Rohan Dennis of Team Garmin-Sharp won the inaugural Tour of Alberta, crossing the finish line after more than 900 kilometers over five days, while Ryan Anderson of Vancouver, BC, who grew up in Spruce Grove, AB near Edmonton, took the Best Canadian Jersey honours in eighth place of the overall classification.
Dennis, 23, took possession of the yellow jersey on Day 4, in the third stage finishing in Drumheller. Despite not being in the winning break yesterday, none of the GC contenders were, keeping his jersey for the last day. With a short final stage that finished in a sprint, as expected, no time were gained on the leader, securing him his first race win outside of his native Australia.
Dennis completed the six-day race with an 18 second lead of Brent Bookwalter of BMC Racing team, and 30-second lead on Damino Caruso of Cannondale Pro Cycling.
“It feels pretty good actually. I didn’t expect this. I kept saying it was a goal of mine to come here. I rode really well in the prologue,” said Dennis, donning the yellow jersey. “It was a sprinter’s race, and Peter Sagan has been performing really well, in Utah and Colorado. It’s really a great honour to come home with a win, and it was completely unexpected. This race will always be close to me. Hopefully I can come back next year and prepare for Worlds, and trying to back up my win this year.”
On the last stage, Peter Sagan of Cannondale Pro Cycling crossed the line in a sprint finish, well ahead of the peloton for a typical sprint finish, in front of over 50 000 people gathered in the finishing circuits downtown Calgary.
Ryan Anderson of Vancouver, BC riding with Optum-Kelly Benefits Strategies won the Best Canadian Jersey, rolling in downtown Calgary wearing the red jersey. Anderso, who finished eighth in today’s final stage, had a great read on the decisive move on the third stage, and jumped in break that went all the way to the finish line, with a 17-minute gap on the main group.
“It’s definitely special for Optum-Kelly Benefits, and for me as well. Being the first year of this race, and able to come and be on the podium for the last three days, in front of all the crowds, is something special for me. I was glad to be a part of this first year and take the Best Canadian Jersey,” said Anderson.
“I’m not too surprised about all the crowd. Alberta has always been known for supporting and rallying behind big events. I expected the crowds to be good, and they were. Even along the way, the school kids came out to cheer, and it was fantastic.”
As for the National Team, Antoine Duchesne of Québec, QC had the performance of his life yesterday, making the break and the chase to finish in fifth place, winning the most aggressive rider jersey for the last stage.
“It was a really nice race. I missed my chance in the third stage heading to Drumheller. I am really satisfied with yesterday’s break. I was in the good break yesterday, and today I was active. Again today I was part of some early breaks. I just missed the long break that stood. At the end, I helped place JS [Jean-Sébastien Perron] for the final sprint. It was a good race for the whole team. It was a first for pretty much all of us, racing at this level. Everyone rode well, and it’s fun to see that Canadians can do well in big races.”
Duchesne will now travel to Quebec City, along with seven other guys including Anderson, to suit up for the National team at the Grand Prix cycliste Québec et Montréal. “I feel comfortable on the Quebec City course. The form is really good right now. I’ll do my very best and get the most of that WorldTour race.”
Gord Fraser was pleased with the first edition of this Tour of Alberta, and how his young riders withstood the pressure of racing with big teams.
“I think the race as a whole was a great success. The organizers pulled off a great year for the first year. They have overcome a lot with the unfortunate floods they had here a few months ago, and they pulled it off,” said Gord Fraser, Director Sportif for Cycling Canada.
“It would be nice to have more diversity on the course with stages, in terms of profiles and such. All in all, they handled the organizational aspect, the volunteers, getting the word out very well… The fans were incredible. Just today in Calgary, there were probably over 50 000 people on that circuit. Hats off to the organizers. I am looking forward to next year.”
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2013 TOUR OF ALBERTA – RESULTS, STAGE 3
1. Peter Sagan Slovakia | Cannondale Pro Cycling 2:42:20
2. Luka Mezgec Slovenia | Team Argos-Shimano +0
3. Robert Forster Germany | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling +0
4. Luke Keough United States | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling +0
5. Nicholai Brochner Denmark | Bissell Pro Cycling +0
6. Charles Huff United States | Jelly Belly P/b Kenda +0
7. Brent Bookwalter United States | BMC Racing Team +0
8. Ryan Anderson Canada | Optum P/b Kelly Benefit Strategies +0
9. Tomas Vaitkus Lithuania | ORICA GreenEDGE +0
10. Pierrick Naud Canada | Equipe Garneau-Québecor +0
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28. Antoine Duchesne Canada | Canadian National Team +:07
46. Garrett Mcleod Canada | Canadian National Team +:07
52. Jean-Sebastien Perron Canada | Canadian National Team +:07
63. Jean-Michel Lachance Canada | Canadian National Team +:15
72. Rob Britton Canada | Canadian National Team +:38
73. Stuart Wight Canada | Canadian National Team +:38
76. Ryan Aitcheson Canada | Canadian National Team +:38
100. Derrick St John Canada | Canadian National Team +1:35
2013 TOUR OF ALBERTA – GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Rohan Dennis Australia | Team Garmin-Sharp 17:48:40
2. Brent Bookwalter United States | BMC Racing Team +:18
3. Damiano Caruso Italy | Cannondale Pro Cycling +:30
4. Patrick Gretsch Germany | Team Argos-Shimano +:31
5. Robert Gesink Netherlands | Belkin Pro Cycling Team +:41
6. Robert Sweeting United States | 5-Hour Energy P/b Kenda +:54
7. Francisco Mancebo Spain | 5-Hour Energy P/b Kenda +:55
8. Ryan Anderson Canada | Optum P/b Kelly Benefit Strategies +:56
9. Matthias Friedemann Germany | Champion System Pro Cycling +1:19
10. Steven Kruijswijk Netherlands | Belkin Pro Cycling Team +1:22
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21. Antoine Duchesne Canada | Canadian National Team +8:26
52. Jean-Michel Lachance Canada | Canadian National Team +18:18
53. Rob Britton Canada | Canadian National Team +18:20
66. Jean-Sebastien Perron Canada | Canadian National Team +18:59
68. Garrett Mcleod Canada | Canadian National Team +19:04
85. Derrick St John Canada | Canadian National Team +20:12
89. Ryan Aitcheson Canada | Canadian National Team +20:26
92. Stuart Wight Canada | Canadian National Team +20:31
2013 TOUR OF ALBERTA – THE STAGES
Prologue: Tuesday, September 3; Edmonton (7.3 km)
Stage 1: Wednesday, September 4; Strathcona County to Camrose (158.1 km)
Stage 2: Thursday, September 5; Devon to Red Deer (174.8 km)
Stage 3: Friday, September 6; Strathmore to Drumheller (169.8 km)
Stage 4: Saturday, September 7; Black Diamond/Foothills (169.9 km)
Stage 5: Sunday, September 8 – Okotoks to Calgary (129.4 km)
2013 TOUR OF ALBERTA – THE JERSEYS
Province of Alberta Leader Jersey (Yellow): Rohan Dennis Australia | Team Garmin-Sharp 17:48:40
SUBWAY® Sprint Jersey (Green): Peter Sagan Slovakia | Cannondale Pro Cycling 40pts
Budweiser Crown King of the Mountains Jersey (Red Polka Dots): Tom Jelte Slagter Netherlands | Belkin Pro Cycling Team 37 pts
CWB Best Young Rider Jersey (White): Rohan Dennis Australia | Team Garmin-Sharp 17:48:40
Best Canadian Jersey (Red): Ryan Anderson Canada | Optum P/b Kelly Benefit Strategies +:56
Ron Callahan is the chief cook and bottlewasher at Bike World News, doing everything from website design to bike reviews.