Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2021: Ballerini wins bunch sprint

foto: Cor VosOmloop Het Nieuwsblad is played out in calm weather, resulting an remarkable ending. But the winning team is not. Davide Ballerini wins the bunch sprint for Deceuninck-QuickStep. (Slideshow route/profile)

Results Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2021

1. Davide Ballerini (ita)
2. Jake Stewart (gbr) s.t.
3. Sep Vanmarcke (bel) s.t.
4. Heinrich Haussler (ger) s.t.
5. Philippe Gilbert (bel) s.t.
6. Alex Aranburu (spa) s.t.
7. Florian Sénéchal (fra) s.t.
8. Matteo Trentin (ita) s.t.
9. Kevin Geniets (lux) s.t.
10. Nils Politt (ger) s.t.

Race report
Kenny De Ketele, Bert De Backer, Yevgeniy Fedorov, Ryan Gibbons and Matis Louvel establish the breakaway early on. The five race to a lead of more than 8 minutes before the peloton accelerates.

When the gap has fallen below 1 minute Olav Kooij and Johan Jacobs bridge across.

Trentin accelerates on Molenberg and the peloton breaks. With Alaphilippe, Ballerini, Stybar, Trentin, Van Avermaet, Laporte, Martinelli, Livyns, De Bie, Gogle and Vanmarcke the Italian joins the lead group. Pidcock and Geniets also make it across.

Alaphilippe goes solo on the Berendries, with 33 kilometres to go. He opens up a maximum gap of 25 seconds, but it comes down.

Approaching the Wall of Geraardsbergen Van Avermaet, Vanmarcke, Trentin, Pidcock, Jacobs, Livyns, Geniets, Ballerini, Gogl en Laporte are the remaining chasers. While catching Alaphilippe just before the steep climb, they are themselves caught by the group chasing them.

Moscon is the first rider over the top, but the Italian enjoys a small lead and he is brought back at the Bosberg.

The Omloop Het Nieuwsblad comes down to an unusual ending, a bunch sprint. Bardinelli says thank you wins the race a bike length ahead of Haussler and Vanmarcke.

Another interesting read: route 2021 Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.