Van der Poel pounces past Pogacar to secure Milan San Remo double

Mathieu van der Poel won Milan-San Remo on Saturday to claim the cycling season’s opening “Monument” race for the second time, denying Tadej Pogacar in a gripping finale on the Italian Riviera.

Dutchman Van der Poel edged a three-man battle with Slovene superstar Pogacar and local hope Filippo Ganna that came down to the final few hundred metres after 289 kilometres of racing.

Van der Poel snapped a 17-year run of different winners by adding to his success in the seaside town of San Remo two years ago, when he also saw off Pogacar and Ganna — as well as Wout Van Aert — on the Via Roma.

The 30-year-old stayed with Pogacar as the world champion repeatedly tried to go it alone. Van der Poel then launched a long sprint before crossing the line triumphant.

“It’s hard to believe, I was really focused on trying to get the win. We knew Tadej was going to be really strong but I felt really good actually at the end,” said Van der Poel.

“I knew the other two wanted to make it a long sprint because they probably thought I was going to make it as short as possible, so I think I surprised them a bit when on the 300 metre sign I launched my sprint.

“I felt strong enough to keep it until the finish line and it was the right tactic.”

Van der Poel denied Pogacar’s bid to become the first man to win Milan-San Remo as world champion since Giuseppe Saronni in 1983.

Pogacar has been repeatedly frustrated at the “Classicissima”, one of two Monuments along with Paris-Roubaix he is yet to win in his otherwise success-packed career.

Ganna, who finished second, again came close to becoming the first Italian winner since Vincenzo Nibali in 2018.

The peloton began to reel in the traditional early breakaway group, which featured a clutch of Italians, on the approach to the short Capo Mele climb, which with 51km remaining announces the final stages of a long day of racing.

That leading group began to break up on the Capo Berta, the third and final of the three Capo climbs which proceed the Cipressa and Poggio ascents where the race is often decided.

Martin Marcellusi popped out on his own to lead the race but he was eventually swallowed up just as he started up the Cipressa.

Pogacar almost immediately put himself in position at the tip of the peloton behind teammate Jhonatan Narvaez, and made his first attack halfway up the climb, closely followed by Van der Poel and Ganna.

That aggressive move left it up to the leading trio to contend the finale, jostling for supremacy as they built a gap of a minute on the peloton.

Pogacar attacked again at the start of the final Poggio climb, but Van der Poel stuck on his wheel as Ganna bravely stayed with the pair after looking like being dropped.

Ganna was back in contention in the final kilometre but Van der Poel had the situation under control. Once he made his move the game was up.