Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team rider Kristof Vandewalle was 5th in the final 37km Stage 7 ITT at Tour de Pologne on Saturday.
Belgian TT Champion Vandewalle finished 1'40" down on stage winner Bradley Wiggins (Sky ProCycling), who had a finishing time of 46'46". Fabian Cancellara (Radioshack-Leopard) was 2nd (+56"), and Taylor Phinney (BMC Racing Team) was 3rd (+1'14").
"I think I rode a good TT," Vandewalle said. "The parcour was really hard. The first part was hilly and I had to use the small gear several times. On the top of the small hills it was important to speed up again and relaunch the action. The second part was completely straight til Krakow. I think I had a good performance if I compare it with the last TT in Tour of Austria. The shape is good and during this Tour de Pologne I tried a few times to go into the attack, but without luck. Now I will go home and from tomorrow I will be focused on defending the Belgian National TT Championship, which I conquered last year. The parcour, about 44 or 45 kilometers is different from last year and for sure faster. I will make a recon next week and for sure I will work on the speed with a few specific training sessions behind the motorbike. I'm really looking forward to this race in Maldegem on August 11th."
OPQS rider Zdenek Stybar was the top finisher in the GC, placing 24th. Pieter Weening (ORICA-GreenEDGE) won the overall on the final stage by placing 6th in the ITT.