stage 9 report and quotes
New Zealand national champion Joe Cooper of IsoWhey Sports-Swisswellness fended off the whole peloton for the last twelve kilometers to claim the conclusive stage ahead of Emils Liepins (Delko Marseille) and Andriy Kulyk (Kolss) in Wanning Xinglong. Neo pro Jacopo Mosca (Wilier Triestina) took his first ever stage race victory despite losing the support of five-time stage winner Jakub Mareczko who sustained a flat tyre with 10km to go.
95 riders started stage 9 in Lingshui. Edoardo Zardini (Bardiani CSF) was the first to run away from the peloton but he got reined at km 11. Mirko Maestri and Paolo Simion (Bardiani CSF), Jure Rupnik (H&R Block), Reid McClure (Novo Nordisk), Eugert Zhupa (Wilier Triestina), Oleksandr Prevar (Kolss), Steven Cuesta (Hainan Jilun), Lukas Spengler (Switzerland), Ivar Slik (Monkey Town), Rodrigo Araque (Ukyo), Jordan Cheyne (Jelly Belly) and Gian Friesecke (Vorarlberg) were next on the move but they got caught at km 35.
Cooper rode away from the bunch to win the KOM price at the two cat. 3 climbs at km 40.9 and 43.7 with his team-mate Sam Crome coming twice second and thus securing the polka dot jersey. Cooper got reeled in at km 60 but went again with Alexis Cartier (H&R Block), Rob Stannard (Mitchelton-Scott) and Ulises Castillo (Jelly Belly). As a crucial intermediate sprint was looming at km 91, the quartet got pulled back and GC contenders Liepins, Myhkaylo Kononenko (Kolss) and Marco Zanotti (Monkey Town) sprinted in that order to catch three, two and one seconds bonus respectively.
Cartier, Cuesta and Gordian Banzer (Switzerland) went on the move, rejoined by Simion, Michael Sheehan (Jelly Belly) and Reinier Honig (Vorarlberg). Wilier led the peloton and the breakaway only enjoyed 35 seconds lead with 55km to go. Attacking machine Cartier went alone with 45km to go. Cartier and Sheehan led with 15km to go but as they got reeled in, Cooper escaped 12km before the end.
Mosca closely watched an attack by Marc De Maar (Hengxiang), but Mareczko’s puncture 10km before the end disturbed the plans of Wilier Triestina and their opponents. Cooper stayed away while the peloton was sprinting right behind him, Liepins taking the second place that propelled him into third overall behind Mosca and Benjamin Prades (Ukyo).
Post race quotes
Overall winner Jacopo Mosca: “I still can’t believe that I’ve won the Tour of Hainan. I have to thank all my team-mates because today again they’ve been fabulous. It’s a great emotion. It’ll take some time for me to realize what happened. Going for the time bonuses, [Marco] Zanotti and [Mykhaylo] Kononenko have made me sweat until the very end. The overall classification being so tight, it was normal. Looking back, had I gained a bit more time in stage 7, I would have been more serene today. Unfortunately, today we also had the card of the sprint to play with Kuba [Mareczko] but he punctured with ten kilometers to go. We’ve been unlucky because had he been able to sprint, we could have relied on him for taking the time bonuses. But luckily, one rider went solo and collected the ten seconds of the win that were precious. He made a very strong action. I’ll always remember my win here. It’ll remain my first one as a pro. But I’ll remain a team player, ready to work for other, and hopefully I’ll find a few more occasions in my career to get a result like this one.”
Stage 9 winner Joe Cooper: “We didn’t really want a bunch kick because we didn’t have any sprinter in our team today. We sort of invent a solo breakaway that was about twelve k long. I managed to hold on and avoid the bunch kick. We got the job done, which our sprinters [Anthony Giacoppo and Michael Freiberg who were no longer in the race] were philandering a bit. Hopefully I’ve showed them how to do it next time… This win is right up there [in my career achievements] with winning the New Zealand champion jersey twice. The Tour of Hainan is a H.C. race. It’s the highest level of racing we get to do, so to win a stage, especially the last stage after nine days, this capped off my season. I’m looking forward to lying on a beach on the Gold Coast after this.”
Second placed Emils Liepins: “I’m not as disappointed as yesterday for missing out on the stage win because the time bonus of the second place puts me third in GC. I think it’s very good because the Tour of Hainan also features a mountain stage and I’m a sprinter. It means I’ve had a good race overall. I’m happy with that. We thought we were going to catch the breakaway rider but this guy [Joe Cooper] is very fast. I was just a little bit too late to pass him. I want to thank the team. They did a really good job to help me get this result. I hope it’ll help me find a team for next year.”
Third placed Andriy Kulyk: “To finish in the podium is always nice. But we had a different plan. We wanted to get Kononenko in the top 3 of the stage to get the time bonus to make the final podium overall but we lost him in the last corner so I had to do the sprint. The Tour of Hainan is the best race I’ve done this season.”
Points classification winner Jakub Mareczko: “We started the last stage with the intention of keeping the yellow jersey. That was our only intention. We wanted to let a breakaway go to keep the race quiet behind. We wouldn’t have tried to close on the breakaway. But it hasn’t gone according to plans. From the first to the last kilometer, our rivals have put our lead in danger. I’ve also been unlucky in the finale. At the end, we got what we were looking for, so even though I had a flat tyre and couldn’t contest the stage win, it’s been a perfect day for us. Our performance at the Tour of Hainan overall is more than positive, but beyond my personal results that are great with five stage wins and the green jersey, we’ve demonstrated to be very competitive and united as a team. It’s beautiful to win the overall with a rider [Jacopo Mosca] who has given me a hand for winning the early stages. As soon as he got his opportunity, he arrived at the front with the best riders. It’s a great outcome for me and for the team. We’ve just finished the 2017 season. It’s too early to think about the race program for next year but the Tour of Hainan is a wonderful race. We feel very well here. The climate is great, very hot [unlike in Europe]. I’d love to come back for sure.”
King of the Mountain Sam Crome: “On stage 7, we wanted to look for a breakaway to target the KOM jersey, which we managed and then, we just had to defend it in the last two days. We had no sprinters today so it worked out perfect. Joe went up the road and took the maximum points in the hills. Once I got two second places, I knew I’d wrapped it up. Then Joe went solo and topped the day off for the team. I actually crashed twice, on stage 1 and stage 5 as well. I had a bit of a rough round but luckily, it only took some skin off so I was still able to ride. Hopefully we’ll get invited back again to the Tour of Hainan. The team pushed really hard to get a start here. I think we’ve not only repaid the faith to the team but to the organizers as well.”
Best Asian rider Liu Jianpeng: “I think I need more jerseys and results in top 10 to become a star in cycling. Having the blue jersey during this race has increased my confidence for this Tour of Hainan and for the future. I’d love to ride at a higher level like Wang Meiyin with Bahrain-Merida now, but before I reach this level, I need to do more races.”
