Arctic Race of Norway, stage 3 – Stef Clement – Of course I would have liked to have won –

THE STATEMENT

As given by Stef Clement: “Of course I would have liked to have won today. Nevertheless, I am quite satisfied with this second place. At the beginning of the stage, I did not feel very comfortable and had very heavy legs. We had to dress more warmly on account of the cool rainy weather. When you have too many clothes on, you can overheat quickly, but when you dress too lightly, then you risk getting very chilled. It was a balancing act. Nevertheless in the final, I was able to find the strength and balance, and simply gave everything I had. The whole team worked well and was strong today. We were represented in the breakaway, and then were still strong in the finale.”

THE ANALYSIS

“The team did a great job today,” exclaimed Kjell Carlström, directeur sportif for IAM Cycling at the race. “We had already talked this morning in the team meeting that we would have to place someone in the breakaway. We had Reto Hollenstein who was able to settle into a very strong escape group early on. The field didn’t let that group get away, so then we had Leigh Howard in a group that counterattacked. Of course the field also controlled this four man break. In the final, we just wanted to stay with the best for as long as possible, and then depending on the circumstances, to try something ourselves. Stef’s second place, and then the fourth place that Martin Elmiger secured, are certainly great results.”

THE ESCAPE

By Leigh Howard. The Australian was part of a leading group that dominated the racing for most of the day. Howard was caught with just over six kilometers to go to the final climb ahead of the finish. Because of his aggressive riding style, the Australian was given the award as the most combative rider at the end of the stage.

THE TEAM

With just one stage remaining, IAM Cycling has three riders in the top ten of the general classification: Stef Clement (2nd), Martin Elmiger (4th) and Reto Hollenstein (9th). IAM Cycling is also well placed in the team standings and is in second place just behind Team Sky, but in the same time. IAM Cycling has been racing without Matteo Pelucchi from the start, since the Italian sprinter had to pull out at short notice before the start of the race due to stomach issues.

THE NUMBER

47 – Stef Clement’s second place in the queen stage of the Arctic Race of Norway represents the Swiss team’s 47th podium place of the 2016 season. That means that IAM Cycling has already earned one more podium place this year than they did in all of 2015.

THE LAST STAGE

For the final stage of the Arctic Race of Norway, the pack will be finishing in Bodo after 193 kilometers of racing. “That will probably also be a stage for the sprinter,” Kjell Carlström explained. “Stef is not considered to be among the fastest sprinters in the pack, and if something will be possible to change in the standings, we will have to do it by escaping into a successful break.”

Race Pictures – P. Ballet (Arctic Race of Norway) & BettiniPhoto