Belgian faces stiff competition from Gerrans, Voeckler, Leukemans
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(Image credit: Isabelle Duchesne)
Simon Gerrans (Team Sky) enjoys his overall victory(Image credit: CyclingPhoto.eu)
Thomas Voeckler still in yellow - who could have predicted?(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
The GP Ouest France - Plouay takes place in Brittany on Sunday, 28th August, with a stacked field lining up for the one-day classic.
The riders will face up to 13 laps of a 19.1km circuit that takes the riders north into the surrounding towns of Kerihuel and Le Faouet before turning back toward Plouay. Three climbs and around 300 meters of altitude covered on each lap may not seem much, but the riders' legs will really be burning as the race approaches the downhill finish at kilometer 248.
A former world championships route, the parcours will suit the puncheurs, though sprinters like last year’s winner Matthew Goss who can hang on in the climbs are also a threat.
The contenders
There is no rider better suited to the course than Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto), and it’s hard to look past the Belgian, who will start the race a short-priced favourite. With 13 professional victories already in 2011, the Belgian will be hard to beat in Plouay. Perhaps the only thing counting against him is his record at the race. His best result, 19th in 2009, is surprising considering the race seems well-suited to the Walloon.
If Gilbert is unable to overcome his demons at the race, look out for former winners Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) and Simon Gerrans (Sky) or an in-form Bjorn Leukemans (Vacansoleil-DCM) to be in the mix. After a disappointing spring, Leukemans finally appears to be carrying some good condition, and showed himself to be a level above at the recent Tour du Limousin.
Voeckler’s run at the Tour de France defied the expectations of many, and has shown the Frenchman to be a much stronger rider than pundits give him credit for. Like Gilbert, his 2011 has been superb, though questions remain over his form (except against horses), having only just returned to racing at the Tour du Poitou Charentes.
Perhaps the strongest of the trio is Simon Gerrans. The Australian has fond memories of the race, taking one of the biggest wins of his career in 2009 while racing for the now defunct Cervelo Test Team. Overall victory at the recent Tour of Denmark signaled the end of a barren run for Gerrans and there’s no reason to write-off the Australian when he’s in this sort of form.
The list of outsiders is lengthy with Jose Joaquin Rojas (Movistar), Alessandro Ballan (BMC), Filippo Pozzato (Katusha), Gerald Ciolek (Quickstep), Damiano Cunego (Lampre-ISD), and Thor Hushovd (Garmin-Cervelo) all in good form. Vital UCI points are on the line, and with many teams fighting for their top-tier status the racing will be fierce on Sunday.
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Alex Hinds is a graduate of Economics and Political Science from Sydney University. Growing up in the metropolitan area of the city he quickly became a bike junkie, dabbling in mountain and road riding. Alex raced on the road in his late teens, but with the time demands of work and university proving too much, decided not to further pursue full-time riding.
If he was going to be involved in cycling in another way the media seemed the next best bet and jumped at the opportunity to work in the Sydney office of Cyclingnews when an offer arose in early 2011.
Though the WorldTour is of course a huge point of focus throughout the year, Alex also takes a keen interest in the domestic racing scene with a view to helping foster the careers of the next generation of cycling.
When not writing for Cyclingnews Alex is a strong proponent of the awareness of cyclists on the road in Sydney having had a few close run-ins with city traffic in the past.
