Boasson Hagen wins in the Eneco Tour

Team Sky's Edvald Boasson Hagen won in the Eneco Tour in perfect fashion with an emphatic victory on the final stage on Sunday to complete a clean sweep of the overall jerseys.

The Norwegian, winner of two stages at the Tour de France, had continued his superb form throughout the seven-day race and he was once again given impressive support by his team-mates.

They repelled all attacks on the 201.2 kilometres stage around Sittard-Geleen, meaning that the field was together heading towards the finish before Boasson Hagen rounded things off in style.

Coming round the final corner he was just behind Jürgen Roelandts but the Omega Pharma-Lotto man crashed in front of him and Boasson Hagen then had daylight between himself and the rest and was able to ease up before the line and still win by around five bike lengths.

Manuel Cardoso (RadioShack) was second, with Lars Boom (Rabobank) rounding off the podium places in third.

In terms of the overall, Boasson topped the standings by 22 seconds from Gilbert, with a further six seconds back to David Millar (Garmin-Cervelo). It was his second Eneco Tour title, having won the event in 2009.

The points jersey and the young rider's jersey were also both claimed by Boasson Hagen, with the team prize going Team Sky's way too.

Afterwards Boasson Hagen was quick to pay tribute to his team-mates, saying: "We had a good plan today and with [Juan Antonio] Flecha getting in the break it allowed us to sit back, conserve energy for later and let other teams do the work.

"Then we controlled the second half of the race and I'm really thankful for all the team's support, they did a perfect job again.

“It’s been really good the whole week; we’ve grown a lot as a team from last year and it's fantastic to see."

Boasson Hagen managed to avoid the late crash coming into the finishing straight and he added: "I looked behind me and saw the other guys on the floor which wasn’t nice but it’s good they are okay and I’m really happy that I was able to pick up a stage win as well.

"I've also got to mention Geraint Thomas who did the longest lead-out ever in the final three kilometres!"

That team ethic was also underlined by Team Principal Dave Brailsford who said: "The time trial performance on Friday was a fantastic ride from Edvald but he won the overall not only because he was the strongest rider but also because he had the strongest team behind him as they've demonstrated this weekend.

"They neutralised everything again today and did a fantastic job. I think it’s another indication of the steps forward the team has made this year. That was a big goal at the start of the season and it’s proving to be exactly what’s happening so we’re very, very happy."

Not surprisingly Sports Director Servais Knaven was equally delighted with the team's display as he said: “That was a perfect day - it was a really good, strong performance from the whole team.

“Flecha got in the early break and he was best-placed on the GC in that group which was great. It meant he didn’t have to ride in the breakaway while the other guys didn’t have to chase in behind. It was up to the other teams to close the gap and that’s what happened which was ideal.

“And then at the final we had seven riders which put us in a great position to control it. They were strong all week and so motivated – when you come to the final with seven riders you’ve got so much morale and so much going for you. It was very hard for anyone to get away."

It all set up Boasson Hagen for the final flourish and Knaven was especially pleased to see him add a stage victory to his overall title, adding: “It was great for Edvald to win today – he’d tried twice to win earlier sprint stages and also went close in the time trials. To do it today in the leader’s jersey is especially nice and the perfect way to end the week."