16 Aug 2020
Sivakov fourth after battling ride
Related riders
Pavel Sivakov
Criterium du Dauphine - Stage five: Megève › Megève, 153.5km
Pavel Sivakov bounced back from a hard crash to pull off a valiant ride to fourth place on the final day of the Criterium du Dauphine.
The Team INEOS rider was active throughout the 153.5-kilometre test, forcing his way into numerous breaks, before going clear alongside Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) on the Col de la Colombière.
The pair combined well, only for Sivakov to go down on a descent with around 30km to go. That helped a group of contenders draw level, with a cat and mouse battle ensuing on the run-in. Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) pulled clear to take the stage, with Daniel Martinez (EF Cycling) finishing second to claim overall victory.
Fourth place, 45 seconds back, saw Sivakov elevate himself up to 11th place overall.
The Team INEOS rider was active throughout the 153.5-kilometre test, forcing his way into numerous breaks, before going clear alongside Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) on the Col de la Colombière.
The pair combined well, only for Sivakov to go down on a descent with around 30km to go. That helped a group of contenders draw level, with a cat and mouse battle ensuing on the run-in. Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) pulled clear to take the stage, with Daniel Martinez (EF Cycling) finishing second to claim overall victory.
Fourth place, 45 seconds back, saw Sivakov elevate himself up to 11th place overall.
Jonathan Castroviejo rode well, providing support for Sivakov in a pair of breakaways
Reaction
- Pavel Sivakov
“It was a crazy day I have to say.
- Pavel Sivakov
“It was a crazy day I have to say.
“I’m all good. Obviously [to crash] is not ideal. You have to just forget about it and just recover as best as possible.
“I was feeling really good today and I hoped I could be up there for the victory. I was pulling in the break all day and [Kuss] was able to sit in the wheels. For sure I had the legs for the victory today. It was my strategy to go in the break early but they pulled us back.
“We’re going to do some recons in the next few days. Tomorrow we’ll have a day off. It’s been a really hard week but now it’s time to get ready for the Tour.”
Elsewhere the Tour de Wallonie got under way in Belgium. A late downpour made for tricky conditions on the opening stage, with Chris Lawless the first Team INEOS rider home in 34th. Caleb Ewan (Lotto Soudal) won the opening bunch kick to move into an early race lead.
