Remco Evenepoel claimed a record fourth victory at the Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa, outsprinting Richard Carapaz at the finish in San Sebastián after the pair broke clear on the decisive climb of the Murgil.
The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe leader attacked with 8.7 kilometres to go on the short but brutally steep ascent, and only the EF Education-EasyPost captain could follow. Carapaz led the sprint into the final kilometre, only for Evenepoel to come around him on the run to the line and move clear of every other rider in the history of the Basque one-day classic.
"It was the most difficult one of all four," Evenepoel said in his post-race television interview, echoing the words he had used trackside moments earlier: "Fourth was the hardest, the most tricky." His day had been far from straightforward: after a mechanical issue at a key moment, he was forced to chase back to the front of the race before positioning himself for the winning move.
Ben Tulett (Visma-Lease a Bike) sprinted to the final place on the podium, while defending champion Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) and Marc Hirschi (Tudor Pro Cycling), another former winner, were among the pre-race favourites who missed the decisive selection.
The 45th edition covered 221.1 kilometres through the hills around San Sebastián, with seven categorised climbs: the early ascents of Kalbario, Azkarate, Urraki and Alkiza, the long circuit taking in the Jaizkibel (7.9km at 5.6%) and the Erlaitz (3.8km at 10.6%), and finally the Murgil (2.1km at 10.1%) before the descent to the finish.
A breakaway of eight riders went clear inside the opening 30 kilometres and still held a lead of nearly two minutes with 70 kilometres remaining. Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe controlled the chase, and over the Jaizkibel a quartet of Bart Lemmen, Maxim Van Gils, Michael Leonard and Jay Vine bridged across, prompting a reshuffle on the Erlaitz as Ciccone, Matteo Jorgenson, Carapaz, Enric Mas and others forced the pace. The groups came back together on the flat run-in, setting up the final showdown on the Murgil.
Evenepoel, second overall behind Tadej Pogačar at last month's Tour de France, timed his attack to perfection to add another landmark win to a remarkable season.
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