Philippe Gilbert the new Classics King ?

As I spent a long weekend in Nanjing (more later), I did not see Philippe Gilbert's superb victory in the Dutch classic Amstel Gold Race last Sunday. A very significant win for his Omega Pharma-Lotto team, which had not scored a single win this season, and for himself. Philippe Gilbert is very much shaking the throne of Tom Boonen in Belgium, and many experts actually feel he has already dethroned the Quickstep ace! Boonen may have had his most solid spring campaign ever, he did not win. Gilbert, on the other hand, scored his third classics' success in less than half a year! As such, outsprinting Boonen in Paris-Tours last October is becoming highly symbolic.

In the Amstel, Gilbert rode like in the Giro di Lombardia at the end of last season. With grinta. Not afraid to attack, to take responsibility when others go (Cunego was quite active last Sunday, for instance) and with the kind of accelerating power that remind many of the best years of Paolo Bettini. His big objective now is of course to take victory in front of his home crowd in Liege-Bastogne-Liege next Sunday. But Gilbert fears Alejandro Valverde, the explosive Spaniard who has won already twice in Liege and who may indeed be faster in the final strait. It will be interesting.

Amstel Gold Race:

1. Philippe Gilbert (BEL, Omega Pharma-Lotto)
2. Ryder Hesjedal (DEN, Garmin) at 2"
3. Enrico Gasparotto (ITA, Astana)
4. Bert De Waele (BEL, Landbouwkrediet) at 5"
5. Roman Kreuziger (CZE, Liquigas)
6. Damiano Cunego (ITA, Lampre)
7. Frank Schleck (LUX, Saxo Bank) at 7"
8. Marco Marcato (ITA, Vacansoleil) at 9"
9. Karsten Kroon (NED, BMC Racing)
10.Chris Horner (USA, RadioShack) at 11"

Links

Final kilometers Amstel Gold Race 2010
Ascents of Eyserbosweg and Keutenberg