October 6/14 12:26 pm - Tobago Cycle Classic: Final GC

Posted by Editoress on 10/6/14
 

American Winston David won the 2014 Tobago International Cycle Classic overall title after the fourth and final stage at the Market Square Criterium, Scarborough on Saturday October 4th. The Incycle Predator rider clinched the crown with 82 points, two more than Patrik Moren (Sweden/Team Argon 18) -80 pts, Stage three and four winner Yondi Schmidt (Netherlands/Wilton-Diftar AA) 76 pts and home-town star Emile Abraham (Incycle Predator) 70 pts.

The win his the first international triumph for David. The Greenville, South Carolina resident was winner despite finishing well down the field (44th) in the Stage four 50 lap race as Schimdt raced to his second victory of the Classic. The top six all finished as a bunch within a second of each other. Sanchez Tavera (Dominican Republic/Team Foundation) was runner up with Joschka Beck (Germany/Biketempel), 2012 overall winner Darren Matthews (Barbados/Team Coco), Moren and Abraham all following behind.

Stage Four proved to be an exciting one with several riders taking the lead with no clear favourite but Abraham and his Incycle Predator team-mates dominated most of the race. Abraham, David, the English duo of Daniel Pattern, Jamie Wilkins, Canada's Jean Michel Lachance and Americans Michael Olheiser and Andrew Scarano were all prominent in the leading pack.

The Predator team took command in the 2nd and 3rd, 15th to the 19th laps and in the latter stages, the 35th to 39th lap and the 43rd and 44th. Evan Murphy (USA/Team Foundation) tried to break away in the sixth lap before Germany's Bhogal Alex (Wilton Diftar) pedaled to the front in the 7th, 8th and 9th laps but the green of the Predators team was always prominent in the front of the field.

Murphy moved ahead again in the 13th and 14th and the 40th and 41st. Patrick Wachter (Germany/Biketempel) also staked his claim, going ahead in the 22nd and the 23rd with Sweden’s Jake Silverberg (Slipstream) jumping into the mix, getting in front in the 25th and 26th laps. In the closing stage, there were still several cyclists in contention but Schmidt was not one of the front riders. However, as he showed in the Plymouth Criterium in the rain on Friday, he moved to the head of a crowded pack in the final lap to take a narrow victory over Tavera and Beck, this time in blazing sunshine. The Dutch national sprint champion used his finish kick well to cross the Wilson Road finish line leaving his rivals to battle for the minor places.

Lachance took Sprint Primes on Stage Four with 85 to run away with the overall Sprinter title (234) ahead of Abraham (181), David (149) and Schmidt (129).

Results