1997 Tour of Flanders

The 81st running of the Tour of Flanders cycling race in Belgium was held on Sunday 6 April 1997. It was the second leg of the 1997 UCI Road World Cup. Rolf Sørensen won the race, becoming the first Danish winner of the monument classic.[1][2] The race started in Sint-Niklaas and finished in Meerbeke (Ninove).

1997 UCI Road World Cup, race 2
Rolf Sørensen, first Danish winner of the Tour of Flanders
Race details
Dates6 April 1997
Stages1
Distance256 km (159.1 mi)
Winning time5h 57' 01"
Results
  Winner  Rolf Sørensen (DEN) (Rabobank)
  Second  Frédéric Moncassin (FRA) (Gan)
  Third  Franco Ballerini (ITA) (Mapei-GB)

Race summary

Peter Van Petegem made the first significant move on Oude Kwaremont, but couldn't force a viable breakaway. On Taaienberg, 50 km from the finish, French star Laurent Jalabert broke away, followed by Dane Rolf Sørensen. Race favourite and world champion Johan Museeuw crashed at the foot of the Berendries climb and was unable to return to the front of the race. Meanwhile, Jalabert was left behind on the Berendries, as Van Petegem and Italians Ballerini and Casarotto joined Sørensen in the front. On the Muur van Geraardsbergen the four front riders were joined by seven others, including sprint specialist Frédéric Moncassin and Andrei Tchmil. In the last 10 km, Moncassin, Sørensen and Ballerini broke away and pushed on to the finish. Sørensen attacked under the one-kilometer banner and powered on to victory. Moncassin outsprinted Ballerini for second place.

Climbs

There were fifteen categorized climbs:

Results
Cyclist Team Time
1  Rolf Sørensen (DEN) Rabobank 5h 57' 01"
2  Frédéric Moncassin (FRA) GAN + 7"
3  Franco Ballerini (ITA) Mapei–GB + 8"
4  Andrei Tchmil (UKR) Lotto–Mobistar–Isoglass s.t.
5  Davide Casarotto (ITA) Scrigno–Gaerne + 20"
6  Claudio Chiappucci (ITA) ASICS + 21"
7  Michele Bartoli (ITA) MG Maglificio–Technogym + 27"
8  Jo Planckaert (BEL) Lotto–Mobistar–Isoglass s.t.
9  Peter Van Petegem (BEL) TVM–Farm Frites s.t.
10  Viatcheslav Ekimov (RUS) U.S. Postal Service s.t.

References
  1. McGann, Bill; McGann, Carol. "1997 Ronde van Vlaanderen results". BikeRaceInfo. Cherokee Village, AR: McGann Publishing. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  2. "81st Ronde van Vlaanderen, World Cup Round 2". Archived from the original on 14 May 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
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