Egholm, Balsamo Win Junior Road Race Titles
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TTENNISENNIS | Page 4 FOOTBALL | Page 6 Djokovic Chelsea survives manager Conte To Advertise here Zverev scare laughs off Call: 444 11 300, 444 66 621 in Shanghai sack talk Saturday, October 15, 2016 CRICKET Muharram 14, 1438 AH Azhar’s triple ton GULF TIMES fi res Pakistan to huge total against Windies SPORT Page 3 UCI ROAD WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DOHA 2016 EGHOLM, BALSAMO WIN JUNIOR ROAD RACE TITLES Denmark’s Jakob Elgholm celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the men’s junior Road Race. PICTURES: Jayaram Italy’s Elisa Balsamo (left) celebrates her win in the women’s junior Road Race yesterday. PICTURES: Jayaram Egholm fi nishes on top Balsamo hands Italians with impressive solo well deserved victory By Sports Reporter By Sports Reporter Doha Doha akob Egholm won the men’s lisa Balsamo sealed an Italian junior Road Race in spectacular gold medal with a perfectly fashion at the UCI Road World led-out sprint in the women’s Championships Doha 2016 yes- junior road race yesterday. Jterday. ESkylar Schneider from the USA and In the third Road Race of the com- Norway’s Susanne Andersen grabbed petition, the Dane was the fi rst to suc- silver and bronze after 74.5 kilometres cessfully carry home a solo attack and on the 15.2 kilometre Pearl circuit fi n- fi nished fi rst in 2:58.19. Seven seconds ishing in 1:53:04, the same as 51 more behind the winner, German Niklas riders. Markl and Swiss Reto Muller took silver “Unbelievable”, said Balsamo after and bronze in the sprint of an 18-man crossing the line. “A big thank you to group of fi rst chasers. my teammates. They were so beautiful “I can’t believe it,” Egholm said. “I and strong. It’s our title not only mine. haven’t won a race since May. I went This is great, not only for us, but for the into the race with the expectation to whole of Italian female cycling.” help my teammates in the sprint. When leaderboard. fered from a mechanical in the back Schneider was not able to capitalise Qatari rallying and shooting star Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah (left) with Elisa Balsamo we were in the breakaway I sat still at Muller took the fi rst Swiss individual rows. on her teammates’ hard work to keep (right) of Italy during the prize-giving ceremony yesterday. the back of the group to save energy. medal at the championships. Brandon McNulty, who already won the peloton together in the fi nal lap. She Then, when I took my turn, teammate It was full pace from scratch in the junior’s Individual Time Trial ear- was well placed on Balsamo’s wheel, but sible. Mexican Ana Marina Herros did sprinting prodigy Arianna Pruisscher Julius Johansen went and I got a gap the race. The peloton was strung out lier this week, set up an attack together did not have the speed to surpass her not make it to the fi rst crossing of the was more than a minute behind, and Ja- too and went after him. He did not have straight from the start, with riders with Julius Johansen and Alexys Brunel. opponent at the line. Andersen tried to fi nish line and was the fi rst rider to quit pan’s national junior champion Misuzu the power in his legs, so I went for it. It attacking right and left of the road. With about 50 kilometres to go, the jump from Schneider’s wheel but she too the race. Shimoyama rode a lost race, crossing the was an individual time trial towards the Dutchman Jan Mobach came fi rst at the three took a 15-second lead, but were lacked the speed of Balsamo, who held At the fi rst passage of the fi nish line, line more than two-and-a-half minutes end.” fi rst crossing of the fi nish line, but his caught by the fi rst chase group after a the others of with grace. with four 15.3 laps to go, the peloton down on the peloton. Egholm is only the second Dane in eff ort faded entering the feed zone. brave eff ort. Several riders managed Only three kilometres into the race, was split in two main groups with a Heading into the fi nal lap, 56 riders the history to win the juniors Road Awet Habtom of Eritrea attacked to join the fi rst group from behind and at the only slightly bending wide road 22-second gap. Further adrift rode crossed the fi nish line in the same time Race. Fifteen years before Egholm was time and again. The African rider was then a team of twenty-odd riders had a in the fi rst loop of The Pearl circuit, many small groups of riders in an ef- behind Dutch Maaike Boogaard, who born, his compatriot Soren Lilholt won joined by Slovenian Tadej Pogacar at 45-second advantage over the second more than half of the bunch came to a fort to catch-up. The two main groups led the pack. the title in 1983. fi rst instance and then by Dutchman pack with two laps to go. standstill in a major crash, with shat- merged in the fi rst full lap and the pelo- Italy took a commanding lead when Markl took the second German Road Dennis van der Horst. Heading into the fi nal lap, Slovenia tered bikes, fl ying water bottles and ton consisted of about 55 riders at the the bunch cleared the red fl ag to enter Race silver after Pascal Ackermann The merciless peloton, however, and Denmark had three riders each in riders screaming all over the place. second passage. the fi nal kilometre and then Letizia Pa- grabbed a medal of the same colour in caught the trio. From the third lap the 20-men front group, France and Twenty-odd women managed to es- France’s Julliete Labous, who came ternoster and Lisa Morzenti perfectly the Men’s Under 23 race on Thursday. onwards the peloton was blown into Switzerland had two men, while all the cape the chaos, but for all others pre- third in the women’s junior ITT, and piloted Balsamo to the line. The Italian Germany has now won seven medals several groups and lone riders in be- others were on their own. When Jo- race plans were thrown into the bin. Oceanian champion Chloe Morgan, were sprinter held off Schneider and An- in Doha – Team Time Trials results in- tween. hansen attacked with Egholm leaving a They had to remount and play catch still 22 seconds behind, but managed to dersen, who tried to jump from behind, cluded – and are currently on top of the Belgian sprinter Gerben Thijsen suf- small gap, no one was able to respond. up with the front group as soon as pos- join the pack in the second full lap. Dutch but were not able to overhaul. Wild — queen of Tour of Qatar — returns in quest for rainbow jersey By Sports Reporter ways well-organised, and the race suits It’s good to know that as a team we quite easily, although it’s tougher to Doha me well. I love the game of attacking have more options.” adapt to the heat than to the cold. and counter attacking on the flat roads Wild said the ladies’ road race will be When it’s cold you can wear an extra in the wind.” tough for unexpected reasons. “We jacket, but when it’s warm your body he queen of the Tour of Qatar, Wild thinks the Dutch may have an ride a 10-15 kilometre circuit in the has to adjust. Luckily enough I’ve been Kirsten Wild, is hoping to cel- advantage in Doha at the season’s Pearl. Therefore, the wind will have racing on the track a lot lately and the Tebrate a memorable birthday pinnacle event. “We are used to riding less influence on the race. For me it track is also very warm because they by adding a world title to her list of on the flat with a lot of wind. Riding in would be better to have as tough a heat the boards for more speed. We honours in the women’s road race at Qatar is a bit like riding in the Nether- race as possible, but it will be hard also have a climate room in the Dutch the UCI Road World Championships lands, except for the landscape being enough as it is. There will be a lot of national training centre at Papendal, Doha 2016. yellow with camels, instead of green cornering, which means a lot of brak- so we will be well prepared.” The Dutch cyclist, who will turn 34 with cows.” ing and accelerating. Other countries The record winner of the Ladies Tour today, said: “This race has been on my Other countries will be watching the will probably not want the race to end of Qatar always enjoys visiting the agenda for a long time.” Dutch cyclists closely. “We will be the up in a bunch sprint, so there’s a lot to country. “People are really enthusiastic Wild has won the Ladies Tour of Qatar favourites and we will have more than watch out for.” about it, although it’s a bit of a strange a record four times, grabbing ten stage one cyclist to rely on. If it’s going to A big diff erence with racing in the experience too.