Heading into the final stage at the Volta ao Algarve, the consensus within the peloton was that Geraint Thomas (Team Sky) held a substantial enough lead to win his third crown.
The script, however, was well and truly ripped up when a dangerous 31-man move went clear in the opening kilometres. Luckily for Team Sky, second placed rider Michal Kwiatkowski had made it into the move along with Michal Golas. The pair formed part of a group that held on until the finish, with Kwiatkowski winning the stage and bumping Thomas down into second place overall.
It may not have been the initial plan Team Sky had drawn up, but such has been their dominance in Algarve that they conceivably could have claimed up the GC no matter what tactics played out on the final stage to Malhao.
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At the finish, Kwiatkowski topped the podium with Thomas second at 1:31 and American Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing) third at 2:16. The break's success ensured that the showdown between the WorldTour climbers at the race never materialised, with Team Sky picking up three stages out of five throughout the week.
"It was a big break and obviously Kwiatkowski was there. All the other teams were happy, they had guys there and that was it," Thomas said at the finish.
"We kept it around three or four minutes, but nobody wanted to chase for the stage. That was it," he repeated.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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