Mark Cavendish won a reduced sprint to take victory at the 2021 Sparkassen Münsterland Giro.
The Deceuninck - Quick-Step sprinter took the 10th win of this comeback season for him, and his first since the summer's Tour de France.
Led out by team-mate Josef Černy in the final kilometre, Israel Start-Up Nation's Alexis Renard sat between Cavendish and his lead-out man.
As Černy pulled away, Renard opened up his sprint, Cavendish following with Uno-X's Hulgaard behind.
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Cavendish eventually pulled him level before passing, with time to sit up and celebrate before the line, Renard settling for second and Hulgaard third.
Only six riders finished within 12 seconds of Cavendish, the racing having splintered, Deceuninck - Quick-Step's Álvaro Hodeg the next across the line in seventh, nearly a minute down and soon followed by Pascal Ackermann in ninth.
André Greipel rounded out the top 10 in the final race of his career, saluting the crowd and raising his hands as he crossed the line, with Cavendish giving him a hug and wishing him well after the finish.
“It was a hard day, with bad weather and lots of wind. We forced a split at one point and worked that into our advantage, committing 100% to the effort," Cavendish said.
"We wanted to make it a tough race and we did just that. In the final kilometers, we began attacking and four of us moved away. I had Josef with me and he did a great job, as did the entire squad. I am happy to get a win so late in the season and to add to the team’s tally."
Result
Sparkassen Münsterland Giro 2021, Enschede to Munster (188.5km)
1. Mark Cavendish (GBr) Deceuninck - Quick-Step, in 4-11-53
2. Alexis Renard (Fra) Israel Start-Up Nation, at one second
3. Morten Hulgaard (Den) Uno-X, at 2s
4. Josef Černy (Cze) Deceuninck - Quick-Step, at 6s
5. Niklas Märkl (Ger) DSM, at 9s
6. Rune Herregodts (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise, at 12s
7. Adriaan Janssen (Ned) ABLOC CT, at same time
8. Álvaro José Hodeg (Col) Deceuninck - Quick-Step, at 58s
9. Pascal Ackermann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe, at 1-21
10. André Greipel (Ger) Israel Start-Up Nation, at 1-33
