Sam Bennett denied fifth Tour of Turkey stage win after crashing on final corner (video)
Irish sprinter Sam Bennett loses points classification lead due to unfortunate crash just before the finish in Istanbul - Italian Diego Ulissi takes overall victory
Disaster for @Sammmy_Be as Edward Theuns wins Stage Six on the Tour of Turkey #TUR2017 pic.twitter.com/IuhKocLC03
— Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) October 15, 2017
Sam Bennett (Bora-Hansgrohe) was denied a fifth stage win in the 2017 Presidential Tour of Turkey on Sunday after suffering a suffering a crash on the final corner in Istanbul.
The Irishman had been in the perfect position behind team-mate Matteo Pelucchi heading into the finishing straight but lost his front wheel, sliding into the barriers.
Edward Theuns (Trek-Segafredo) went on to take the win, and also relieved Bennett of the points classification victory despite Bennett's previous four stage wins. Pelucchi placed second with Francesco Gavazzi (Androni-Sidermec-Bottecchia) in third.
Bennett got back on his bike to finish the stage, and said afterwards: "Not exactly how I wanted to finish my season but all good things must come to an end. I'm happy I didn't lose too much skin this time."
Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) finished in sixth place on the final stage to successfully defended his overall lead. Ulissi moved to the top of the general classification of the six-day WorldTour race on Friday after winning the key mountain stage.
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The 28-year-old Italian adds the win in Turkey to his victory in the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal in September as a late-season flourish in the top-flight WorldTour. It's his first WorldTour stage race overall win.
Dane Jesper Hansen (Astana) finished as runner-up to Ulissi, with Fausto Masnada (Androni-Sidermec-Bottecchia) in third.
The 2017 Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey is the penultimate event in the 2017 UCI WorldTour calendar. Just one event remains: the Tour of Guangxi in China over October 19-24.
Result
Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey 2017, stage six: Istanbul to Istanbul, 143.7km
1. Edward Theuns (Bel) Trek-Segafredo, in 3-24-32
2. Matteo Pelucchi (Ita) Bora-Hansgrohe
3. Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Androni-Sidermec-Bottecchia
4. Jarlinson Pantano (Col) Trek-Segafredo
5. Davide Ballerini (Ita) Androni-Sidermec-Bottecchia
6. Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team Emirates
7. Riccardo Minali (Ita) Astana
8. Vincenzo Albanese (Ita) Bardiani-CSF
9. Manuel Belletti (Ita) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia
10. Simone Consonni (Ita) UAE Team Emirates, all same time
Final general classification
1. Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team Emirates, in 26-32-13
2. Jesper Hansen (Den) Astana, at 12 secs
3. Fausto Masnada (Ita) Androni-Sidermec-Bottecchia, at 24 secs
4. Daniel Martinez (Col) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia, at 29 secs
5. Ildar Arslanov (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo, at 30 secs
6. Yonder Godoy (Ven) Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia, at 30 secs
7. Francesco Gavazzi (Ita) Androni-Sidermec-Bottecchia, at 38 secs
8. Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol) UAE Team Emirates, at 47 secs
9. Andrey Zeits (Kaz) Astana, at 50 secs
10. Jarlinson Pantano (Col) Trek-Segafredo, at 1-03
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Nigel Wynn worked as associate editor on CyclingWeekly.com, he worked almost single-handedly on the Cycling Weekly website in its early days. His passion for cycling, his writing and his creativity, as well as his hard work and dedication, were the original driving force behind the website’s success. Without him, CyclingWeekly.com would certainly not exist on the size and scale that it enjoys today. Nigel sadly passed away, following a brave battle with a cancer-related illness, in 2018. He was a highly valued colleague, and more importantly, an exceptional person to work with - his presence is sorely missed.