Adam Blythe (Aqua Blue Sport) launched a great fight back from a puncture in the closing stages of Nokere Koerse to take second place on the cobbled climb at the finish of the Belgian race.
The peloton set off on a warm sunny spring day from the cobbled streets of the quaint market town of Deinze in the direction of Ghent with large crowds packing the streets and it took more than 60 kilometres before a group of seven hopefuls burst loose from the pack.
The lead group made up of Gaetan Bille (Vérandas Willems-Crelan), Hamish Schreurs (Cycling Academy), Floris De Tier (LottoNL-Jumbo), Ole Forfang (Team Joker Icopal), Kenneth VanRooy (Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise), Ludwig de Winter (WB Veranclassic Aqua Protect), and Elmar Reinders (Roompot – Nederlandse Loterij) were never given much leeway though.
Aqua Blue Sport and Cofidis were amongst the teams to lead the peloton helping to keep the lead down to two minutes ensuring that the race would finish in sprint.
However, there was misfortune for Blythe with 12 kilometres remaining when he suffered a front wheel puncture. Peter Koning sacrificed himself for the team and gave Blythe a wheel sending the fast man back to the bunch.
The break was brought back setting up a bunch finish and in the sprint to the line, Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis) proved strongest, finishing a number of bike lengths clear of Blythe to take his first win of the season.
After the finish Blythe said: “I lost a bit of speed before the sprint started – I could have done with that extra two or three kilometre per hour before it started going up. It was good though and it is hard and dangerous but every sprint is dangerous. I had a bit of bad luck with the puncture but it is not an excuse, it did not make me any worse, I still would have done the same sprint. I think positioning was good, I could have done with more speed but I think it was good. Second is definitely better than third.”
