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Eneco Tour, Stage 2: Phinney Keeps The Lead

BMC Racing Team's Taylor Phinney finished sixth Wednesday to retain his lead at the Eneco Tour of Benelux, but his advantage over second place was cut from seven to three seconds. 

Tougher Stage Awaits
André Greipel (Omega Pharma-Lotto) won his second straight stage but Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky Pro Cycling) finished third in the 173.7 kilometer race to take a four-second time bonus. "It was a really nervous day, but the team took really good care of me," Phinney said. "I was hoping to pay them back at the finish with a top five or top three placing. Unfortunately, I conceded some time, which was not part of the plan, but the team is really strong. I'm confident in my legs and looking forward to tomorrow." BMC Racing Team Assistant Director Fabio Baldato said Thursday's 191.2 km undulating stage will be Phinney's greatest test since he took the lead with a win in the prologue. "Tomorrow will be much more difficult," Baldato said. "We hope Taylor keeps riding well and receiving good teamwork to keep the lead."

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Astana's Fredrik Kessiakoff has won the second stage of the Tour of Austria on the 158.3km stage between Innsbruck and Kitzbühel Horn

 

Team Astana’s Sweden, Fredrik Kessiakoff, wins solo on top of the Kitzbüheler Horn. He explains "I feel very well since the last training camp at altitude, the legs are there. Yesterday evening I watched the road of the stage and saw the mountainous profile, I felt that it could fit me. The team has worked very well to place me before the mountain, then after a kilometer climb, the attacks started from, I moved in a group, but I decided not to respond to attacks I preferred to keep my own rhythm. The others left me do and I left without looking back, then I crossed the finish line alone in the lead, it was wonderful! "

 

Indeed, it is a big emotion that invades Fredrik tonight. He joined the very first time a professional road cycling team three years ago. Former Mountain Bike specialist it’s his first victory on the road "I am delighted, I can not believe it, I think tonight I'll sleep with a big smile on the face! ".

 

Fredrik is now leading the overall standings of the Tour of Austria with a 1min18s on Italian Mauro Santambrogio (BMC), second in this ranking, "I am proud to wear the leader's jersey, and of course we will do everything for defend it! We have a good team here, we are all in good shape, we will give the maximum, but it won’t be so easy”

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On the strength of second place in the team time trial, the BMC Racing Team moved Cadel Evans within one second of the overall lead Sunday at the Tour de France.

'Quietly Working Away'
Slicing through the wind on their BMC timemachines, the BMC Racing Team finished only four seconds behind Garmin-Cervélo, which won the 23-kilometer race against the clock in 24:48. Team Sky was third. Evans said he wasn't surprised at all with the result. "We've been quietly working away, doing our homework and keeping at it," the former world road champion said. "Our first goal was not to lose any time and our second goal was to actually gain time. The fact that we were actually there, nearly in the running for the win, was really something."

Plenty of Preparation
Twice a runner-up at the Tour de France, Evans slots into third overall – one second behind new race leader Thor Hushovd and his Garmin-Cervélo teammate, David Millar. BMC Racing Team Directeur Sportif John Lelangue said he expected the team to register a solid performance due to its diligent preparation, which included a three-day training camp in Belgium in June and several reconnaissance rides of the stage itself last week. "In the end, it's always a nervous day. but at the end of the day we had a great result," he said. "We only missed the victory by a few seconds and the yellow jersey by a few seconds, but we are happy to be in this situation."


BMC Racing Team                                                                

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