Anciennement intitulée Race Torquay et disputée ce jeudi en Australie, la Surf Coast Classic a permis à Biniam Girmay d'ouvrir son compteur de victoires en 2024 ! Tout s'est joué au sprint dans les rues de Torquay, et c'est donc l'Érythréen d'Intermarché-Wanty qui s'est montré le plus rapide dans la dernière ligne droite, ce dernier confirmant ainsi ses bonnes dispositions montrées sur le Santos Tour Down Under la semaine dernière (trois tops 5). Biniam Girmay a devancé deux autres coureurs en forme, à savoir l'Italien Elia Viviani (INEOS Grenadiers) et le Néo-Zélandais Corbin Strong (Israel-Premier Tech).
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SportTranscription
00:00 [Music]
00:03 To your winner, Iliam Gautamay in a blanket sprint finish across the line.
00:09 [Applause]
00:16 You just needed the perfect wheel and you had it in the end so you must be happy with the win.
00:20 Yeah, absolutely. Today I think I felt sicker a bit and also decided to control the race with my team.
00:28 So, luckily there are other teams to control the race.
00:31 And like you said, this is the plan to find the perfect wheel in the last case.
00:38 So, I think we had a perfect wheel to start the sprint and in the end I think I have a place to win.
00:46 So, I'm super happy today.
00:48 There is a lot of things. A lot of things.
00:52 I'm still 23 years old. Just in 2022 was an unbelievable year.
01:01 Even if you are really one of the best riders in the world, you have this kind of result.
01:10 Because I have a world tour classic race, I have a grand tour victory,
01:17 I have different world tour stages, top 3 and some small races.
01:23 It's a really unbelievable race.
01:25 But everything comes really quick.
01:29 But 2023 was a year to learn and to improve a lot of things as a rider and as a team.
01:38 So, I think there is no losing, only learning.
01:42 I really only learned a lot of things, except the luck.
01:47 On cycling you also need a big luck.
01:50 I have a really good feeling on the Flanders classic.
01:55 Only that day I felt really good on all the classics, but that day I had a crash.
02:02 A really bad crash. It's really bad.
02:05 But if you see the other thing, in the grand tour, it's my first grand tour, but I'm still on the result.
02:12 Sometimes you need to improve really small details.
02:18 That's what I learned also from cycling.
02:21 Because if you lose 1%, you are out of the victory.
02:26 That's what I learned. Everything.
02:28 From 1% to 200%. I learned a lot of things.
02:34 Yeah.
02:35 I mean, that's also what we need to improve this year.
02:41 We learned and now we need to show what we learned and what we improved from the past, from now.
02:49 So, I hope we can do better as a rider and as a team.
02:53 I think together with my team we are strong.
02:56 So, we will do better results this year.
03:01 For example, this race, Down Under.
03:04 Because last year we copied almost the same as before.
03:07 Normally, it's a good start in Mallorca, but compared to last year, it was really bad weather.
03:16 Also, we couldn't train before the race because it's a really big storm and we just stayed inside the Rullos.
03:25 After that, on the other side, you go to Valencia, it's really warm.
03:31 It's something different.
03:35 Also, the other thing is that I need to have a balance between racing in Europe and then have time in Eritrea with my family.
03:44 So, that's why we chose Down Under.
03:48 I have a really good block of training and racing in Australia.
03:53 It means there is no way to stop training because it's always good weather.
03:59 I could train what I want.
04:01 Also, the race is really good weather.
04:04 It means I prefer better than cold and warm.
04:09 After that, for the moment, I'm lucky I don't have any jet lag.
04:14 I felt good, so that's also a good sign.
04:17 That's also what I want, what we want with my team.
04:20 After that, I have a balance of three weeks here and then back home around three weeks.
04:31 It means it's really good for me.
04:33 I have a good block of racing and then I go back home.
04:36 It's altitude, good weather, good training, preparation for the classics and for the Treno Adriatico.
04:43 I hope it will work.
04:46 I'm from last year and we don't need to waste any day of training.
04:51 That's why we plan it really well.
04:53 I've never been in December in Europe, never in my life.
04:59 After five years, this is my first time.
05:03 It's really nice, but I didn't expect to be like this weather.
05:06 It's really nice weather.
05:08 Also, a different atmosphere than January training camp.
05:11 Still, I see some riders with their former bikes and former stuff.
05:19 Also, you meet new people there.
05:21 It's really nice.
05:23 It's my first experience as a pro rider to train in December.
05:28 I really enjoy that, to be honest.
05:30 One week I'm there with some teammates of mine and we really enjoyed it.
05:37 This is what I mean.
05:38 I really enjoyed December camp.
05:39 I really don't know exactly how is the feeling on December camp.
05:44 People say, "Sometimes bad weather."
05:47 For me, it was really the best training camp I ever had in my life.
05:53 I really enjoyed it, to be honest, with all my teammates.
05:57 Also, the training, we really have really good training.
06:00 We have in December to do a scooter and the one-minute test, five-minute, ten-minute test.
06:07 It's something new for me because I never did it in December.
06:11 That's really nice.
06:13 Specifically, we have moto-tasting quite several times.
06:18 Also, spring training, like you said, not only for Down Under,
06:21 also with the other guys we race for all year.
06:27 We really have good feeling.
06:28 Also, now here I have Madis.
06:30 In training, almost all December we train in the same group.
06:34 We feel each other now.
06:37 Also, here we really have good communication, good contact.
06:40 That's a good sign.
06:42 We really have a good December camp with our boys.
06:46 You know, there is no secret.
06:50 Like all the big teams in the world, the team they do,
06:54 one group has to do almost all the year without any big change, except the luck.
07:02 That's also what we planned because last year we had a lot of bad luck.
07:06 Some guys sick before the Classic, before the Grand Tour, also the crashes.
07:12 But now we have one group, at least half of them, they have to race together.
07:20 Like as a spring training, if we need to improve, we need to learn on the races.
07:24 That means we need to race as a group, almost at least 80% of our race program.
07:34 This is what we do.
07:36 Mike is my last lead out.
07:40 We know everybody knows he's an experienced guy and a strong guy.
07:44 Also, I have Hugo Page.
07:48 He's the same age as me, so we can improve together as a team.
07:54 We can give each other a lot of ideas.
07:56 We also have Laurence Rex.
07:58 He's also a really strong guy.
08:02 He already showed how strong he is in the Classics.
08:06 For example, in Roubaix and other races.
08:10 Marius is also there. He's also young.
08:14 We have a really good atmosphere because we are on the same age, we have the same feelings.
08:20 We are also here to improve and show our potential.
08:24 These three or four guys are with me almost all the races.
08:30 That means it's really a good one.
08:32 There is not a big change, but still there is some change from last year.
08:36 I hope it will work also as a spring training.
08:40 Most of them can climb, they can give me a lead out on the uphill sprint.
08:44 We can also do not only Grand Tour, we can do the Classics.
08:48 That's a really good sign.
08:50 For the moment, I'm looking forward to starting my season in Down Under.
08:58 With good shape.
09:00 And then afterwards, we have the Classics.
09:03 That is also my main objective.
09:06 And after that, I have a big month ahead.
09:10 That means Tour de France.
09:14 After that, it's the Olympic Games.
09:16 I think that's not bad.
09:20 I think it suits me.
09:22 I have a really big calendar.
09:26 I hope we are planned really well for the training period, race program.
09:34 The first objective is everything.
09:36 (upbeat music)