Zdenek has won the last stage in the Eneco Tour. Our Czech attacked in the final, caught Ian Stannard, who was in the early breakaway, and beated the Briton in the tricky last kilometer. Styby also takes the win in the general classification.
“This was one of the best days in my career”, Styby said. “I win two stages, almost three, and the overall classification. A dream! When Sylvain Chavanel went in the final, I thought, okay, perfect, I just need to follow the rest and try to go for the second place. But the situation changed quickly.”
Chavanel was caught and Zdenek saw his chance. “I immediately understood that I had a chance to go for the GC. The last climb, Denderoordberg, was really hard. But I had to go there. I really didn’t want to wait for the sprint. So I attacked.”
“It was all or nothing. When I went, a few kilometers after my attack I saw Stannard in front. I really didn’t know he was there. It was great to find a rider like him. We worked well together and to be honest, he deserved to win. But I had to concentrate on the GC and take as many seconds as possible.”
The finish was on a hill just before the famous Muur of Geraardsbergen. “I went full a block and it worked. I took the stage and the GC. This is a very big step in my career. I’m very happy and I have to thank my girlfriend, my family and the team. They were always there for me.”
In the final GC our champion reffered the Dutchman Tom Dumoulin to the second place at 26 seconds. The Ukrainian Andriy Grivko finished third on the podium in less than a minute. In the WorldTour rankings Zdenek moves up to a very nice 24th place.
“It’s a surprise to me to win here, but maybe I was a bit more fresher than the other riders. I didn’t ride the Tour de France because of the injury to my knee. But, everything happens for a reason. That’s pretty much my motto. I’ve had my share of bad luck, and now that’s over.”
“Now my next race will be the Vuelta. I will try to do my best. I go there with ambition to try and win a stage, help the team en enjoy the good shape I have at this moment. This week I will try to stay concentrated. Even the TTT is really important. I will try my best to give my contributions for the team.”
Stage results
1. Zdenek Stybar (Cze) 05:00:03
2. Ian Stannard (GBr) + 4
3. Lars Boom (Ned) + 12
4. Manuel Quinziato (Ita) + 14
5. Pieter Weening (Ned) + 17
Final Classification
1. Zdenek Stybar (Cze) 25:14:05
2. Tom Dumoulin (Ned) + 26
3. Andriy Grivko (Ukr) + 50
4. Jan Bakelants (Bel) + 55
5. Daryl Impey (RSA) + 55By Niels on 18/08/2013
