The Tirreno-Adriatico ended on Tuesday  with a 10-kilometre time trial through the city of San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy, alongside the Adriatic Sea. Rick Flens led Team LottoNL-Jumbo home with the 34th best time.

“I just went full-throttle today,” the Dutchman explained after he had set a time of 12'11. “The road was a bit wet and some parts were really slippery. I didn’t take unnecessary risks in the corners.”

Trek Factory Racing rider Fabian Cancellara was supreme on the Adriatic coastline. The Swiss claimed the stage win thanks to a time of 11’23”. Nairo Quintana secured the overall victory on Tuesday.

Special race

Nico Verhoeven named the 50th edition of the Tirreno-Adriatico a ‘special race’. “Today was the final stretch of a special race,” the Sports Director said.

“We missed a number of riders this week and we didn’t even start with a fully fit group. The guys who have made it to the end have improved over the race. Some have even been able to recover. I think, things worked out well.”

Flens on right path
Flens looked back on the Italian stage race with a good feeling. “I rolled through the race pretty well,” he said.

“I think I’m on the right path. I would like to keep going like this. Due to circumstances, we didn’t have a real leader here and that asked for a different strategy. I look forward to race with a leader again so we can aim for a real result.”