António Morgado Finishes Fourth Overall in Circuit des Ardennes Cyclist Race

António Morgado, the Portuguese cyclist from the Hagens-Berman-Axeon team, finished fourth overall in a race that was marked by its consistency and mountain stages.[expander_maker id=”1″ ] The final general classification saw Mathias Bregnhoj from Leopard Togt take the top spot, followed by Matej Zahálka from Elkov and Thibaud Gruel from Groupama-FDJ. Morgado finished only 41 seconds behind the winner and 8 seconds behind second place, a significant achievement after winning the Tour de Rhodes in his previous race. His teammate Gonçalo Tavares finished in 28th place.

Initially, Morgado did not expect to finish so high in the rankings, especially after his second stage did not go as planned. However, he managed to recover on the third day and was even able to compete for a higher ranking. Unfortunately, the final climb of the last stage was cancelled due to a neutralization at the 13 km mark, which ruined his chances to attack. Nonetheless, Morgado was satisfied with his overall performance and experience gained from racing at this level. His next goal is to be in great shape for July and August. He will be back in action soon, racing in the Liége-Bastogne-Liége for sub 23.

The ninth and final stage covered a distance of 138.7 km between Bazeilles and Charleville-Méziéres. The stage started with a nine-cyclist breakaway, but they were unable to hold off the peloton and were caught at the 14 km mark. Soon after, the race was neutralized, and the cyclists were not able to attack the last climb of the stage. The race commenced only three km later at the start of the climb with the peloton tightly packed. Despite sporadic attempts to attack, the cyclists tackled the climb as a group. However, the technical and fast descent soon broke up the peloton, and several groups were formed, regrouping in the last two kilometers. The intense sprint to the finish culminated in a close photo-finish, with Luke Lamperti from Trinity taking the victory, followed by Thibaud Gruel from Groupama-FDJ and Alberto Bruttomesso from Italy in second and third place, respectively.

António Morgado finished the last stage in 11th place, which allowed him to finish fourth overall. His teammate Gonçalo Tavares finished in 44th place in the last stage, putting him in 28th place overall.

Morgado expressed his disappointment regarding the neutralization of the last climb of the race, which he had planned to attack. Nonetheless, he remains positive about his performance and the experience he gained from the race. The competition was an excellent opportunity for Morgado to learn and compete at a high level. Meanwhile, his teammate Tavares will have to bounce back in the future races.

In summary, António Morgado, a Portuguese cyclist from the Hagens-Berman-Axeon team, finished fourth overall in a race that was challenging and competitive. The race featured mountain stages that tested the cyclists’ endurance and skills. Although the race did not conclude as planned on the last stage, Morgado was satisfied with his overall performance and experience gained from the race. He remains positive and is looking forward to his next challenge.[/expander_maker]