article by Nicholas Pucci
Among the great classics that have their main pitfalls in the pavé sections and in the slopes of the walls, undoubtedly the Ghent-Wevelgem is the least demanding. Born in the Thirties, for mileage (usually just over 200 kilometres, although since 2012, with the addition of another passage on the Kemmel, it has extended well over 240 kilometres) and altimetric configuration it is more suited to fast wheels than the other two great cobblestone races, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaixwhich in fact belong to the very limited lot of the classic-monument.
The roll of honor speaks for itself, if it is true that among the multiple winners with three successes, as well as phenomena of the caliber of Eddy Merckx and Rik Van Looy that really didn’t differentiate between an easy ride and a hard ride, there are the names of Mario Cipollini, Tom Boonen and Peter Saganwho in any case belong to the elite of the great road racers, whose most effective weapon in their repertoire of champions is precisely the fast starting point in arrivals in compact ranks.
The edition that opens the Nineties has the rebirth of Italian cycling as its new common denominatorwho won the Milano-Sanremo with Gianni Bugno and is preparing to dominate the scene not only in one-day races, but also in the Grand Tours. At Ghent-Wevelgem, however, it is the home riders who play the favoriteswhich they haven’t won since 1985 when Eric Vanderaerden, sprinter and hunter of reliable classics, crossed the finish line first.
It is finally a beautiful day, but for this edition number 52 there is a big news, and it is certainly not the most captivating, given that the race, not being included among the tests of the newborn World Cup, is forced to contain the mileagein fact, around 200 km. Museeuwwho wears the jacket of Lotto, he is the new ace of Belgian cycling and aims for full successas well as Marc Sergeant and Jean-Marie Wampers, the latter winner of Paris-Roubaix the previous year, are the couple entrusted by the battleship Panasonic, which has the two top sprinters in the event of a sprint finish in the Swiss Urs Freuler and the German Olaf Ludwig. In home-Italy Pierino baffi is the fast wheel of theAriosteama Franco Ballerini, captain of Del Tongo, is the rider who more than any other seems suited to the characteristics of the course.
In fact, the race did not record major jolts, until the second passage on the Kemmel when six of them took the advantage along the descent: Johan Museeuw and Jean-Marie Wampers, the other Flemish Herman Frison of the Histor, supported by teammate Brian Holm, the Dutch Frans Maassen of Buckler, and Ballerini himself. Although the advantage over the pursuers is never such as to ensure the leaders the certainty of battling each other for the victory and the non-linearity of pace, given the various solo attempts, however, the six runners in the lead manage to find a way to reject the return attempt of the platoon chasing not far away, going to compete in the sprint for success.
Museeuw, who apparently is the fastest, trusts himself too much and launches the long sprint, but Frison, who had almost always been indoors contributing little to the breakaway, manages to remount him, thus winning his first (he will also be the sole) classic, with Ballerini in turn forced to settle for third place.
Mockery? Go and ask Museeuw… still burns that Ghent-Wevelgem 1990 lost when he thought he had it within reach of the pedal.
