Today the Grand Prix de Plouay was contested in Bretagne. Jürgen Roelandts sprinted to the fourth place in this WorldTour race. A group of four with Berhane and Fouchard had a maximal advantage of more than sixteen minutes on the circuit of 27 kilometers. In the penultimate of nine laps attacks in the background were numerous. Among others Lotto Belisol riders Dirk Bellemakers and Jürgen Roelandts showed themselves. On the Côte de Ty-Marrec, a climb of four kilometers from the finish line, the escapees were caught. A compact peloton entered the final lap.
An attack of Devenyns and Tom Dumoulin came to an end when Lotto Belisol took control. When Giovanni Visconti took off 13,5 km from the end Tim Wellens responded. Koren joined the duo. They never got big gap. With five kilometers left the break with Wellens was caught. It was an animated final phase with attacks of Gasparotto and Van Avermaet. Roelandts was very attentive in the front rows of the chase. In the last hectometers Van Avermaet was reeled in. Filippo Pozzato won the sprint before Giacomo Nizzolo and Samuel Dumoulin. Jürgen Roelandts crossed the finish line as fourth.
Jürgen Roelandts: “Unfortunately it wasn’t a podium place, it was only a difference of about four centimeters with the third place, but I’m pretty satisfied with this result. After the Tour, which I rode with a broken rib, it went a bit less. In the Eneco Tour I noticed some improvement and then today this. The condition is going upwards.”
“Bellemakers did place us good in the front in the final and Wellens set me in a comfortable position by going in the break. In the final phase I could join a group of six together with Leukemans, there were two guys of BMC. The peloton wasn’t that far behind us and that moment I decided to sprint. When we were caught with one and a half kilometer to go, I came in the wheel of Nizzolo with 600 meters to go. He took off pretty early and I could follow. But I couldn’t pass him, because of that attack before I didn’t have enough power; that probably was the difference between the fourth and third place. Of course cycling isn’t an exact science.”