The final stage of the Tour of Hellas delivered one last explosive day of racing under perfect Greek sunshine. Over 147 kilometers from the port city of Piraeus into the historic center of Athens, the peloton raced through warm temperatures and clear skies towards an iconic finish at Syntagma Square.
From the beginning, Team Storck – MRW BAU approached the stage with tactical flexibility. Paul Keller initially joined the early breakaway of the day, but as one of the higher placed riders in the general classification, the cooperation inside the group quickly became difficult. Realising that the move would not succeed under those circumstances, Paul eventually dropped back to the peloton, allowing the team to fully commit to the sprint preparation for Matthew Walls.
As the race entered the technical city laps through Athens, the speed and tension increased dramatically. Team Storck – MRW BAU worked impressively at the front of the peloton, with Lennard Voege and Edgar Cadena investing huge efforts to control the race and bring back the remaining breakaway riders before the final lap.
The team successfully neutralised the attacks and perfectly positioned itself for the sprint finale. However, the final kilometer turned into pure chaos.
A rider from Swatt Club attacked at exactly the right moment after a brief hesitation inside the peloton and managed to open a small but decisive gap. Entering the final corner, an Atom 6 rider briefly lost position, creating a split that boxed in several sprinters behind. With the field hesitating for just a second too long, the solo attacker managed to hold on all the way to the line.
Despite the hectic and unpredictable finish, Matthew Walls once again secured another Top 10 result for Team Storck – MRW BAU.
After five demanding days of racing across Greece, the team leaves the Tour of Hellas with three hard-fought Top 10 finishes and an impressive 12th place overall in the general classification for Edgar Cadena.
The performances throughout the week once again highlighted the growing strength, teamwork and international competitiveness of Team Storck – MRW BAU.l result did not fully reflect the effort invested throughout the day.
