The first category race started today in the Serbian capital Belgrade and ended West of it on a circuit in Sabac , where three short final laps had to be ridden. To avoid the hectic finale, the time trial specialist attacked 10 kilometers before the circuit and he was able to build up a lead of about 25 seconds.
Presumably the other teams underestimated the qualities of Justin Wolf, who was now able to play to his strengths and he held his gap until the finish line.
"I am overjoyed with the result. It's the third consecutive opening win for me in my last three starts for our team. When my teammates celebrated me at the finish line, all the weight fell off my shoulders. I have a family, two children, who often have to be at home without their dad because of cycling. I would like to thank them for their understanding," says Justin Wolf.
Justin Wolf won his first UCI race at the prologue of the Tour of Romania last fall, where his teammate Nikodemus Holler eventually finished second overall. This year, Justin won the season opening in Turkey three weeks ago and today he did it again in Belgrade.
"I know what Justin invests in the sport. And likewise what work everyone around the team puts into it to make it work, not just the athletes. 2020 was already very special for us because of Corona and at the same time it was so successful. We could not have expected that we can now build on this in the first races. But it underlines once again that the composition of our team fits well, the riders motivate each other and they are able to reach their potential", says Matthias Schnapka.
The race will continue westwards for the next three days, crossing the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina and ending in Banjaluka on Sunday.
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