Deceuninck-QuickStep riders lead with two nights remaining
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With two nights of racing to go, Deceuninck-QuickStep riders Elia Viviani and Iljo Keisse are set up for success during their first outing under the team's new title sponsor, taking the lead at the Gent Six Day after four nights of competition.
Viviani and Keisse currently lead the Baloise Insurance team of Robbe Ghys and Kenny de Ketele by four points, 244 to 240. Lotto Soudal's Tosh van der Sande and Jasper de Bust are third at 218 points. The Deceuninck duo took the lead Friday night with a win in the first Madison and a runner-up performance in the second.
Overnight leaders De Buyst and Van der Sande got things rolling Friday with a win in the first Points Race, while the second Points Race went to De Ketele and Ghys. Keisse and Viviani then struck with a victory in the Team Elimination. The One-Lap Race went to Topsport-Vlaanderen's Moreno De Pauw and Lyndsay De Vylder.
The first Madison was a hard-fought battle between the Deceuninck-QuickStep riders and Baloise Insurance, with Keisse eventually getting the advantage over Ghys in the final sprint. Viviani and Keisse pulled into the overall lead, while Ghys and de Ketele moved into second overall ahead of De Buyst and Van der Sande.
The young Belgian duo of Jules Hestersand Otto Vergaerde (Proncie Oost-Vlaanderen) won the second Madison.
Also on Friday night, Lotte Kopecky won the first women's event, beating Amy Cure and Kirstie Van Haaften in the points race. Kristen Wild was fourth, followed by Jolien D'Hoore.
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