BMC Racing Team’s Silvan Dillier out-sprinted Serghei Tvetcov (Jelly Belly presented by Kenda) to win Thursday’s Stage 2 of the Tour of Alberta after the pair rode the final 80 kilometers of the 174.8-km race together.
‘Tried To Save Something’
Dillier – a stagiaire signed from the BMC Development Team last month – and Tvetcov slipped the peloton after the second intermediate sprint. They eventually built a five-and-a-half-minute lead in a race that featured an average speed of 49.2 kph. “I think everybody was a little bit tired after all the attacks,” Dillier said. “So at first we had a big gap. We tried to save something for the final because we knew they wanted to have the bunch sprint again. Then, the last 30 kilometers were going to be really hard. So we tried to save something to go to the end.” The two led by 90 seconds with 10 km to go and by 30 seconds inside the final kilometer. They arrived 16 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Peter Sagan (Cannondale Pro Cycling), who kept the overall lead after winning the race’s first two stages, and 18 seconds ahead of the field. Dillier added to victories he scored for the BMC Development Team at the Tour de Normandie overall in March, the final stage of Triptyque Ardennais and Cham-Hagendorn in May and at Flèche Ardennaise in June.
Two Victories In One Day
BMC Racing Team Assistant Director Jackson Stewart said once Dillier was away with Tvetcov, he convinced the Swiss Under 23 road champion he could make it to the finish. “To tell him to go with 80 kilometers left, no one believes he can win,” Stewart said. “So to win like this is huge. To win for us – in his first pro race – and to win a stage that you didn’t have the biggest favorites as chances to win, is a great feeling for us.” Dillier earned his victory about five hours after world road champion Philippe Gilbert won his first race of the season on Stage 12 at the Vuelta a España. It marked the third time in the past 13 months that the BMC Racing Team has won two races in one day. Last August, Taylor Phinney won the final stage at the USA Pro Challenge the same day Gilbert won Stage 9 of the Vuelta. The same month, Johann Tschopp won the overall title at the Larry H. Miller hours after Alessandro Ballan took the final stage of the Eneco Tour of Benelux. In the overall standings, BMC Racing Team’s Cadel Evans and Brent Bookwalter remain fourth and fifth, respectively, 36 and 37 seconds off Sagan’s lead.
Ron Callahan is the chief cook and bottlewasher at Bike World News, doing everything from website design to bike reviews.