Cycling: Caleb Ewan has won the first stage of the Deutschland Tour. In Meiningen, the Australian was able to assert himself confidently in front of the Italian Jonathan Milan in the mass sprint. Max Kanter was the best German in third place, ahead of his compatriot Felix Groß. The German Continental teams Dauner | Akkon, Lotto - Kern-Haus and Saris Rouvy - Sauerland. Leader Filippo Ganna was able to defend his red jersey.
Ewan sprints through the small gap
He wasn't about to miss out on what was probably the only sprinter-friendly stage of this year's Deutschland Tour. Caleb Ewan (Lotto – Soudal) won the mass sprint in Meiningen after 171,7 kilometers following the start in Weimar. He even had to hold back a pedal stroke just a few hundred meters from the finish line because his decisive overtaking maneuver was incredibly close. Ultimately, however, the diminutive Australian won the sprint comfortably ahead of the Italian Jonathan Milan (Bahrain – Victorious) and the two Germans Max Kanter (Movistar) and Felix Groß (UAE).
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Strong performance by the German Conti teams
Even though they ultimately couldn't contest the stage win, the German Continental teams put on an excellent performance today. The day's breakaway consisted of Roman Duckert (Dauner | Akkon), Joshua Huppertz (Lotto – Kern-Haus), Jakob Geßner (Lotto – Kern-Haus), and Michiel Stockmann (Saris Rouvy – Sauerland). This meant all three German Continental teams were represented in the breakaway and could contest the King of the Mountains jersey. Jakob Geßner proved to be the strongest, winning every sprint for the mountain points ahead of Roman Duckert. Duckert, however, refused to give up the attack until the very end. Even after his companions had been caught by the peloton, he continued to fight for several more kilometers. Around 13 kilometers from the finish, his offensive push finally came to an end. This was followed by several unsuccessful attacks – including those from last year's winner Nils Politt (Bora – hansgrohe) and race leader Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers).
The final was too difficult for some sprinters
That the Deutschland Tour is a stage race with classic elements was once again evident today. With about 15 kilometers to go, as the route climbed to Dreissigacker, several sprinters, including European champion Fabio Jakobsen (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) and Fernando Gaviria (UAE), were unable to keep up with the pace of the peloton. As a result, a classic sprint finish in Meiningen failed to materialize. The usually fast Dutchman Olav Kooij (Jumbo-Visma) was unable to participate at all. He would have been entitled to wear the polka dot jersey today, but following his crash in yesterday's prologue, he was not at the start line but in the hospital for examination.
Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) Gana la Etapa 1 del Tour de Alemania 2022 #YourTour #Noticiclismo #Ciclismo pic.twitter.com/ijhBQxTbYT
— NotiCiclismo ▶ #LaVuelta22 (@Noticiclismo1) August 25, 2022