Australian dominates race to take nation’s second title; Rasmus Quaade takes host’s first medal as a late crash costs Michael Hepburn silver
Luke Durbridge (Australia) stormed to a dominant victory in the under-23 men’s World time trial championships in Copehnagen, Denmark. The Western Australian, who started the race as overwhelming favourite, was fastest at every checkpoint of the technical 35.2km course to finish in a time of 42:47.13, 35.68 seconds faster than Danish rider Rasmus Quaade.
Durbridge’s Australian teammate Michael Hepburn took the bronze medal, although a crash inside the final five kilometres cost him probable silver. Hepburn finished 46.47 seconds slower than Durbridge, but tellingly just 10.79 slower than Quaade.
"My main goal all year has been to come here and win," said Durbridge after the race. "I concentrated purely on this time trial to make sure I came here with the best form and it's a fantastic feeling.
"Watching [new junior women's champion] Jess [Allen] win was inspiring and made me even more determined to go and get my own rainbow jersey," he explained. "When I knew I was up on the time checks I just continued to bring it home [but] the last lap I was taking it a little bit safe on the corners just to make sure I got home."
Setting off in five waves of thirteen riders, in one and a half minute intervals, the first to set a competitive time was third Australian rider Damien Howson, who was the seventh rider to start. Howson’s time of 44:53.09 was to survive the rest of the first wave, and much of the second, until it was beaten by Anton Vorobev (Russia), who went more than a minute quicker with 43:46.12.
The second rider to start from wave three was Hepburn though, and the twenty year old Australian – who won the prologue and stage three of the Tour de l’Avenir earlier in the month, before being withdrawn by his national team after making an offensive gesture as he crossed the line – was clearly faster than the Russian.
Hepburn was consistently ahead of Vorobev all the way around the course, his lead growing at every checkpoint. He was 35.63 seconds ahead of the Russian at the final check though, when disaster struck: on a wide left hand bend with around five kilometres to go, the Australian’s front wheel slid from under him and he came crashing to a stop.
The Australian mechanic was out of the car with a replacement bike almost as soon as Hepburn was on his feet; he remounted quickly, and crossed the line in 43:33.60 to set a new best time. The crash undoubtedly cost him precious seconds though, which could well cost him when the favourites set off later on.
“It was not a mechanical,” Hepburn confirmed as he sat in the leader’s chair and watched the later starters. ‘It actually almost also happened on the lap before. I caught a bit of wind and there was a lip on the road and I got pushed down by the wind. I lost a bit of momentum, but I got back up now I have to wait for the final result.”
The Australian had visible areas of road rash on his left side, and had had them dressed before taking his place in ‘the hot seat’. While the crash cost him time in the time trial, his wounds could potentially compromise his chances in Friday’s road race, where his recent Avenir performance would make him one to watch.
“As for the injuries, it’s just a bit off skin off but I am ok,” he explained. “You get a lot of adrenaline going through the body and you don’t feel that much out there. It would be good to stay here but there is still another opportunity on Friday and I look forward to that now.”
For a long time it looked as though Hepburn might be about to take the title, as no rider was able to come within a minute of the Australian’s time. It was not until Quaade started, unlucky number thirteen and the first of the fifth and final wave, that the Queenslander’s time came under threat,
Cheered on by his home crown, the Danish rider was almost five seconds faster at the first checkpoint, which had grown to just over eight seconds at the second. Quaade was having trouble maintaining his fast pace though, and at the halfway point his lead had shrunk to just three seconds; at the final checkpoint, with 7.2km to go, Hepburn was back in the lead once more, but his late crash was to tell if the Dane could stay upright.
By this time though, Quaade was fighting for second place with Hepburn, as Durbridge was out on the course and consistently faster than both.
As the 2009 junior champion, and a close second place behind the USA’s Taylor Phinney in the 2010 under-23 race, Durbridge was the outstanding favourite for the race, and was 15.26 seconds up on Quaade at halfway.
Quaade crossed the line 10.79 seconds ahead of Hepburn to take the provisional lead, and collapsed to the ground as he was surrounded by the media. Durbridge was still to come though, and having beaten the Dane at the Chrono Champenois over a slightly shorter course just over a week before, was about to do so again.
Behind Durbridge there were five more riders, whom the organisers deemed to be higher seeded, including European champion Yoann Paillot of France. None of them was to get anything like close to the podium though, with second last to start Tom Dumoulin (Netherlands) the only one to make it into the top ten.