team news

Adam Blythe figured in a more than 85-kilometer breakaway Wednesday at Nokere Koerse but the BMC Racing Team was not in a position to contest the sprint at the end of the 195.9 km race.

Crash Near The Finish
Blythe, the team's designated sprinter, said it wasn't his intention to get in the breakaway, which was not given more than a few minutes of freedom. "A few guys went before a cobble section and I had to follow because we had nobody there," Blythe said. "I thought it would come back together on the cobbles but they let us go. I knew we were going to be caught closer to the finish, but there was nothing I could do apart from keep going and just saving as much energy as possible." Assistant Director Max Sciandri said fortunately no one from the BMC Racing Team was caught up in a crash that split the field with one kilometer to go. Francesco Chicchi (IOmega Pharma-Quick Step) won the bunch sprint from a reduced group that escaped the pile-up.