Michal Kwiatkowski (Team Sky) was the last man standing at Strade Bianche as the Pole soloed clear in the finale to claim victory in an attritional edition of the Tuscan race.
Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing) led Tim Wellens (Lotto Soudal) home 15 seconds later, but the chasers never looked likely to get on terms with Kwiatkowski once he established a lead of half a minute on the approach to the finish in Siena.
"I'm so happy, it's an unexpected victory," Kwiatkowski said. "After the difficult season I had last year, I still had a lot of trust from the team. Now the preparation for this season has already paid off. A second victory at the Strade Bianche, it's just amazing."
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Kwiatkowski was prominent when the decisive selection of the race took shape on the long sector of dirt road at Monte Sante Marie, the so-called Cancellara segment, with more than 50 kilometres still to go, and he remained an aggressive presence at the front thereafter.
He showcased his strength by leading Zdenek Stybar (Quick-Step Floors) over the climb of Monteaperti and then performing the bulk of the pace-setting on the Colle Pinzuto, by which point he had only Stybar, Wellens and Van Avermaet for company.
When Kwiatkowski won this race in 2014, he waited until the final haul into the heart of Siena to make his decisive attack, bludgeoning his way clear of Peter Sagan on that occasion. This time around, he seized his opportunity on a rise with a shade under 15 kilometres remaining, sensing that his three erstwhile breakaway companions might struggle to organise a cohesive chase.
Sagan abandons
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