MARK Renshaw has been on the podium of the EuroEyes Cyclassics Hamburg in the past, but on Sunday the Bathurst cyclist did not even get the chance to unleash his final sprint.
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Riding in the 23rd edition of the annual event for his Dimension Data team, Renshaw was hoping to emulate his efforts from 10 years earlier when he placed second to fellow Australian Robbie McEwen.
But as the finish line loomed Renshaw got caught up in a crash, ending his hopes of a podium.
“Didn’t even get the chance to sprint today in Hamburg for the EuroEyes Classic,” Renshsaw said. “Crashed over the top of a guy with four kilometres to go and it was game over.”
A quality field of sprinters assembled for the Cyclassics, including 2018 Tour de France green jersey winner Peter Sagan, Arnaud Démare and Elia Viviani.
When a five-man breakaway was caught with 18 kilometres remaining, the scene was set for the much anticipated sprint showdown.
Renshaw was well positioned by his team-mates, but the incident ended his hopes. He crossed the line in 111th spot, over four minutes after Viviani had claimed the spoils.
“Renshaw was in a perfect position behind the Bora train,” Dimension Data’s Jay Thomson said.
“Unfortunately with two kilometres to go, [Pascal] Ackerman overlapped his team-mates wheel and dropped himself. Renshaw had nowhere to go and went down.
“We lost out on a possible result; Renshaw looked good.”
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