Italian sprinter Angelo Furlan was undoubtedly visualising the podium and imagining the taste of the champagne when, to his horror, Oscar Freire nipped past him ten metres from the line in today's Paris-Tours. The Spaniard, who has won three world championships and a hat trick of Milan-San Remo victories with his lightning finish, struck with a late burst of speed. He finished just half a bike length ahead of the Lampre rider, who felt all sorts of emotions afterwards.
“This result gave me mixed feelings,” Furlan said. “I'm sad about missing the chance to take the victory, but at the same time I'm glad that I obtained confirmation of my thoughts of being competitive as the top sprinters. Today I was only beaten by a great champion like Freire.
“I did everything in the best way, getting the trust of the team and relying on great fitness built up during the Vuelta a España. However Oscar used all his class.”
Furlan is 33 years old and has taken several good wins in his career, including the Coppa Bernocchi and stages in the Étoile de Besseges, the Circuit de la Sarthe, the Tour of Poland plus the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré. Had he won today, it would have been an excellent result for him, but instead he was left thinking about what he could have done differently.
“The only regret is encountering an unfavourable wind on the finishing straight; if it had not been the case, I think I could have held off Freire,” he said, something which is borne out by the replay. “I’m sorry the victory eluded me, I wanted to dedicate it to the directeurs sportif Bontempi and Piovani, who have always placed their trust in me.”
Furlan’s runner-up slot is the third time this year the victory has just eluded him. He was also second on two stages of the Tour of Turkey. However, given how he went so close to beating many of the world’s top sprinters, he can end his season on a high note. His performance also means he can draw motivation from the day where he so nearly took one of cycling’s biggest events for sprinters; in 2011, he’ll try to notch things up another degree and convert those near-misses to wins.