Tony Martin Annihilates the World’s Best at UCI Men’s Elite Time Trial

Germany’s Tony Martin didn’t defeat the best time trialers in the world at the UCI Road Cycling World Championships Men’s Elite Time Trial in Copenhagen, Denmark, Wednesday—he destroyed them.

Facing a field including multiple World Time Trial Champion Fabian Cancellara, former champs David Millar and Bert Grabsch, and such cycling luminaries as Bradley Wiggins, Richie Porte, Taylor Phinney and Jakob Fuglsang, Tony Martin was completely confidant. He started fast and stayed fast, first through every time-check of the 46.4 km (28.8 mi.) course.

In the end, Martin finished 1:16 ahead of second-placed Bradley Wigging, who was four seconds faster than Cancellara, who would have taken silver save for a near-accident in the final kilometers.

Martin averaged 51.8 kph, the fastest time ever recorded in a World Championship time trial.

Martin said he knew he would win after the final time-check. “I already could feel it if in the last K’s; I was so sure that I would win, I had such a good feeling. Now a dream became true. It’s amazing,” he told Eurosport.com.

Riders were sent out at ninety-second intervals; Martin started second-to-last, right after 2008 winner David Millar. The German rider overtook England’s Millar as if he weren’t trying.

“For me David Millar is one of the favorites; for sure, when you pass him and you are one-and-a-half minutes faster than him, you must be having a good ride,” Martin said. “It gave me a lot of motivation and morale.”

He also said the pressure of riding against the top riders in the world didn’t faze him, it motivated him. “For me it was positive pressure. This is my fourth time in the World Time Trials; I have learned how to deal with the pressure.”

A Good Day to Dominate

The day dawned gloomy and threatened rain, but the weather stayed clear through the event; the later riders had the same chance as the early starters.

Kazakhstan’s Alexandr Dyachenko set an early best time, followed by Spain’s Jonathan Castroviejo. Forty-five minutes into the event, USA’s Andrew Talansky took third, but he couldn’t hold it; an hour later Canada’s Svein Tuft claimed the bottom podium spot.

All of these riders looked fast, turning in times in the 57-minute range, but as Svein crossed the finish line, Australia’s Jack Bobridge started turning in split times a minute faster. Germany’s Bert Grabsch followed Bobridge, setting even faster times at each time-check.

Bradley Wiggins, coming off a very close defeat at the Vuelta a España, started out looking confident and quick; he beat Grabsch at every time check, and gained eight seconds in the final seven kilometers.

This left Tony Martin and Fabian Cancellara. Martin had beaten Cancellara all season, but the Swiss champion had won the Worlds so often it was almost unthinkable that anyone else could win.

Martin rode so fast it seemed impossible he could keep up the pace through the length of the course, but he looked so comfortable, it seemed impossible he would blow up. Cancellara came out of the gates at a desperate speed; he looked alike a man driving himself beyond his own limitations.

Through every time check, Martin was the fastest and Cancellara second; the Swiss rider used every millimeter of the road, riding with zero restraint, risking a crash at every corner, but he couldn’t catch his German adversary.

Finally, coming off a cobblestone section, Cancellara went too fast; he brushed the barrier and had to come to a near halt to regain control. He pushed on, losing perhaps ten seconds; but at that point he was riding for second anyway.

The Swiss powerhouse took third, four seconds behind England’s Bradley Wiggins, while Tony Martin finished an incredible 1:15.83 ahead. The German rider was in a class of his own.

The best-placed Americans were Taylor Phinney and Andrew Talansky in fifteenth and sixteenth.

Thursday will be a rest day at the World Road Cycling Championships; competition will resume on Friday with the Junior Women’s and Under-23 Men’s road races. The Women’s and Men’s Elite classes race Saturday and Sunday.

UCI World Road Cycling Championships Elite Men’s Time Trial
	Rider	Nation	Time	Gap
1	Tony Martin	GER	53:43.85
2	Bradley Wiggins	GBR	54:59.68	+1:15.83
3	Fabian Cancellara	SUI	55:04.44	+1:20.59
4	Bert Grabsch	GER	55:15.61	+1:31.76
5	Jack Bobridge	AUS	55:57.71	+2:13.86
6	Richie Porte	AUS	56:13.39	+2:29.54
7	David Millar	GBR	56:29.47	+2:45.62
8	Lieuwe Westra	NED	57:02.37	+3:18.52
9	Alexandr Dyachenko	KAZ	57:03.61	+3:19.76
10	Jakob Fuglsang	DEN	57:14.44	+3:30.59
11	Jonathan Castroviejo	ESP	57:18.22	+3:34.37
12	Gustav Larson	SWE	57:18.47	+3:34.62
13	Svein Tuft	CAN	57:19.74	+3:35.89
14	Janez Brajkovic	SLO	57:28.59	+3:44.74
15	Taylor Phinney	USA	57:36.43	+3:52.58
16	Andrew Talansky	USA	57:41.74	+3:57.89