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GP OST-Manufaktur
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28th Grand-prix OST-Manufaktur
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REPORT
ADVANTAGE LEOPARD
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Just like expected, the 28th edition of the Grand-prix OST-Manufaktur turned into a battle between Luxemburg's two continental teams, CCI Differdange and Leopard Developement Team. Conditions were difficult with wind and cold, but the racing was exciting until the end, each of the two teams taking the advantage in turn. At the end, the Leopards were slightly better though, since they placed two of their riders on the podium, thanks to a late attack from a young and promising Belgian winner, Brent Luyckx.
As of the start, the rythm was very high since Dutchman Stijns Wayne accelerated from the line and the peloton was about to explode already in the crosswinds of the first lap, when Luc Turchi and Tom Wirtgen gave a first advantage to Leopard Developpement Team with an attack. But Differdang answered immediately and send Hungrian Krisztián Lovassy to the front, together with Tom Marcelis, who was 11th last year in Bech, and with former professional rider Julien Laidoun. The peloton was not far behind, with Blacks and Blues all over in the first rows, together with only few non-continental riders. It eventually exploded a little bit later in the long false flat exposed to the wind and leading to Bech, when Tom Marcelis fell out of the leading group and was replaced by three others, Thomas Deruette, Tom Wirtgen and Kevin Feiereisen. The next chasers were only 35" behind the six leaders at that point.
In the third lap, more riders bridged up to the front in several waves: Brent Luyckx, Marco König, Pontus Kastemyr, Stijns Wayne, Edgaras Kovalovas, Ivan Centrone and Larry Valvasori completed a group of 13, five of the being respectively from Leopard Developement Team or from CCI Differdange. Behind the, there were several small groups riding, with Luc Loozen, Tom Marcelis, Patrick Olesen, Stijn Mortelmans, Tim Alleman and Cedrick Raymackers being very close, less than a minute. Furhter behind, the small main peloton contained among ohters Massimo Morabito (Leopard Developement Team), Manuel Stocker and 2010 winner Hakan Bo Nilsson from Differdange and several home riders: Tim Diederich, Benn Wurth, Jérôme Even, Claude Wolter, Paul Bentner, Jérôme Theis, Jean Vanek, Marc Leyder, Joé Wengler, Antoine Mores, Olivier Laterza, Charles Dahm, Sandro Dostert, David Claerbout and Daniel Bintz, only Master in the race.
The leading groupe splitted up and regrouped again on the next few laps, with attacks in turns: Deruette and Kovaliovas from Team Differdange broke away as a duo, joined later on by the Leopards Wirtgen, Olesen and Truchi. Tom Wirtgen had showed tremendous offensive skills earlier this weeks with the pros of the Handzame Classic, and the runner up of last year's Grand-prix François FAber, as a junior, was again amongst the most active of the day. He accelerated in lap five and was joined by Thomas Deruette, Kevin Feiereisen and Julien Laidoun in the lead. The former AG2R pro had stopped cycling several years ago but has resumed racing since than and is in a very decent shape again this season. The Frenchman was very impressive out there in the front on a tough course that he likes: maybe he scared the others and the collaboration was not at its best in the first group.
The cat and mouse game in the first group was a gift fot the next chasers, Marcelis, Mortelmans, Loozen et Raymackers, who bridged up for a general regroupement at the front, leaving a big group of 18 at the front. There were six riders from Leopard Developement Team (Brent Luyckx, Marco König, Tom Wirtgen, Patrick Olesen, Luc Turchi, Kevin Feiereisen), six riders also from Team Differdange (Krisztián Lovassy, Pontus Kastemyr, Edgaras Kovaliovas, Ivan Centrone, Thomas Deruette, Cedrick Raymackers) two members of the TWC Maaslandster (Luc Loozen and Stijns Wayne, who disappeared from the group later on), as well as Tom Marcelis (Team Cicli Basso), Julien Laidoun (Pédale Suippase), Stijn Mortelmans (Prorace Cycling Team) and a very good Larry Valvasori (Tooltime Préizerdaul). It was a very international group since there were five riders from Luxembourg, four Belgians, three Dutchmen, one from France, (Laidoun), one from Hungary (Lovassy), from Sweden (Pontemir), from Lituania (Kovaliovas), from Danemark (Olesen) and from Germany (König). Behind them, Massimo Morabito, Manuel Stocker and Tim Alleman tried to come back but they were already two minutes late, while the main peloton led among others by the riders from LC Kayl, was another minute behind.
With two laps to go, Tom Marcelis tried his luck in vain but then, in a moment of inattention from the Leopard section, Sweden's Pontus Kastemir broke away alone. The rider from Differdange showed a big performance and quickly gained 30 seconds on a small group led by the Leopard Developement Team. Tom Wirtgen and Patrick Olesen did most of the work with Luyckx, Turchi, Mortelmans, Laidoun, Raymackers, Marcelis and Deruette in tow, while all the others had lost contact. The work of the two riders paid off, Kastemir was reeled in with five kilometers to go and nothing was decided yet.
In the part with the most of the wind, three kilometres from the conclusion, Brent Luyckx put in an attack. The former winner of the Three Days of Groot Axel and 7th of the time-trial world championships 2012 as a junior took Thomas Deruette with him and both of them quickly gained 10 seconds advantage. Under the red flag, Luc Turchi also managed to break away in the chasing group and he made the junction with the two leaders just in time before the finish line, but too late to mix up in the sprint. A sprint that was easily won by Luyckx who even had the time to celebrate way before the finish line. Brent Luyckx wins the 28th edition of the Grand-prix OST-Manufaktur ahead of Thomas Deruette and Luc Turchi, first home rider and winner of the Marcel Niederweid Trophy. Eight seconds behind them, Tom Marcelis won the sprint of the next group ahead of König and Raymackers, taking fourth position and being first elite rider, with all the podium finishers being under 23 of age. 7 riders out of the Top 10 were coming from the two UCI-Teams Differdange and Leopard, with only Marcelis, Laidoun and Mortelmans included as no-continental riders.
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