Kazakh triumphs in oldest classic
 |  Vinokourov (right) and Voigt battle it out in the Ardennes hills. |
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LIEGE, Belgium -- An emotional Alexandre Vinokourov claimed his second victory in a one-day classic and gave his T-Mobile team its first big win of a difficult season by triumphing in the Liege-Bastogne-Liege on Sunday.
The Kazakh outsprinted breakaway partner Jens Voigt of CSC at the finish of the 260km test in the Belgian Ardennes and promptly burst into tears.
Dutchman Michael Boogerd finished third in cycling's oldest classic, the 10th leg of the 27-race Pro Tour.
"I said this morning that I would not wait for the finish, it was too dangerous with riders like Danilo Di Luca or Davide Rebellin," said Vinokourov.
"When I saw Voigt take off like a Boeing, I told myself it was my chance," he added.
It was also a great return to form for the Kazakh as he missed the Tour de France last summer after crashing badly in the Tour de Suisse.
Australia's Cadel Evans led the final chase of the leading two but the Lotto rider finished fifth behind two-time former winner Paolo Bettini, the reigning Olympic champion.
Vinokourov's win meant Italian Danilo Di Luca, the winner of last week's Amstel Gold Race and the Fleche Wallonne in midweek, failed to achieve his aim of winning the three "Ardennes Classics", which compatriot Davide Rebellin achieved last year.
Di Luca retains his overall lead in the ProTour by 19 points from Belgian Tom Boonen.
Rebellin finished almost four minutes behind with Di Luca in tow.
Vinokourov, whose only previous success in a one-day classic was the Amstel Gold Race in 2003, attacked with Voigt in one of the last of the 14 hills of the day, the Vecquee climb, to part company with the leaders.
The pair joined forces and took a lead of nearly a minute over the main chasers.
