Paris-Tours, Heinrich Haussler «The team did great work»

Under the sun at Tours, Jels Wallays (Top Sport Vlandeeren) became the surprise winner of the 108^th edition of the Paris-Tours, in a two man sprint against Thomas Voeckler (Europcar) after a break of 236 kilometers.

For its part, IAM Cycling was very active in its last race before a welcomed rest. Present at the forefront of affairs in the last kilometers leading up to the finish, which resembled an ice rink more than pavement, the Swiss Pro Continental team grabbed a place on honor.

Heinrich Haussler proved to be the best of the team taking 5^th place, while Aleksejs Saramotins in 12^th place and Sébastien Hinault in 21^st place also put in impressive rides.  For the 40 year old Hinault, this would be the last race of his career, and was a high note on which to end his long and successful time in the pro ranks.

“I felt good.  Unfortunately, I found myself one of the victims of a crash and was not able to lend a hand to Heinrich when we needed to pull back the two in the breakaway.  Now it’s over, and I was in tears at the end when I found that my family and friends from Brittany came to surprise me.  But I am happy with my career and am especially grateful to be able to stop while I’m still healthy.”

Heinrich Haussler could look on his day with satisfaction and he gave his teammates great credit for all the work they did throughout the day, helping him to his 5^th place finish.

“Even though I was not able to win the race, which was my ultimate ambition, I am satisfied with this top-5.  The race was a bit hectic and we had some tricky roads.  I managed to avoid crashing.  The sensations were good and then the team was amazing. Chavanel, Reynes, Saramotins, Aregger and of course Hinault rolled up their sleeves and did some hard work.  I am happy because we have really found a good group that works well together, and that will be key for next season.”