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Canberra's Chloe Hosking has enjoyed a promising world championship debut with sixth place in the elite women's road race in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The 20 year old mixed it up with her more experienced rivals in the bunch sprint to decide the title but it was defending champion Giorgia Bronzini of Italy who triumphed on the uphill drag to the line.

She completed the 140 kilometre course in a time of 3:21:28 to edge out Marianne Vos (NED) who won in 2006 but since then has been a perennial bridesmaid with five straight silver medals. Germany's Ina Teutenberg was third.

Hosking, who rides with pro team HTC - Highroad, says she's happy with her result and that she managed to avoid crashing during the perilous last lap.

"I was just hoping to stay upright. There were crashes left, right an centre coming down the back straight," said Hosking. "It was fast and it was dodgy but I came away with a sixth at my first world championships so I'm happy."

As has been the case with the previous races the medals have been decided in a frantic dash to the line.

"I was hoping that on that last little kick up it would break into a smaller group but it didn't and I think, you've seen in the last few races it's such a fast course. To stay away is not so easy," said Hosking. "We never wanted to do a lead out train it was more of a sit in, protect yourself and if the girls could, if they still had it in their legs, fire missiles and see if they it would string it out.

Cycling Australian women's road coach, Martin Barras, says the team performance augers well for next year.

"When you look at where our team has been that is our best result for the last few years," said Barras. "I am not going to go and get overly excited with a sixth place, (but) the fact is it comes from a young girl it is a step in the right direction especially heading into the Olympics."

Meanwhile Amanda Spratt, team captain on the road for the Australian women, was one of those who came down in the last lap but recovered to finish the race, albeit more than two minutes after the leaders.

"The crash happened with a couple of k's (kilometres) to go, it was getting hectic in the finish but I'm fine and I crossed the line," Spratt said. "It was pretty chaotic. A flat course and it went so quickly. We had to be really attentive and up the front and I think we did a good job of that.

"The plan today was to be patient throughout the day and wait for the last few laps which we tried to do but nothing was sticking so in the end we put Chloe up for the sprint and she was sixth so a good result for the team."

Earlier in the day the junior men's road race was won by Frenchman Pierre-Henri le Cuisinier ahead of Belgian Martijn Degreve and Dutchman Steven Lammertink. Australia's best placed finisher was Calvin Watson who was 16th.

The 2011 UCI Road World Championships wrap up tomorrow with the 266km elite men's road race.

Australian Cyclones - 2011 UCI Road World Championships

(TT - Time Trial, RR - Road Race) 

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The BMC Racing Team will send a 10-man lineup to one of the oldest races in Belgium – Friday's Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen.

Kristoff Seventh In 2010
The 196.8-kilometer race that was first run in 1908 features 16 laps of a 12.3 km course and is one of the few that permits 10 riders. "It's a typical Belgian race – flat with some cobblestones," BMC Racing Team Assistant Director Fabio Baldato said. "We'll be looking to Alexander Kristoff for sure. But if there's wind and rain, it can completely change the complexion of the race. In that case, (Marcus) Burghardt and Michael Schär are strong in those conditions, too." Kristoff, seventh here a year ago, will look to continue his recent success that includes a runner-up placing Sunday at GP de Fourmies. "I am hoping for a good result again," Kristoff said. "I will try to get the right position and start my sprint around 200 meters. At Fourmies, I went too soon and had to use too much energy at the end."

BMC Racing Team Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen Roster (Sept. 16):
Chad Beyer (USA), Marcus Burghardt (GER), Chris Butler (USA), Alexander Kristoff (NOR), John Murphy (USA), Taylor Phinney (USA), Tim Roe (AUS), Michael Schär (SUI), Danilo Wyss (SUI), Simon Zahner (SUI).

 

Team Sky is delighted to announce Richie Porte as the latest signing for the 2012 season.

 

The 26-year-old Australian is one of cycling’s brightest talents and has enjoyed a meteoric rise since taking up the sport competitively in 2006. After learning the ropes with the Praties and Monsummanese Grassi Mapei teams, Porte was signed by Saxo Bank in 2010.

 

His maiden victory came just a few months into the 2010 season on the time trial stage at the Tour de Romandie, and Porte then rose to worldwide prominence with an incredible debut ride at the Giro d’Italia.  Not only did he hold the race leader’s Maglia Rosa between stages 11-13, Porte also secured seventh place overall and won the young rider’s classification by a seven-minute margin. 

 

With the arrival of Alberto Contador at Saxo Bank-Sungard in 2011, Porte assumed the role of loyal domestique and was handpicked to support the Spaniard at this year’s Giro and Tour de France.

 

Elsewhere, the Tasmanian continued to take his chances wherever he could and earned himself podium positions on time trials at Paris-Nice, Castilla y Leon and the Tour de Romandie before claiming a hard-fought victory against the clock at the Tour of Denmark.   

 

Richie Porte said:

 

“I'm really happy to have signed for Team Sky and cannot wait to see what next season will bring. Ever since the launch of the team I've been really impressed with the way they go about their business and it'll be nice to be able to experience that first-hand now. For riders like myself who are always looking to develop and improve, I don't think there's a better place to be - the coaching set up is absolutely top-notch and the way they look after their riders is also second to none.”

 

“I had two great years at Saxo Bank-Sungard, and will be forever grateful to them for giving me my chance in the professional ranks, but am looking forward to opening this next chapter of my career now and hopefully taking things to another level.”

 

“I'll be targeting the week-long stage races initially, although it would be nice in the future to lead the team in a Grand Tour. My time trialling is another area I want to focus on, and having guys in the team like Bradley Wiggins and Michael Rogers will help me no end and I'll be looking to learn as much as I can from them.”

 

Dave Brailsford, Team Sky Principal, said:

 

“In Richie Porte, Team Sky have acquired one of the world’s most gifted riders and we are thrilled to have him on the team. The progress he has made during the last four years has been outstanding and he will undoubtedly strengthen our squad for 2012 and beyond.”

 

“Richie is a rider that has everything - not only is he right up there with the best time triallers in the world, he can also climb and is not afraid to suffer when he is told to work for someone else either. Now is his time to shine - whether that’s in a Grand Tour or on a stage race like Paris-Nice, we’ll have to see, but it’s a long season and he’ll get plenty of opportunities.”

“I’m sure he’s going to be very happy with this team and we’re confident he will have a long and successful career with us.”

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04-Sep-2011: Tom Boonen was involved today in a group pile up before the Alto del Cordal. Boonen finished the race regardless, but he suffered a serious contusion to his left hand due to the fall. The Quick-Step rider was taken to the General Hospital in Gijon (Spain) for further tests, that evidenced a fracture to his left scaphoid. 

As a consequence of his hand fracture, Boonen won't be on the start line for the 16th stage of the Vuelta on Wednesday, September 6.

"I was twentieth in the group when in the span of a moment I found myself on the ground, due to a sudden movement of the peloton. I immediately understood that my problem was serious, but I wanted to finish the race and then evaluate what to do together with the team's medical staff. I didn't even manage to hold the handlebar, I had a lot of trouble getting to the finish line. It's a really tough moment for me. I was doing really well in the past few days and, as we're getting closer to the World Championship, it was perfect. The entire scenario changed in a moment. I am very disappointed."

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STAGE RESULT

1. Tony Martin  - HTC–Highroad (55m 54s)

2. Chris Froome  - Team Sky (+59s)

3. Bradley Wiggins - Team Sky (+1m22s)

 

OVERALL STANDINGS

1. Chris Froome - Team Sky (38h 09m 13s)

2. Jakob Fuglsang - Leopard Trek (+12s)

3. Bradley Wiggins - Team Sky (+20s)

 

Team Sky's Chris Froome produced the time trial performance of his life to take the leader's red jersey at the Vuelta a Espana.

 

The Kenyan-born Briton finished second on the stage behind Tony Martin (HTC-Highroad) in the 47 kilometres time trial around Salamanca and it was good enough to see him vault up from 14th to top of the overall standings.

 

He leads by 12 seconds from Jakob Fuglsang (Leopard-Trek), with Team Sky team-mate Bradley Wiggins third on the day and up to third overall, 20 seconds behind Froome.

 

Chris Froome, Team Sky Rider:

 

"It’s not really sunk in yet, it’s still a bit unreal. I didn’t expect to do that today. I thought maybe I’d try and stay in contention or at least be up there close to Bradley but never expected this.

 

"I'm over the moon, I think I just had a fantastic day and somehow I've ended up in the leader's jersey - it's a dream come true.

 

"I think it was the updates from Sports Director Marcus Ljungqvist on the radio which kept me going. To be honest I felt pretty rough out there; I was hurting from yesterday’s effort and just felt like I wasn’t really going that fast.

 

"What really helped was Marcus in the team car edging me on, saying ‘you’re doing great’, ‘you’ve got a really good time’, ‘just keep going like you are’ and so on. It was fantastic to have that information and encouragement – at least I knew I wasn’t doing too badly!

 

On the race as a whole, Froome added: "It’s gone really well, we’ve just been trying to limit Brad’s losses every day and try and keep him in contention until the time trial.

 

"It went especially well yesterday on stage nine which was also a bit of a surprise because we hadn’t planned to try and make a difference like that. We went into the stage just trying to keep as close to other GC guys as possible but when we got into the crosswinds up on the mountain with about 4k to go we were in the perfect position to put the hammer down and really go. We just did it naturally and it worked out.

 

"The other riders have been doing a brilliant job looking after us until the final and the staff have been really, really supportive. It’s been great - the environment and atmosphere in the team is just fantastic."

 

Steven de Jongh, Team Sky Sports Director:

 

"It was a really good performance from Froomey of course and also Bradley.

 

"Apart from Tony Martin they put time on absolutely everyone else, including all the other GC contenders, so we’re really happy with the result.

 

"It was a big surprise that Froomey beat Bradley but I’d say he did the time trial of his life today.

 

"We must also not forget that Bradley broke his collarbone at the Tour de France and had an operation so it’s amazing to be performing at this level so soon afterwards. He's been great throughout the race and it was another tremendous effort from him today."

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SIERRA DE BEJAR, Spain — Irish rider Daniel Martin won the ninth stage of the Spanish Vuelta on Sunday, while Dutchman Bauke Mollema took the overall leader’s jersey from Joaquin Rodriguez by just 1 second.

Martin edged past Mollema to finish the 114-mile mountain course from Villacastin to Sierra de Bejar in 4 hours, 52 minutes, 14 seconds.

The brutal final climb to the finish line tightened the overall standings with Mollema 1 second ahead of Rodriguez and 9 seconds in front of defending champion Vicenzo Nibali.

Monday’s 10th stage is a 29-mile time trial in the medieval city of Salamanca

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TALAVERA DE LA REINA, Spain (Reuters) - Up-and-coming German sprinter Marcel Kittel's first victory in a Grand Tour was overshadowed by a mass pileup in the final kilometre of the Tour of Spain's 182.9-km seventh stage on Friday.

Italians Vincenzo Nibali, last year's race winner, and Michele Scarponi, Spain's Joaquim Rodriguez and Belgian Juergen Van Den Broeck fell in a crash caused when American Tyler Farrar collided with fellow sprinter Michal Golas of Poland.

One of the worst affected was 2011 Tour de France stage winner Farrar. He was unable to put any weight on his left foot and pedalled with one leg as he crossed the line.

He then clutched his left hip and needed to be held up by two Garmin-Cervelo team mates as he limped to a waiting ambulance.

Most of the riders involved suffered minor injuries but Scarponi shouted in pain when doctors attempted to touch his left ankle while Nibali had a nasty scrape on his left thigh.

Overall leader Sylvain Chavanel of France and 22nd-placed Briton Bradley Wiggins were two overall contenders not affected by the crash which took place so close to the line all those involved were awarded the same time.

Skil-Shimano rider Kittel said he was too far ahead in the bunch to even hear the crash as he powered to his 13th victory of the season, ahead of Slovakian Peter Sagan and Spain's Oscar Freire.

"I only found out about the crash when I crossed the line," first-year professional Kittel, 23, told reporters. 

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Team Katusha was the protagonist of "Vuelta a Espana" fourth stage, the first with a climbing arrival in Sierra Nevada: after the long breakaway, 160 kms, by Eduard Vorganov, Daniel Moreno took the win, while the leader Joaquim Rodriguez was at the finishing line with the main group, missing the podium for a mere nothing and closing 4th, 11'' far from the teammate. The crucial part of the stage was with 4 kms to go: once today breakaway ended, Sorensen (Saxo Bank) tried to attack. Moreno replied to the Danish rider and, thanks to a peremptory rush in the last km, took a solo win, the first in his career in the most important Iberian competition. Thanks to this performance, the Team Katusha rider from Madrid is now second in general classification, 43'' far from the new leader Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step). 

"I'm so happy with this beautiful win - says Moreno at the finishing line - I felt in a great shape this morning, I knew I could make a great performance also because the stage course was very suitable to my characteristics. Before going to catch Sorensen I talked with out leader Rodriguez: he was persuaded I had many chances to win toda, because I'm faster than the Danish rider. I stayed in the main group since Joaquim hasn't told me to go. Obviously, despite I did several step forward in general classification, my job is still to help our leader to win the general classification: i think 'Purito' and me form a great couple, we've really savvied, so I'm sure we can reach more brilliant results in this Vuelta".

"We're a fantastic group - says Rodriguez - This is a prize for everyone of us. We don't even need to talk: everyone of us savvy each other. As for me, today too I had some good feelings, even if I have to admit I suffered this hot weather. I was waiting for the first climbing arrival in order to test my shape: I think today everything was perfect".

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Only an extraordinary Pablo Lastras could steal today the joy of victory from Sylvain Chavanel. The French champion scored second place in this challenging stage from Petrer to Totana, made all the more gruelling by the terrible heat that's been a constant in this Vuelta. For his excellent performance today Chavanel won the prize for combativeness. 

Sylvain Chavanel 
"Today I had a great race. I spurred the break right from the start. I knew that with this heat it would be hard for the group to stay in control. We collaborated really well until the last climb. At 600 metres from the top of Alto de la Santa Lastras took off. I couldn't follow him because I was starting to get cramps. On the slight rise towards the arrival I gave it everything I had to catch up to Lastras. However there wasn't much collaboration with Pidgornyy and Irizar. When we got to within 9 seconds from Lastras with only 3 km to go to the finish line we started sizing each other up and Lastras gained a few seconds advantage. It wasn't up to me to do all the work to catch up. I wanted to win the stage and often in order to win you have to risk losing. I gave it everything I had, I couldn't have done more. Anyway, I'm happy with my form, I feel good and I'm going to try again. Congratulations to Pablo. He was the strongest today and he's a great rider."