 |
|
||
 |
|||
 |
 |
 |
   | 
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Hushovd sprints to Wevelgem glory
 Hushovd proved the stronger in a sprint finish in Wevelgem. WEVELGEM, Belgium -- Thor Hushovd became the first Norwegian to win the Ghent-Wevelgem classic as he pipped Germany's David Kopp and Italian ace Alessandro Petacchi in a sprint finish to the Pro Tour event on Wednesday. Petacchi and his Milram team upped the pace midway through the 210-km test, but despite shaking off world champion and Pro Tour leader Tom Boonen, missed out on victory. "It was very close, he (Petacchi) had a very good attack, and probably started the sprint very early," Hushovd said. Boonen, fresh from his Tour of Flanders win on Sunday, lost contact with the leaders when the bunch split on the second ascent of the Koppenberg climb. The Belgian remains Pro Tour leader ahead of this weekend's Paris-Roubaix classic. Milan-San Remo winner, Filippo Pozzato of Italy, initiated the closing sprint 1.3km from the line, but was overtaken in the dying meters and finished fifth. The two climbs of Mount Kemmel had seen the riders bunch up before a 40-strong peloton broke away with 40km to go. In other Pro Tour action on Wednesday, Spain's Samuel Sanchez won stage three of the Tour of the Basque Country from Segura to Lerin. The Euskaltel rider beat Italy's Davide Rebellin and compatriot Alberto Contador on the steep finish to the village of Lerin. Thanks to his win Sanchez kept the overall race lead. The Tour of the Basque Country ends on Saturday. 
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
| © 2007 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us. Site Map. |
|
External sites open in new window; not endorsed by CNN.com
Pay service with live and archived video. 
