Britain: Groenewegen wins stage 4 sprint

Dutch champion Dylan Groenewegen won Wednesday’s stage 4 sprint at the Tour of Britain, following up his stage 1 win on British soil at the Tour de Yorkshire in April. LottoNL – Jumbo’s sprinter got the better of two Brits in the fast finish: Dan McLay and Sky’s Ben Swift, who were second and third, respectively in Builth Wells.

“When I’m in a clear position to sprint, I’m at my best,” said Groenewegen. “Today, the team ensured that I was in that position. All day, I had teammates around me who helped me on every climb. When I got stuck behind, they made sure I got back into the peloton.”

Top 10, stage 4

• 1. Dylan GROENEWEGEN, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, in 5:28:49
• 2. Daniel MCLAY, GBR, at :00
• 3. Ben SWIFT, TEAM SKY, at :00
• 4. Carlos BARBERO CUESTA, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at :00
• 5. Julien VERMOTE, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at :00
• 6. Boy VAN POPPEL, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at :00
• 7. Luka MEZGEC, OBE, at :00
• 8. Nicolas VEREECKEN, SKT, at :00
• 9. Tom DUMOULIN, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at :00
• 10. Diego RUBIO, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at :00

Top-10 overall

• 1. Julien VERMOTE, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, in 18:22:04
• 2. Stephen CUMMINGS, DIMENSION DATA, at :06
• 3. Ben SWIFT, TEAM SKY, at 1:03
• 4. Tony GALLOPIN, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 1:03
• 5. Daniel MARTIN, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 1:04
• 6. Xandro MEURISSE, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 1:08
• 7. Dylan VAN BAARLE, CDT, at 1:12
• 8. Tom DUMOULIN, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 1:12
• 9. Guillaume MARTIN, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 1:12
• 10. Nicolas ROCHE, TEAM SKY, at 1:16

Stage 4 was the race’s longest day at 218 kilometers and featured three categorized climbs early. Etixx – Quick-Step’s Julien Vermote kept his overall lead, finishing fifth in the sprint.

The long day was animated by a four-rider breakaway, which included Miguel Angel Benito (Caja Rural – Seguros RGA), Matthew Holmes (Madison Genesis), Rob Partridge (NFTO), and Alessandro Tonelli (Bardiani – CSF). However, the sprinters’ teams were keen to bring back the move and keep the race together for a bunch finish.

However, a flurry of late attacks split the field, unhitching top sprinters, such as Mark Cavendish, Caleb Ewan, and Elia Viviani. Lotto – Soudal’s Andre Greipel missed the move at first, but the German national champion got back across to the leaders eventually, but the effort likely rendered him unable to contest the win.

“It was really a tough stage, but my team did yet another great job, pulling at the front from the beginning. Max [Richeze] and Lukasz [Wisniowski] controlled the breakaway, while Dan [Martin] and Tony [Martin] took over in the last part of the stage and did an excellent job. I am very happy for defending the yellow jersey again, especially as the stage was a tough one,” Vermote said.

Thursday’s fifth stage will be a 194.5km race from Aberdare to Bath, with a few short climbs and a finish that may suit the sprinters again.

Stage 4 results

• 1. Dylan GROENEWEGEN, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, in 5:28:49
• 2. Daniel MCLAY, GBR, at :00
• 3. Ben SWIFT, TEAM SKY, at :00
• 4. Carlos BARBERO CUESTA, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at :00
• 5. Julien VERMOTE, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at :00
• 6. Boy VAN POPPEL, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at :00
• 7. Luka MEZGEC, OBE, at :00
• 8. Nicolas VEREECKEN, SKT, at :00
• 9. Tom DUMOULIN, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at :00
• 10. Diego RUBIO, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at :00
• 11. Thomas LEEZER, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :00
• 12. Nicola BOEM, BARDIANI CSF, at :00
• 13. Marco MARCATO, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :00
• 14. Rick ZABEL, BMC RACING TEAM, at :00
• 15. Russell DOWNING, JLT CONDOR, at :00
• 16. Dion SMITH, ONE PRO CYCLING, at :00
• 17. Jens DEBUSSCHERE, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :00
• 18. Bernhard EISEL, DIMENSION DATA, at :00
• 19. Martijn TUSVELD, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at :00
• 20. Domingos ANDRÉ MACIEL GONÇALVES, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at :00
• 21. Tony GALLOPIN, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :00
• 22. Dylan VAN BAARLE, CDT, at :00
• 23. Karol DOMAGALSKI, ONE PRO CYCLING, at :00
• 24. Tao GEOGHEGAN HART, GBR, at :00
• 25. Ian BIBBY, NFTO, at :00
• 26. Loic VLIEGEN, BMC RACING TEAM, at :00
• 27. Jacopo MOSCA, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at :00
• 28. Stephen CUMMINGS, DIMENSION DATA, at :00
• 29. Nicolas ROCHE, TEAM SKY, at :00
• 30. Sebastian LANGEVELD, CDT, at :00
• 31. Edoardo ZARDINI, BARDIANI CSF, at :00
• 32. Hector SAEZ BENITO, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at :00
• 33. Thomas STEWART, MGT, at :00
• 34. Mark STEWART, GBR, at :00
• 35. Jack BAUER, CDT, at :00
• 36. Daniel MARTIN, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at :00
• 37. Ruben ZEPUNTKE, CDT, at :00
• 38. Steven LAMPIER, JLT CONDOR, at :00
• 39. Guillaume MARTIN, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :00
• 40. Bjorn THURAU, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :00
• 41. Rohan DENNIS, BMC RACING TEAM, at :00
• 42. Francesco Manuel BONGIORNO, BARDIANI CSF, at :00
• 43. Xandro MEURISSE, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :00
• 44. Mark CHRISTIAN, WGN, at :00
• 45. Jorge ARCAS PENA, MOVISTAR TEAM, at :00
• 46. Edmund BRADBURY, NFTO, at :00
• 47. Jochem HOEKSTRA, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at :00
• 48. Jacob SCOTT, SKT, at :00
• 49. Gorka IZAGUIRRE INSAUSTI, MOVISTAR TEAM, at :00
• 50. Daniel PEARSON, WGN, at :00
• 51. Amaël MOINARD, BMC RACING TEAM, at :00
• 52. Erick ROWSELL, MGT, at :00
• 53. Giovanni VISCONTI, MOVISTAR TEAM, at :00
• 54. Enrico GASPAROTTO, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at :00
• 55. Gabriel CULLAIGH, GBR, at :00
• 56. Peter WILLIAMS, ONE PRO CYCLING, at :00
• 57. Taylor EISENHART, BMC RACING TEAM, at :00
• 58. Javier MORENO BAZAN, MOVISTAR TEAM, at :00
• 59. Taylor PHINNEY, BMC RACING TEAM, at :00
• 60. Marcel SIEBERG, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :15
• 61. André GREIPEL, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :18
• 62. Maarten WYNANTS, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :19
• 63. James SHAW, LOTTO SOUDAL, at :19
• 64. Tony MARTIN, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at :19
• 65. Wout POELS, TEAM SKY, at :19
• 66. Danny VAN POPPEL, TEAM SKY, at :40
• 67. Paul MARTENS, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at :51
• 68. Jasper DE BUYST, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 1:13
• 69. Bertjan LINDEMAN, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 2:08
• 70. Mark CAVENDISH, DIMENSION DATA, at 5:16
• 71. Jonathan DIBBEN, WGN, at 5:16
• 72. Eugenio ALAFACI, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at 5:16
• 73. Maximiliano Ariel RICHEZE, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 5:16
• 74. Alessandro TONELLI, BARDIANI CSF, at 5:16
• 75. Paolo SIMION, BARDIANI CSF, at 5:16
• 76. Alistair SLATER, JLT CONDOR, at 5:16
• 77. Thomas MOSES, JLT CONDOR, at 5:16
• 78. Steele VON HOFF, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 5:16
• 79. Roy CURVERS, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 5:16
• 80. Ramon SINKELDAM, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 5:16
• 81. Matthew HOLMES, MGT, at 11:54
• 82. Amets TXURRUKA, OBE, at 11:54
• 83. Hayden MCCORMICK, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 11:54
• 84. Robert POWER, OBE, at 11:54
• 85. Mark MCNALLY, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 11:54
• 86. Damien SHAW, SKT, at 11:54
• 87. Jonathan MCEVOY, NFTO, at 11:54
• 88. Dale APPLEBY, NFTO, at 11:54
• 89. Alex DOWSETT, MOVISTAR TEAM, at 11:54
• 90. Miguel Angel BENITO DIEZ, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 11:54
• 91. Taylor Karl GUNMAN, MGT, at 11:54
• 92. Owain DOULL, WGN, at 11:54
• 93. Adam BLYTHE, GBR, at 11:54
• 94. Nicola RUFFONI, BARDIANI CSF, at 11:54
• 95. Alexander EDMONSON, OBE, at 11:54
• 96. Caleb EWAN, OBE, at 11:54
• 97. Marco COLEDAN, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at 11:54
• 98. Mark RENSHAW, DIMENSION DATA, at 13:25
• 99. Conor DUNNE, JLT CONDOR, at 13:25
• 100. Alexandre BLAIN, MGT, at 13:25
• 101. Bradley WIGGINS, WGN, at 13:25
• 102. Robert WAGNER, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 13:25
• 103. Ian STANNARD, TEAM SKY, at 13:25
• 104. Robert PARTRIDGE, NFTO, at 13:25
• 105. Christopher LATHAM, WGN, at 13:25
• 106. Lukasz WISNIOWSKI, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 13:25
• 107. Jasper BOVENHUIS, SKT, at 13:25
• 108. Oliver KET-SPARK, SKT, at 17:37
• 109. Mathew CRONSHAW, MGT, at 17:37
• 110. Kristian HOUSE, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 17:37
• 111. Elia VIVIANI, TEAM SKY, at 17:37
• 112. Ryan MULLEN, CDT, at 17:37
• 113. Michael HEPBURN, OBE, at 17:37
• 114. Javier Francisco ARAMENDIA LORENTE, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 17:37
• 115. Emiel WASTYN, SKT, at 17:37
• 116. Oliver WOOD, GBR, at 17:37
• 117. Graham BRIGGS, JLT CONDOR, at 17:37
• 118. Jay Robert THOMSON, DIMENSION DATA, at 17:37
• 119. Johann VAN ZYL, DIMENSION DATA, at 17:37
• 120. Liam STONES, NFTO, at 17:37
• DNF Juan Jose LOBATO DEL VALLE, MOVISTAR TEAM
• DNS Giacomo NIZZOLO, TREK – SEGAFREDO

General classification

• 1. Julien VERMOTE, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, in 18:22:04
• 2. Stephen CUMMINGS, DIMENSION DATA, at :06
• 3. Ben SWIFT, TEAM SKY, at 1:03
• 4. Tony GALLOPIN, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 1:03
• 5. Daniel MARTIN, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 1:04
• 6. Xandro MEURISSE, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 1:08
• 7. Dylan VAN BAARLE, CDT, at 1:12
• 8. Tom DUMOULIN, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 1:12
• 9. Guillaume MARTIN, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 1:12
• 10. Nicolas ROCHE, TEAM SKY, at 1:16
• 11. Jacopo MOSCA, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at 1:16
• 12. Rohan DENNIS, BMC RACING TEAM, at 1:17
• 13. Mark CHRISTIAN, WGN, at 3:00
• 14. Ruben ZEPUNTKE, CDT, at 4:33
• 15. Edmund BRADBURY, NFTO, at 4:37
• 16. Erick ROWSELL, MGT, at 4:39
• 17. Ian BIBBY, NFTO, at 4:41
• 18. Dion SMITH, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 4:41
• 19. Marco MARCATO, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 4:41
• 20. Jack BAUER, CDT, at 4:43
• 21. Tao GEOGHEGAN HART, GBR, at 4:43
• 22. Steven LAMPIER, JLT CONDOR, at 4:43
• 23. Edoardo ZARDINI, BARDIANI CSF, at 4:43
• 24. Giovanni VISCONTI, MOVISTAR TEAM, at 4:43
• 25. Sebastian LANGEVELD, CDT, at 4:53
• 26. Thomas STEWART, MGT, at 4:55
• 27. Daniel PEARSON, WGN, at 4:55
• 28. James SHAW, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 5:02
• 29. Domingos ANDRÉ MACIEL GONÇALVES, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 5:03
• 30. Martijn TUSVELD, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 5:05
• 31. Hector SAEZ BENITO, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 5:09
• 32. Loic VLIEGEN, BMC RACING TEAM, at 5:20
• 33. Jochem HOEKSTRA, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 5:28
• 34. Nicolas VEREECKEN, SKT, at 5:31
• 35. Carlos BARBERO CUESTA, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 5:31
• 36. Francesco Manuel BONGIORNO, BARDIANI CSF, at 5:31
• 37. Russell DOWNING, JLT CONDOR, at 5:31
• 38. Diego RUBIO, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 5:39
• 39. Gorka IZAGUIRRE INSAUSTI, MOVISTAR TEAM, at 5:52
• 40. Enrico GASPAROTTO, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 5:52
• 41. Amaël MOINARD, BMC RACING TEAM, at 6:04
• 42. Thomas LEEZER, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 6:42
• 43. Maarten WYNANTS, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 7:41
• 44. Bertjan LINDEMAN, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 9:43
• 45. Alistair SLATER, JLT CONDOR, at 10:52
• 46. Wout POELS, TEAM SKY, at 12:48
• 47. Dylan GROENEWEGEN, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 13:03
• 48. Rick ZABEL, BMC RACING TEAM, at 13:13
• 49. Luka MEZGEC, OBE, at 13:13
• 50. Karol DOMAGALSKI, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 13:13
• 51. Daniel MCLAY, GBR, at 13:28
• 52. André GREIPEL, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 13:33
• 53. Mark STEWART, GBR, at 13:34
• 54. Javier MORENO BAZAN, MOVISTAR TEAM, at 13:34
• 55. Nicola BOEM, BARDIANI CSF, at 13:59
• 56. Jacob SCOTT, SKT, at 14:56
• 57. Boy VAN POPPEL, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at 14:57
• 58. Taylor PHINNEY, BMC RACING TEAM, at 15:18
• 59. Gabriel CULLAIGH, GBR, at 15:18
• 60. Marcel SIEBERG, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 15:33
• 61. Danny VAN POPPEL, TEAM SKY, at 15:37
• 62. Bernhard EISEL, DIMENSION DATA, at 15:38
• 63. Paul MARTENS, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 15:48
• 64. Jens DEBUSSCHERE, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 16:34
• 65. Taylor EISENHART, BMC RACING TEAM, at 16:34
• 66. Amets TXURRUKA, OBE, at 16:37
• 67. Miguel Angel BENITO DIEZ, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 16:53
• 68. Robert POWER, OBE, at 18:00
• 69. Jasper DE BUYST, LOTTO SOUDAL, at 18:05
• 70. Lukasz WISNIOWSKI, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 18:29
• 71. Roy CURVERS, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 18:50
• 72. Mark CAVENDISH, DIMENSION DATA, at 19:09
• 73. Matthew HOLMES, MGT, at 19:11
• 74. Jonathan DIBBEN, WGN, at 20:06
• 75. Ramon SINKELDAM, TEAM GIANT – ALPECIN, at 20:09
• 76. Steele VON HOFF, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 20:13
• 77. Maximiliano Ariel RICHEZE, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 20:13
• 78. Paolo SIMION, BARDIANI CSF, at 20:13
• 79. Thomas MOSES, JLT CONDOR, at 20:33
• 80. Ian STANNARD, TEAM SKY, at 20:43
• 81. Peter WILLIAMS, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 21:23
• 82. Alessandro TONELLI, BARDIANI CSF, at 21:44
• 83. Eugenio ALAFACI, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at 21:50
• 84. Tony MARTIN, ETIXX – QUICK STEP, at 22:09
• 85. Jorge ARCAS PENA, MOVISTAR TEAM, at 23:22
• 86. Nicola RUFFONI, BARDIANI CSF, at 26:51
• 87. Adam BLYTHE, GBR, at 26:51
• 88. Mark MCNALLY, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 26:51
• 89. Robert PARTRIDGE, NFTO, at 26:58
• 90. Caleb EWAN, OBE, at 27:06
• 91. Jonathan MCEVOY, NFTO, at 27:10
• 92. Dale APPLEBY, NFTO, at 27:12
• 93. Damien SHAW, SKT, at 27:12
• 94. Bjorn THURAU, WANTY – GROUPE GOBERT, at 27:51
• 95. Conor DUNNE, JLT CONDOR, at 28:09
• 96. Jasper BOVENHUIS, SKT, at 28:10
• 97. Mark RENSHAW, DIMENSION DATA, at 28:22
• 98. Graham BRIGGS, JLT CONDOR, at 28:25
• 99. Robert WAGNER, TEAM LOTTO NL – JUMBO, at 28:43
• 100. Marco COLEDAN, TREK – SEGAFREDO, at 30:12
• 101. Oliver KET-SPARK, SKT, at 31:11
• 102. Taylor Karl GUNMAN, MGT, at 31:28
• 103. Ryan MULLEN, CDT, at 32:33
• 104. Oliver WOOD, GBR, at 32:34
• 105. Johann VAN ZYL, DIMENSION DATA, at 32:45
• 106. Liam STONES, NFTO, at 32:55
• 107. Javier Francisco ARAMENDIA LORENTE, CAJA RURAL-SEGUROS RGA, at 32:55
• 108. Alex DOWSETT, MOVISTAR TEAM, at 33:44
• 109. Jay Robert THOMSON, DIMENSION DATA, at 34:11
• 110. Alexandre BLAIN, MGT, at 34:54
• 111. Hayden MCCORMICK, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 34:55
• 112. Christopher LATHAM, WGN, at 36:26
• 113. Kristian HOUSE, ONE PRO CYCLING, at 36:32
• 114. Owain DOULL, WGN, at 36:32
• 115. Alexander EDMONSON, OBE, at 36:32
• 116. Bradley WIGGINS, WGN, at 38:03
• 117. Elia VIVIANI, TEAM SKY, at 40:36
• 118. Mathew CRONSHAW, MGT, at 42:10
• 119. Michael HEPBURN, OBE, at 44:00
• 120. Emiel WASTYN, SKT, at 1:08:25