Arnaud Demare (FDJ.fr) won the final stage of the Tour de Picardie and with it, the Frenchman took out the overall honours as well. Ramon Sinkledam (Giant-Shimano) finished 2nd on the stage with Gianni Meersman (Omega Pharma – Quickstep) in 3rd place today. Team MTN-Qhubeka p/b Samsung were hoping Kristian Sbaragli could do something in the finale but despite a good position with 500m to go, Sbaragli ended in 26th place.
Sbaragli would finish the race in 16th place overall after two decent sprints on the first two stages. It was always going to be tough during the final stage though as Team MTN-Qhubeka p/b Samsung were down to just the 4 riders for the final day. The African team now look ahead to the World Ports Classic as well as the Tour of Norway both starting next week.
Stage Results
Tour de Picardie (France) – (16-18 May/UCI2.1) Team Lineup
Staff: Michel Cornelisse (Directeur Sportif), Bastian Buffel (Soigneur), Daniele Nieri (Mechanic), Andreas Beck-Watt (Mechanic)
