In the midst of numerous World Tour and pro teams, the Sauerlanders held their own and were one of the teams that dominated the race. At Germany's oldest classic through the Bergisches Land, two local riders, Julian Borresch and Sebastian Niehues, made it into a leading group of eight.
During the almost 140 kilometer long escape, local hero Julian Borresch secured three of the six mountain classifications and was honored as Mountain King after the end of the almost 205 kilometer long race. “It was great for me to ride through my hometown in the top group and also win the mountain classification. The atmosphere on the track was great and I enjoyed the podium with the top stars,” said Julian Borresch from Gummersbach, impressed after the race. Due to the attack from Borresch, Niehues and Co, the race ended up being really tough for many professionals. In the meantime, the lead of the breakaways grew to over six minutes and the Bora Hans Grohe and Intermache teams in particular did everything they could to catch the breakaways. The classic on the Rhine was ultimately won by the Dutchman Casper van Uden. He defeated the superstar Biniam Girmay from Eritrea in the sprint. There were 160 racers at the start spread across 24 international teams.
Source: Images Jannik Janßen 138 Media
