Cadel Evans attacks to world road title

Evans Races Home,
originally uploaded by Dot Cycling.

Maybe Australia's Cadel Evans was just waiting for the right moment.

Evans, who has earned a reputation as a GC rider who is content to ride within himself and wait for others to fail, launched a brilliant attack from about 4 kilometers out, then fought off a counter by Alexander Kolobnev and Joaquin Rodriguez to take the biggest win of his road career.

Fabian Cancellara, a fatally marked man racing on Swiss soil, laid waste to a quality escape group including Tom Boonen, defending world champion Alessandro Ballan, Michael Rogers and others with about 2 laps to ride. Cancellara brought Evans, Alejandro Valverde, and a number of other strong riders along and may have dulled his amazing afterburners before the decisive move came on the final lap.

With no one in his group (including Basso, Pozzato, Valverde, Sanchez) willing to chase, Cancellara finally went after the 3 men up the road with only a little more than a kilometer to race, and by then the race was over. Adding insult to injury, Sammy Sanchez outsprinted the newly minted world TT champion to the line to take 4th overall at :30.

Australia has never had a world road race champion, despite world titles in most other cycling disciplines, and the win by Evans is the perfect prelude to the 2010 World Championships, to be held in his hometown of Geelong, Australia.

Also:

grahamwatson.com | 2009 World Road Championships photo gallery

cyclingnews.com | Evans becomes road World Champion in Mendrisio