Astana placed riders 1-2 on the podium for the day 1 Prologue stage of the Tour of Austria.
The interesting time trial was less than 1 km long, measuring only 800 meters, so pure power was the separating factor on day 1. The Prologue took place in Graz, beginning in town before climbing up to Graz Schlossberg.
What the Prologue route lacked in overall length, it made up for in incline. The course averaged a grade of over 10%, climbing 83 meters upwards, making the short climb feel anything but fast for the riders.
Astana team riders Oscar Gatto and Angel Miguel Lopez were able to complete the course in the first and second fastest times, putting two riders for the team on the podium going into Stage 1. Gatto was able to navigate the 800 meter route in 2:11, with Lopez completing the course a second slower. To put the steepness of the route into perspective, over only 800 meters, the winning rider averaged under 22 kilometers-an-hour.
Cannondale-Drapac rider William Clarke rounded out the podium in a time of 2:15. Cannondale-Drapac also was able to place another rider in the top-5, with Sep Vanmarcke taking fifth in 2:18, the same time as sixth place Team Cofidis rider Anthony Perez,
Italian rider Andrea Vendrame and CCC Sprandi Polkowice's Jan Tratnik finished seventh and eighth, respectively, in 2:19.
Stage 1 will once again begin in Graz, and will take the riders 193.8 kilometers through the mountainous countryside before ending in the Austrian capital city, Wien.
The Tour of Austria is a 2.HC race, which was first put on in 1949.
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