And at the end, the Germans win...
And at the end, the Germans win...
So the first monument of 2015 has been decided, and it’s gone to John Degenkolb, who became the fourth German winner of La Primavera after Rudi Altig, Erik Zabel and Gerald Ciolek.
Degenkolb’s sprint to victory on the Via Roma came after a packed finale of racing that saw Geraint Thomas make a bold break for victory, Mark Cavendish lose another chain, Luca Paolini play the part of a one-man fishing reel (just as well Katusha ride Shimano) and countless riders hit the deck including Philippe Gilbert, Rui Costa, Michal Kwiatkowski, Zdenek Stybar and the aforementioned Ciolek who showed his disgust by slamming his helmet into the Poggio’s tarmac.
But beyond that, what insights has La Primavera given into the rest of the Classics season? What have we gleaned from the first – and longest – Monument of the season? Read on for our thoughts and analysis of the 106th Milan-San Remo.