Australian cyclist Matthews beats out hard-luck Belgian for Quebec win

QUEBEC — Belgium’s Greg Van Avermaet just can’t take that last step.

With the winner of the previous two Grand Prix cycling races occupied (three-time world champion Peter Sagan of Slovakia), the path seemed to be open for his perennial rival in the twin Quebec-Montreal event.

But it was not to be, with Van Avermaet finishing in second place for the third straight time, edged out in a sprint to the finish line by 27-year-old Australian Michael Matthews, riding for Team Sunweb. Jasper Stuyven of Belgium finished third.

Matthews finished third in last year’s race, and second in 2015.

“It’s a massive relief but also the feeling of everything coming together and finally getting to put my hands in the air. This is the second time this year. So it’s a really nice feeling,” Matthews said.

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Matthews credited his strategy for winning the race to his countryman and cycling idol Simon Gerrans, who won the Quebec and Montreal stages in 2014 and Quebec in 2012. Gerrans, 38, who finished 90th in the race, has announced his retirement from pro cycling at the end of the season.

Van Avermaet admitted he was frustrated by the third second-place finish, saying “it always seems there is someone who is a bit faster” in the sprint to the tape. He said he’s “looking at the positive” as he heads into the Montreal stage Sunday.

Guillaume Boivin was the top Canadian for the third straight time. His 21st-place finish was just off his best of 17th in 2016. He blamed his lower position on a collision near the end of the race that caused him to hit the brakes.

An upset was in the works in the final stretch of the last lap. Englishman Peter Kennaugh broke out a wide lead but faded as the pack revved up and hunted him down. He ended up finishing in 53rd place.

Up until the final two laps, a breakaway group of five riders, including Robert Britton of Regina, Bruno Langlois of Matane, Que., and Alex Cataford of Ottawa, led the race, building as much as a six-minute gap over the main peloton. 

At one point a dog broke off his leash and onto the track, causing two riders to fall, one of whom withdrew from the race.

Except for a sometimes stiff breeze and a hint of cool fall temperatures, weather conditions were ideal for riders on the 16-lap, 12.6-kilometre course passing through the Plains of Abraham, the Boulevard Champlain waterfront and along the city’s majestic Grande Allee in the heart of the old city.

The puncher-style course features several challenging elevations, including the 13-degree climb on the appropriately named Cote de la Montagne. There’s also a steep descent on Cote Gilmour, the winding road down to the St. Lawrence River.

The Grand Prix, in its ninth year, drew a field of 144 riders, competing on 18 teams on the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) circuit, representing 30 countries. It is the only UCI sanctioned event in the Americas.

Team Canada was given a special berth in the competition, with five of the seven riders from Quebec. The rest of the 16 Canadian riders compete on other teams, as well as a handful of Americans, but the field, as always, was dominated by European riders.

Crowds were thick along most stretches of the route, with passengers aboard cruise ships docked in the port taking in the action. Officials estimate some 200,000 spectators show up to watch the race.

Racers and their entourage pack up and leave for Montreal, where they will take to the course circling Mount Royal.

Negotiations are underway between event organizers and Quebec City officials to renew the event. The current 10-year agreement expires next year.

Peter Black, The Canadian Press