ProTeam Liam Slock features in the breakaway of the day in stage four of Tirreno-Adriatico

It had been predicted beforehand that stage four of Tirreno-Adriatico could be one for the breakaway riders. And that expectation was fulfilled almost immediately after the flag dropped in the start town of Tagliacozzo. The first attack of the day, right from kilometre zero, was successful and a group of twelve riders managed to break clear. A strong group as well, with Liam Slock among them. “It was Jonas Abrahamsen who made the first move and, just as I had planned this morning, I was able to follow and join that group straight away,” Slock explained while reflecting on his day.

Mission accomplished, then. The breakaway lasted for a very long time. No less than 188 kilometres- in a stage of 213 kilometres in total- the attackers stayed clear. “It worked well right from the start, but we never got a big advantage. Just over three minutes at one point, but it never became more than that. I also knew we would face a difficult finale. So we quickly realised it would be tough to make it. When UAE started to chase, the gap stayed between one and two minutes for quite a while, but I already knew then that it would be over.”

Just before reaching the climb of Tortoreto, the final ascent before the finish, the last of the twelve breakaway riders was caught. “The goal was to survive that climb and then be caught afterwards. That way you might still get over it together with the peloton. But unfortunately most of the breakaway, including myself, had already been caught on the previous climb. There wasn’t much we could do. We showed ourselves and I rode a good race. That’s something to take with us.”

Photo: PhotoNews