected, because he would be showing it frequently to the world as he stood atop the podium after putting in a brilliant ride to win Strade Bianche ahead of Greg Van Avermaet and Alejandro Valverde.
After Sunday's Milan-San Remo, Stybar's next goals will be the cobbled classics, where he will be an important asset alongside Niki Terpstra and Stijn Vandenbergh, especially in light of the injury of Tom Boonen, which will keep him from the Classics.
