Dan Martin 2013 by Dan's Tour

Dan Martin 2013

Ma r c h1 8-2 4

March 18, Stage 1: Calella 159.3km

Meersman wins opening stage at Volta Ciclista a Catalunya Returning from a strong showing at the Tir-

reno Adriatico, Dan Martin has decided to make a last minute schedule change and contest the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, a race that he has contested and recorded superb results at in the past, although to date, failing to capture that elusive win that would secure his status as one of the top riders in the world.

On the opening stage of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, all predictions were that the winner would come from a bunch sprint, but Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky had other plan’s. On the final climb, the category 3-rated Alt de Collsacreu, whose summit was situated 18km from the finish, Wiggins and Team Sky came to the front and on the technical descent, a group of 13 formed off the front of the peloton. Many of the race’s GC contenders marked the move with former Volta Ciclista a Catalunya champions Alejandro Valverde (Movistar), Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) and Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) in the mix along with Meersman, Agnoli, Daniel Martin (Garmin-Sharp), Danilo Wyss (BMC), Robert Gesink (Blanco), Przemyslaw Niemiec (Lampre-Merida) and Jose Herrada (Movistar). Sky kept the tempo high on the flat run-in to the finish with Wiggins leading out the sprint. Daniel Martin jumped in a bid for victory but Meersman’s finishing kick was too strong in the closing metres. By the time they came on to the finishing straight, they had pulled out a sizeable gap. The sprint into Calella was won by Gianni Meersman (Omega Pharma-Quick Step), followed by Valerio Agnoli (Astana) and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar). By the time Garmin Sharp’s Koldo Fernandez led through the remainder of the peloton in 14th place, 28 seconds had passed. With time bonuses factored the 27-year-old Belgian, Meersman lead Agnoli by four seconds and Valverde by six seconds on general classification. Was the winner of the Volta to come from this group at such an early stage?

General classification after stage 1 1 Gianni Meersman (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quick Step

3:55:46

2 Valerio Agnoli (Ita) Astana Pro Team 3 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team

4 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp 5 Danilo Wyss (Swi) BMC Racing Team

0:00:04

0:00:06 0:00:10

March 19, Stage 2: Girona - Banyole 160.7km

Meersman wins Catalunya stage to Banyole

Stage two started out on what is home ground for Daniel Martin. He has lived and trained in Girona for many years now since joining what is now the Garmin Sharp team, whose European HQ is in Girona.

For the second stage in a row, GC leader Gianni Meersman (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) triumphed, timing his sprint to perfection on the slightly uphill finale in Banyole. Daniele Ratto (Cannondale) finished second on the day, while Brett Lancaster (Orica GreenEdge) rounded out the top three in a field sprint finale marred by a crash in the final 200 metres. Meersman again picked up the stage winnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10-second time bonus and extended his overall lead to 14 seconds on Agnoli while Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) held third on general classification at 16 seconds. Daniel Martin slipped down to 10th on GC, losing 10â&#x20AC;? to overall leader Gianni Meersman, but holds the same time as those positioned from 4th to 9th. A big day awaits on stage Three.

General classification after stage 2 1 Gianni Meersman (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quick Step

7:43:46

2 Valerio Agnoli (Ita) Astana Pro Team

0:00:14

3 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team

0:00:16

4 Danilo Wyss (Swi) BMC Racing Team

0:00:20

5 Robert Gesink (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team 6 Dario Cataldo (Ita) Sky Procycling

7 David Lopez Garcia (Spa) Sky Procycling 8 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling

9 Jesus Herrada Lopez (Spa) Movistar Team 10 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp

March 20, Stage 3: Vidreres - Vallter 2000-Setcases 180.1km

Quintana triumphs on Vallter 2000 summit finish The final few kilometres of stage three were decisive in shaking

up the GC with Nairo Quintana winning on the mountain top finish, giving Movistar a one-two finish on the day with Alejandro Valverde securing second place six seconds later ahead of Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) and Bradley Wiggins (Sky) on the summit of the Vallter 2000 ski resort. Valverde moved into the race lead with four seconds on both Wiggins and Rodriguez while Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) holds fourth overall at seven seconds. With one KM to go, Wiggins exploded and only a dozen riders were left to contest as Quintana made his move in the final turn. Rodriguez not able to hold the Quintana’s wheel and Valverde stuck to the Katusha rider’s wheel all the way to the line, eventually coming around Rodriguez to take second, with Wiggins fourth on the stage. Valverde, the 2009 Volta a Catalunya champion, now holds the leader’s jersey with the Queen stage coming up tomorrow. 11 riders are within 35 seconds of Valverde, on general classification, including Irelands Dan Martin. Dan finished the stage in 19th position and was disappointed to lost 32”. Commenting on twitter, Martin said;

During interview, race leader Valverde said “Tomorrow’s stage is gonna be a really, really hard one, more than today,We’ll be reaching heights over 2,000 metres above sea level again and the finish is steep, especially after a 217-kilometre stage. We’ll see how it all ends.”

General classification after stage 3 1 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team

12:45:28

2 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling

0:00:04

3 Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha

0:00:05

4 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre-Merida

0:00:07

5 Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol) Lampre-Merida

6 Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team 7 Robert Gesink (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team 8 David Lopez Garcia (Spa) Sky Procycling 9 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp 10 Peter Stetina (USA) Garmin-Sharp

“Little did the peloton expect what was to come on Thursday. Had anyone paid attention to Daniel Martin’s tweet #fullpower. If they didn’t, they should have!”

March 21, Stage 4: Llanars-Vall de Camprodon - Port Ainé-Rialp 217.7km

Dan Martin wins queen stage of Catalunya

Stage four - March 21st is a date that Daniel Martin won’t forget for a long time, conquering the

Queen stage and finish up to Port Aine – Rialp in dramatic fashion. His solo victory on the Port Ainé-Rialp summit finish propelled Dan into the overall race lead. Martin was the sole survivor of a large, 23-man escape which formed after about an hour of racing and ended with Dan eventually dropping everyone and pushing on for a glorious and memorable victory. This stage was the longest day in the saddle featuring five categorised climbs throughout the mountainous, 217.7km stage. The two most difficult ascents, a pair of hors catégorie climbs, were reserved for the stage finale with first the Port del Cantó at 172.3km followed by the final climb to the finish at Port Ainé-Rialp, whose 18.9km route into the snow line and 2,000 metre elevation averaged 6.5 percent with a maximum gradient of 12 percent. By the time Martin finished, he had been in the saddle 6 hours, 2 minutes and 40 seconds! Martin was quick to acknowledge the effort and support of team Garmin and especially 2012 Giro D’Italia winner Ryder Hesjedal. Overnight leader Alejandro Valverde (Movistar), along with teammate Eros Capecchi, crashed midway through the stage and both abandoned the race. Today will go down in Irish Cycling History. After the promise shown throughout his career, with a stage win in the Vuelta, incredible Classics showing in 2012, Wins in the Tour of Poland and many other incredible results, this was the one that resonated most back home in Ireland. Sean Kelly had last won the Volta in 1986 – The same year Dan Martin was born. Could it be that Dan could maintain the slender 10” gap over second place and 2012 World Number One Joaquim Rodriguez, all the way to finish.

General classification after stage 4 1 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp 2 Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha

18:48:38

0:00:10

3 Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team 0:00:32 4 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling

0:00:36

5 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre-Merida 6 Robert Gesink (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team 7 Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol) Lampre-Merida 8 Peter Stetina (USA) Garmin-Sharp 9 Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ 10 Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Lotto Belisol

March 22, Stage 5: Rialp - Lleid 156.5km

Parisien sprints to stage 5 win in Catalunya If ever there was proof that Dan Martin was not going

to relinquish the lead of the Volta, this was the day that showed it. By the end of the stage, Dan would extend his lead over Rodriguez by an additional 4 seconds. After several getaway attempts throughout the stage, the peloton eventually came together, however the pace being driven on the front created a slight split with 13 riders taking a 3 second gap, and Dan Martin was right up there, finishing the stage in 9th position. Intelligent riding also saw Dan collecting a 1” time bonus in the day’s final intermediate sprint. François Parisien won the bunch sprint that decided stage 5 of the Volta a Catalunya into Lleida. Garmin-Sharp’s Dan Martin retained the leader’s jersey and with only 2 stages left, victory was becoming more and more of a reality.

General classification after stage 5 1 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp

22:20:39

2 Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha

0:00:14

3 Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team 0:00:42 4 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling

0:00:46

March 23, Stage 6: Almacelles - Valls 178.7k

Gerrans wins chaotic sprint in Catalunya Heading into Stage 6, race leader Dan Martin

held a 14” lead over Rodriguez and 42” over third placed Quintana. By the end of stage 6, this lead would be stretched to 17” after Martin took a 3” time bonus at another hot spot sprint! Once again, the pace on today’s stage was blistering with an average speed of 45.55kmph bringing the peloton in 30 minutes ahead of schedule. A well-timed final acceleration netted Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEDGE) the victory in the small group bunch sprint that decided the second last stage of the Volta a Catalunya, whilst Dan Martin (GarminSharp) finished safely in the front group of 17 splitting the peloton on the final run in and opening up a 10” gap to 18th place Steve Morabito of BMC. Gerrans received the stage winner’s prize from the parents of Xavier Tondo, the Catalan rider born in the finish town of Valls and who died in a freak accident in a garage in May 2011. The stage paid homage to Tondo - a winner of stages both in the Volta and Paris-Nice - with the finish outside the town’s sports stadium, named after him, and later that evening his biography El triomf de l’obstinació, [the triumph of stubbornness] was presented in the town’s main theatre. With a 17” lead heading into the Volta’s final stage on Sunday, Victory is now in sight for Dan Martin. The final circuit has a notoriously tricky finish with eight laps of the Montjuic circuit for the peloton. Time bonuses are on offer and a spectacular finale to the 2013 Volta is set up. History has shown that Rodriguez will not give up without a fight.

General classification after stage 6 1 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin-Sharp

26:16:22

2 Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha

0:00:17

3 Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team 0:00:45 4 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) Sky Procycling

0:00:54

5 Michele Scarponi (Ita) Lampre-Merida 6 Robert Gesink (Ned) Blanco Pro Cycling Team 7 Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol) Lampre-Merida 8 Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ 9 Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Bel) Lotto Belisol 10 Peter Stetina (USA) Garmin-Sharp

March 24, Stage 7: El Vendrell - Barcelona (MontjuĂŻc) 122.2km

De Gendt wins atop MontjuĂŻc in Catalunya but Martin wins overall

After a run-in along the coast to Barcelona, the Volta concluded with eight circuits of the Montjuic

park, including a short, sharp two kilometre climb and ultra-fast descent to the finish. In 122.2km, Dan Martin would walk onto the stage and be crowned Winner for 2013, once he could hold off a determined and explosive Rodriguez. Once again the pace was frantic, with nearly 50km being covered in the first hour. A ten rider breakaway moved off the front on the run-in to Barcelona and Katusha, knowing that the gaps between Rodriguez and Martin were minimal, kept up a fast pace behind and on each ascent of the Montjuic, more and more riders were shelled from the break. With 22 kilometres to go, De Gendt and David Lopez (Sky ProCycling) bridged across with Lotto-Belisolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s TIm Wellens, leaving the remnants of the morning break behind.

But it was only when Scarponi bounded away from the Katusha, Blanco and Garmin led pack, bringing RadioShack’s Robert Kiserovski in his wake, that the break, now up to five riders, really began to function well. Less than a minute behind Martin overall and with nothing to lose so late in the race, Scarponi’s long, steady drives had a huge impact, and with two laps left, the margin of the five stage leaders rose to a perilous 35 seconds. With Movistar and Garmin driving hard on the front, the threat of Scarponi was dealt with and victory was now in sight. Rodriguez made one last attempt to break the Race Leader, but Martin – full of confidence and determination was not letting him away and hugged his wheel at every attempt made by Rodriguez. At the stage end, De Gendt blasted past the other four breakaways to take his first win of 2013 in masterly fashion, with the main peloton coming across the line 21 seconds back. Martin crossed the line on the final stage in 42nd position, 21” down on stage winner De Gendt. Daniel Martin had sealed his greatest Victory - the 2013 Volta Ciclista a Catalunya. Garmin Sharp also won the Teams Classification

Final general classification 1 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin Sharp