2017 Eschborn-Frankfurt:
Rund um den Finanzplatz (WorldTour), Germany
56th Edition: Monday, May 1, 2017
Eschborn-Frankfurt podium history | 2016 edition | 2018 edition | Race map
Eschborn - Frankfurt, 218.7 km
Alexander Kristoff gets another big one
The race: Here's the story from winner Alexander Kristoff's Katusha-Alpecin team.
Cold, wet weather did nothing to dampen the team spirit on full display from Team Katusha-Alpecin at the 55th Eschborn-Frankfurt ‘Rund um den Finanzplatz' on Monday as team leader Alexander Kristoff and key lead-out man Rick Zabel went 1-2 on the finish line. It was the third time Kristoff earned top honors in the German race, defending his 2016 and 2014 titles.
“I was a little bit dropped on the last climb but I had a strong team around me to pull me back. Without them I would have had no chance. We came back just before the laps and Rick was guiding me through the corners at the end and he did a perfect lead out for me and ended up second himself. Luckily he was my teammate in those last few k’s because otherwise I think he would have won the race! Earlier Tony Martin and Angel Vicioso and also team Bora Hansgrohe were working with us. Then at the end Nils Politt and Zabel took over. It was a big team effort to get back on the front that enabled me to sprint for the victory. We are really happy and it was a great performance,” said Alexander Kristoff.
The winning time of 5:29:33 (39.818 km/h) on the 218.7k course from Eschborn to Frankfurt was 1-second ahead of Zabel and two-seconds ahead of third place finisher John Degenkolb of Trek-Segafredo. The victory marked the seventh team win of the season and 6th personal win for Alexander Kristoff.
Rick Zabel, 23, put up a strong performance throughout the day, using his superior bike handling skills to move through the tricky, wet corners and keep Kristoff safely near the front. His hard work rewarded him with a second place finish.
“This was a great day. I am really happy with how the team did today and mine and Alex’s performances. Second in a WorldTour race is also super, a very good result for me. It was a great day for us and we can be super happy,” said Rick Zabel.
“This was the coldest one I can remember. It was quite cold with the rain all day. I took off my jacket and rode the last three laps without it, but I was regretting it the whole way. It was very cold today, but the same guys as usual were still there fighting for victory,” concluded Kristoff.
Complete Results:
218.7 kilometers raced at an average speed of 39.820 km/hr
| 1 | Alexander KRISTOFF | Katusha Alpecin | 5hr 29min 32sec |
| 2 | Rick ZABEL | Katusha Alpecin | s.t. |
| 3 | John DEGENKOLB | Trek-Segafredo | s.t. |
| 4 | Jean-Pierre DRUCKER | BMC | s.t. |
| 5 | Pim LIGTHART | Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij | s.t. |
| 6 | Juan Jose LOBATO | Lotto NL-Jumbo | s.t. |
| 7 | Jasper STUYVEN | Trek-Segafredo | s.t. |
| 8 | Maximiliano Ariel RICHEZE | Quick-Step | s.t. |
| 9 | Michel KREDER | Aqua Blue Sport | s.t. |
| 10 | Ben SWIFT | UAE Abu Dhabi | s.t. |
| 11 | Tom BOHLI | BMC | s.t. |
| 12 | Alex KIRSCH | WB Veranclassic | s.t. |
| 13 | Francisco Jose VENTOSO | BMC | s.t. |
| 14 | Rudy BARBIER | Ag2r La Mondiale | s.t. |
| 15 | Michael MATTHEWS | Sunweb | s.t. |
| 16 | Maciej PATERSKI | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | s.t. |
| 17 | Tom VAN ASBROECK | Cannondale Drapac | @ 6sec |
| 18 | Oscar RIESEBEEK | Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij | s.t. |
| 19 | Gaetan BILLE | Veranda's Willems-Crelan | s.t. |
| 20 | Nikolas MAES | Lotto Soudal | s.t. |
| 21 | Evgeny SHALUNOV | Gazprom-Rusvelo | s.t. |
| 22 | Sam BENNETT | Bora-hansgrohe | s.t. |
| 23 | Rúben GUERREIRO | Trek-Segafredo | s.t. |
| 24 | Silvan DILLIER | BMC | s.t. |
| 25 | Brian VAN GOETHEM | Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij | s.t. |
| 26 | Patrick BEVIN | Cannondale Drapac | @ 15sec |
| 27 | Bram TANKINK | Lotto NL-Jumbo | s.t. |
| 28 | Aime DE GENDT | Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise | @ 16sec |
| 29 | Jos VAN EMDEN | Lotto NL-Jumbo | s.t. |
| 30 | Adam HANSEN | Lotto Soudal | @ 19sec |
| 31 | Nico DENZ | Ag2r La Mondiale | @ 23sec |
| 32 | Pascal ACKERMANN | Bora-hansgrohe | s.t. |
| 33 | Jan TRATNIK | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | @ 27sec |
| 34 | Floris DE TIER | Lotto NL-Jumbo | @ 35sec |
| 35 | Pieter SERRY | Quick-Step | s.t. |
| 36 | Simone PETILLI | UAE Abu Dhabi | s.t. |
| 37 | Dries VAN GESTEL | Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise | s.t. |
| 38 | Lukasz OWSIAN | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | s.t. |
| 39 | Andreas SCHILLINGER | Bora-hansgrohe | @ 40sec |
| 40 | Eliot LIETAER | Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise | @ 43sec |
| 41 | Tom SCULLY | Cannondale Drapac | @ 57sec |
| 42 | Nils POLITT | Katusha Alpecin | @ 1min 5sec |
| 43 | Mads PEDERSEN | Trek-Segafredo | +1:19 |
| 44 | Paul MARTENS | Lotto NL-Jumbo | +1:25 |
| 45 | Petr VAKOC | Quick-Step | +1:36 |
| 46 | Julien BERNARD | Trek-Segafredo | +1:48 |
| 47 | Tony MARTIN | Katusha Alpecin | +1:50 |
| 48 | Simone PONZI | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | s.t. |
| 49 | Ángel VICIOSO | Katusha Alpecin | +2:38 |
| 50 | Nikias ARNDT | Sunweb | s.t. |
| 51 | Aaron GATE | Aqua Blue Sport | +3:55 |
| 52 | Julien VERMOTE | Quick-Step | s.t. |
| 53 | Frederik BACKAERT | Wanty-Groupe Gobert | s.t. |
| 54 | Lasse Norman HANSEN | Aqua Blue Sport | s.t. |
| 55 | Johannes FRÖHLINGER | Sunweb | s.t. |
| 56 | Peter KONING | Aqua Blue Sport | s.t. |
| 57 | Frederik FRISON | Lotto Soudal | s.t. |
| 58 | Michal PALUTA | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | s.t. |
| 59 | Koen DE KORT | Trek-Segafredo | s.t. |
| 60 | Martin ELMIGER | BMC | s.t. |
| 61 | Thomas SPRENGERS | Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise | s.t. |
| 62 | Olivier PARDINI | WB Veranclassic | s.t. |
| 63 | Andrei SOLOMENNIKOV | Gazprom-Rusvelo | s.t. |
| 64 | Branislau SAMOILAU | CCC Sprandi Polkowice | s.t. |
| 65 | Raymond KREDER | Roompot-Nederlandse Loterij | s.t. |
| 66 | Edward RAVASI | UAE Abu Dhabi | s.t. |
| 67 | Preben VAN HECKE | Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise | +4:05 |
