Handzame Classic 2018 Preview
By David Hunter
Bredene – Handzame 204km
Ready for more fun in Belgium?
This is one for the sprinters. The main climb, the Kemmelberg, comes with over 100km still remaining. Once into the lap circuit, we only have just 500m at 3.4% of climbing. As I said, this is one for the sprinters!
Weather
There might be the odd shower, but mainly it should be a dry day, with little wind around.
Contenders
Kristoffer Halvorsen – the 21 year old Norwegian is a huge prospect. He won the under 23 World Championship RR in 2016 and has regularly been taking victories for a number of years. Halvorsen possess a very fast sprint, that’s why Team Sky signed him up. Interestingly, he should have Chris Lawless in his sprint train, they were big rivals in the under 23 ranks. Halvorsen will be very keen to take his first win for Sky.
Fabio Jakobsen – from one young sprinter to another. The 21 year old took a long list of victories in 2017, which landed him a contract with QuickStep. His bosses will have carefully mapped out his season, thinking hard about where to give him opportunities. It seems clear they have marked Nokere and Handzame as two of his big targets. His win on Wednesday was very impressive, it was a very powerful sprint. It will be fun to see if he can repeat that success.
Matteo Pelucchi – it’s contract year for the Italian, expect a big season! He started the season in Argentina, taking two 3rd places. The good run continued in the Algarve, finishing 2nd to Groenewegen in the uphill sprint. Bora arrive with a number of quick men, we shall have to see if Pelucchi gets the nod. Whatever happens, they’ll have a strong sprint train.
Timothy Dupont – awful on Wednesday. I have no idea what to expect from him.
Jonas Rickaert – brilliant to see him recover from an unlucky start to the season. The track star is one of the rising stars of Flemish cycling. He has plenty of pace and is very good at positioning. Sport Vlaanderen will hopefully give him their full backing, although they do have some other quick men.
Adam Blythe – the former British champion started the season well in Dubai, taking a 3rd and 4th place. 2017 was a nearly year for him, he ended the season with four 2nd places. Aqua Blue have committed to him and signed Shane Archbold, the expert lead out man. This was one of his 2nd places from last year, can he take his first win for Aqua Blue?
Lorrenzo Manzin – having moved from FDJ to Vital Concept, this is a rare leadership opportunity. Manzin is an improving sprinter, I was a little surprised to see him leave FDJ. He ended 2017 by finishing 2nd in the final stage of the Vuelta, a result which cannot be overlooked. He was on form at the weekend, finishing 2nd in Paris-Troyes.
Baptiste Planckaert – looked strong on Wednesday, getting into the big move. Unfortunately for him, the move didn’t work, but it was still impressive work from him, especially as he finished 6th in the sprint. Not the fastest in a flat sprint, he’ll need to be well placed as the sprint opens. Looking at his team, I’m not sure this will happen.
Prediction Time
I’m excited to see the young guns go head to head. The best lead out man in the race is Rudi Selig, that gives Matteo Pelucchi a big chance, but I don’t think he’ll have enough to win. Instead, I’ll go with Kristoffer Halvorsen, this kid has a big future.
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