The second stage of the VDK-Driedaagse De Panne-Koksijde was, on paper, a race for the sprinters. But hardly anyone expected Sacha Modolo (Lampre-Merida) to emerge victorious. The Italian triumphed after a strong lead-out by his teammates, ahead of Arnaud Démare (FDJ.fr) and Alexander Kristoff (Katusha). Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) was boxed in during the final meters and was visibly frustrated with his eighth-place finish.
As the day before, an escape group dominated the action. Belgian Sébastian Rosseler (Veranclassic-Doltcini), James Vanlandschoot (Wanty-Groupe Gobert), Jelle Wallays (Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise), Marco Canola (Bardiani-CSF), Antonio Parrinello (Androni Giocattoli-Venuzuela), Daniele Colli (Yello Fluo ) and Alessandro Bazzana (UnitedHealthcare) were not unlucky. When the sprinter teams finally took the lead in the field, the maximum lead of seven minutes dropped.
But not only the stage final was marked by a surprise. Overall leader Peter Sagan (Cannondale) also made headlines when he retired from the race. After losing contact with the field, he got off his bike prematurely, probably also to save his strength for the upcoming Tour of Flanders. However, his teammate Oscar Gatto, who finished second yesterday, was unable to take the overall lead. Rather, Gert Steegmans (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) now takes the top position.
Result
1 Sacha Modolo (Ita) Lampre-Merida 4:28:15
2 Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ
3 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) Katusha Team
4 Ruslan Tleubayev (Kaz) Astana Pro Team
5 Danilo Napolitano (Ita) Wanty-Groupe Gobert
Total
1 Gert Steegmans (Bel) Omega Pharma-Quick Step 8:57:45
2 Oscar Gatto (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling 0:00:01
3 Kenneth Van Bilsen (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise 0:00:03
4 Niki Terpstra (Ned) Omega Pharma Quick Step 0:00:05
5 Mauro Finetto (Ita) Neri Sottoli 0:00:09