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Norway's Hagenes wins historic Paris-Tours classic / Photo: © AFP
Norway's Hagenes wins historic Paris-Tours classic
Norwegian Per Strand Hagenes on Sunday won the 120th edition of the Paris-Tours one-day classic, one of the oldest races on cycling's calendar.
The race was first run in 1896, the same year as the first Paris-Roubaix and seven years before the inaugural Tour de France.
Hagenes escaped from an 11-strong group just before the final kilometre of the 216km race, which these days starts about 80km southwest of Paris in Chartres.
The 23-year-old held on to win by two seconds from Belgian Jasper Stuyven and Frenchman Christophe Laporte, the 2024 winner.
Since Tour organisers ASO took over running Paris-Tours in 2018, they have changed what was once a largely flat course suited to sprinters, to include 10 bumpy, hilly, gravelly vineyard trails which make the race much less predictable.
Pre-race favourite Tim Merlier, who won three sprint stages during July's Tour, lost contact with the leaders 9km from the finish on the Rochecorbon climb.
A mass crash 50km from the finish took out many riders, with some ending up in a field, including Anthony Turgis who emerged with his face bloodied.
D.Brown--SFF
