For many of the biggest names in pro cycling, the Clasica de San Sebastian (or, the Donostiako Klasikoa in the Basque language) is the opening race of the post-Tour season, and with a hilly profile that always encourages attacks, it kicks off the stretch of late summer races in style. Tony Gallopin won last year’s edition ahead of some impressive competition, with most of the race’s top contenders having just completed the Tour. The 2014 edition again has an impressive startlist, again largely composed of riders fresh off of Tour de France campaigns, but with a collection of other likely protagonists who skipped this year’s running of La Grande Boucle.
The Route
The San Sebastian parcours has gotten harder and harder in recent years, as race organizers look for ways to liven up the event. This year’s route contains many of the familiar challenges of past runnings of the race, but also an addition that could play a major role in deciding the winner.
The race starts and finishes in the coastal town of San Sebastian, making a large loop and a few repeated twists and turns through the Basque countryside on the way from beginning to end. It’s a long trip at 219.2 total kilometers, and there are plenty of uphill tests on the menu.
The harder climbs of the San Sebastian are categorized, and there are six such challenges on the route of the 2014 edition, with most coming after 100 kilometers of racing (though the Category 1 Iturburu climb, crested around kilometer 60, is no slouch). A bit before the peloton reaches kilometer 120, the road kicks upward for the next major test, the climb that has become a staple of this race: the Jaizkibel. It’s another Category 1 ascent, roughly 8 kilometers in length at an average gradient well over 5%. After a testy descent, it’s not long before the riders reach the Cat. 2 Arkale, a short but steep climb and the third categorized test of the day. From the top of the Arkale, the pack will make a downhill trip right back to the foot of the Jaizkibel, where they’ll take on both the Jaizkibel and then the Arkale for a second time. This repeat journey is followed by the final run-in to finish line, with one final challenge in the way: the most significant alteration made to this route, the Bordako Tontorra climb to Igeldo, a short but steep Cat. 2 crested just over 7 kilometers from the finish. It’s less than 3 kilometers long but with an average gradient nearing 10% and sections in the 20% range, it’s a serious challenge that will be provide the punchy climbers with an excellent launching pad, especially given the high-speed descent that follows, leaving little room for much regrouping before the finish line at 219.2 kilometers is reached.
A long route, plenty of hills, occasional road furniture, and the ever-present threat of bad weather that exists in this area make the Clasica de San Sebastian truly worthy of its “Classic” title. This will be a hard-fought battle, where attrition will take its toll as aggressive all-rounder types take every opportunity to push the pace on the climbs.
The Contenders
The parcours opens a variety of possible scenarios, making it very hard to predict how things will play out: this race could be decided with a long-range attack, it could come down to a rider or a small group of riders escaping in the tough final kilometers (I see this as the most likely outcome), or it could even come down to a sprint among a reduced field. All things considered, this a hilly classic that tends to favor riders who specialize in riding hilly classics. Grit to handle the length of the journey and the possible bad conditions, punchy climbing legs for the obvious uphill challenges on the profile, and soloing ability to make or bridge over to attacks are prerequisites for success here, with a fast finish another useful tool to have should a small group arrive at the line together. A startlist filled with climbing powerhouses, Ardennes Classics protagonists, and versatile fast men reflects the importance of all these traits.
Movistar’s Alejandro Valverde is a dangerous rider in hilly one-day races which is probably why he has had so much success here in the past—he won in 2008, and was runner-up in last year’s edition. The late climb added to this year’s parcours suits him perfectly, and will make his ability to charge uphill even more valuable. While he is coming off of a relatively disappointing Tour de France campaign, unable to manage a podium result despite the absence of Chris Froome and Alberto Contador, there is still plenty to be said for being on good enough form to be 4th in the Tour de France, and this race fits his talents quite well, making him a top favorite for the win. Movistar has several other strong riders on this startlist too, with climbing specialist Igor Anton, fast-finishing JJ Rojas, and well-rounded Giovanni Visconti all potential protagonists themselves.
Cannondale’s Peter Sagan may inspire Movistar to repeat their strategy of 2013 (setting a vicious pace over the climbs to wear down the less climbing-oriented fast finishers in the bunch). There are a few versatile sprinter-types in this race, but none will inspire as much fear as the Tour’s green jersey winner, who can handle some tough climbs and who isn’t afraid to launch an attack if he sees an opportunity. The 2014 San Sebastian profile will really put his uphill ability to the test, however; the addition of a Cat. 2 in the final 10 km makes an already difficult-to-control race even harder to control, reducing the likelihood of a sprint finale. If Sagan is forced to hang on for the last ascent alone with a select few climbing specialists, he may struggle. If he is near the front of the lead group on the slope of the final climb, he has a great shot at winning. Sagan presents every other fast finisher hoping for a sprint with a major conundrum: if any quick man in San Sebastian can make it to the line, Sagan probably can, too, and he’s a hard rider to beat. Any team with sprinting aspirations will hope to isolate him while putting their own man in the best possible position as the day nears its conclusion. Meanwhile, Alessandro De Marchi is a very strong climber who could act as an alternative should Sagan falter.
Tony Gallopin came into last year’s race somewhat under the radar, a 25-year-old who, though talented, had not not landed too many big results in his career up to that point. As the returning champion and a recent Tour stage winner and yellow jersey wearer, Gallopin won’t have that luxury any more, but he’ll still be a strong option. He has been delivering nice results all year, growing as a climber and as a consistent threat in the tough one-day races. He can sprint if need be, but he’s more than capable of escaping from a pack if he feels the need to distance faster finishers. Ardennes specialist Jelle Vanendert makes for a terrific teammate who can put pressure on Lotto’s rivals on the steep stuff, while Tim Wellens is having an excellent year and should thrive on this profile. He came close to a stage win in the Tour de Wallonie, putting in a late attack on the final day that was only swallowed up in the final few kilometers, and that aggressive style will serve his squad well here. Lotto is well-staffed to defend their title in this race.
As is usually the case in a race with a hilly profile, Orica-GreenEdge should be in the mix with quite a collection of potential protagonists, with Simon Gerrans as a strong team leader capable of winning in a variety of scenarios. The final climb is very steep, but Gerrans has put in some great performance on high gradients so far this year, and if he can follow the inevitable attacks in the last few kilometers, he’ll be difficult to beat at the line. Michael Albasini will play the role of dangerous second. Simon and Adam Yates and Jens Keukeleire are other alternatives who can handle climbs and a long day of racing.
BMC has a lot of firepower for the Clasica de San Sebastian. Philippe Gilbert won here in 2011, and assuming he has recovered from a recent bout of illness, he’s on good form right now and will love this profile, especially given the new climb added at the tail end of the day. Few can launch an uphill attack with the potency of Philippe Gilbert, and should anyone stick with the former World Champ if he does make a move late, he has a nice sprint, to boot. Greg Van Avermaet is another well-rounded option who is likely to try for a long-distance strike, while Tejay van Garderen offers impressive climbing chops should any of the real mountain specialists try to turn this into a battle of true climbers. Silvan Dillier is yet another versatile talent for the team.
OPQS is also a team with plenty of firepower (this almost goes without saying, given the amount of talent this team has for one-day races). Zdenek Stybar has not racked up too many major results lately outside of his national championships, but he has the skillset to be in the mix in a classics-style race. Jan Bakelants is another option. The very capable Gianni Meersman will hope to hang on for a sprint. It won’t be easy, but he packs one of the most impressive sprinting and climbing combos in the sport, and, like Peter Sagan, he’ll have a better chance than most fast men of surviving all the way to the line. Even young Julian Alaphilippe, an up-and-comer with a well-rounded skillset, could be in the mix.
Garmin-Sharp’s Ramunas Navardauskas is fresh off a Tour de France stage win in which he put his aggressive stlye on display, but he’s also got a very fast finish in case he reaches the line with company. The climbs in this race will put him to the limit, though, especially that last one. If he can’t hold on, Garmin has other impressive options in Daniel Martin and Tom-Jelte Slagter, who will look to break the race open on the steep stuff. Martin appears to be recovered from his Giro crash, and this is an excellent profile for him. If he’s back on form, he will be a strong contender for victory here. Slagter has cooled somewhat since his hot start to the year but the parcours suits his well-rounded skillset very well, and if he can find some form by the start time, he’ll be a dangerous rider.
Daniel Moreno and Joaquim Rodriguez always make for a potent dynamic duo when short, steep ascents are on the menu. Moreno has not raced for weeks, while Rodriguez did not look to be back at his best yet during the Tour, making both of them question marks, but on-form, they both have what it take to put up a serious fight for the win, with Alexandr Kolobnev and Yuri Trofimov candidates mix it up as well.
Several teams look to be going all-in for strong GC-style climbers, hoping for a selective race with all of the uphill challenges. In Romain Bardet, AG2R has a dangerous option should the tough climbs wear down the weaker climbers. Bardet may not be well-known for his one-day racing prowess, but was an impressive 10th in Liege-Bastogne-Liege this year. He will be a top option if the puncheurs and sprinters start to lose ground, but he’ll need this to be a particularly difficult race if he wants any shot at victory. He’ll have help making the climbs as difficult as possible from a few other squads. Belkin brings Bauke Mollema and Laurens Ten Dam. Ten Dam seems to be equal or maybe even better form right now, but Mollema has the fast finish and explosive uphill charging ability to make him a strong contender on this parcours. This is also a nice profile for Nick van der Lijke, though he’ll be recovering from a crash sustained in the final stage of the Tour de Wallonie. Tinkoff-Saxo is another team built around strong GC-style climbing talent in Nicolas Roche and Michael Rogers. Roche was 5th here last year. Trek is also heavily climber-oriented, with Haimar Zubeldia (on great form right now) and Frank Schleck in attendance. Sky’s Mikel Nieve was an impressive 4th in this race in 2013 and David Lopez is a strong alternative; both could thrive if enough teams organize an effort to make this a hard race.
Astana sends a number of riders fresh from lieutenancy roles at the Tour, including Lieuwe Westra and Tanel Kangert, as well as strong climber Mikel Landa (6th last year) and hilly classics specialist Maxim Iglinskiy. Giant-Shimano has a well-rounded talent for this race in Simon Geschke, who may not have the palmares of Philippe Gilbert or Alejandro Valverde, but who could be a strong outsider with this parcours. Lawson Craddock and Chad Haga are options to try to go from afar. Europcar has Pierre Rolland, Cyril Gautier, and Thomas Voeckler to liven up the race on the ascents, while FDJ also has options in Arthur Vichot, Arnold Jeannesson, Anthony Roux, and Kenny Elissonde.
VeloHuman Top 10 Favorites
Winner: Alejandro Valverde
Podium: Philippe Gilbert, Simon Gerrans
Other Top Contenders: Romain Bardet, Daniel Martin, Peter Sagan, Daniel Moreno, Joaquim Rodriguez, Tony Gallopin, Bauke Mollema
As usual, I’ll be tweeting plenty of live analysis during the race, so follow @VeloHuman on Twitter for more! Also, be sure to check back Saturday for the preview of the Tour de Pologne.
-Dane Cash
Photo by Luken.
