Terpstra takes Eneco Tour as Dennis crashes

BRUSSELS: Dutch rider Niki Terpstra won the Eneco Tour after taking second to Edvald Boasson Hagen in Sunday’s seventh and final stage.

Norway’s Boasson Hagen claimed the clos- ing day’s honors in a sprint at the end of a challenging 197.8km ride from Bornem to Grammont.

Terpstra (Etixx) was placed fifth going into Sunday’s stage, almost half a minute behind Australian BMC rider Rohan Dennis, the overall leader.

But Dennis’s hopes of victory were compromised when he crashed after 48km.

Terpstra, a former Paris-Roubaix winner, said: “The plan was to attack to put BMC and Rohan Dennis in difficulty, and it worked perfectly.”

For Terpstra this was the perfect preparation for his main end-of-season target, the world championship time-trial in Doha.

Finishing third in the final stage was Belgium’s Oliver Naesen, who came second overall.

Dutch rider Tom Dumoulin was fourth on the day, followed by Olympic champion Greg Van Avermaet and world champion Peter Sagan.

Results from the Eneco Tour seventh and final stage, a 197.8km ride from from Bornem to Grammont on Sunday:

1. Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR/Dimension Data) 4hr 03min 27sec, 2. Niki Terpstra (NED) at 2sec, 3. Oliver Naesen (BEL) 2, 4. Tom Dumoulin (NED) 43, 5. Greg Van Avermaet (BEL) 43, 6. Peter Sagan (SVQ) 47, 7. Wilco Kelderman (NED) 47, 8. Jos van Emden (NED) 49, 9. Jon Izagirre (ESP) 49, 10. Dmitriy Gruzdev (KAZ) 49 Overall 1. Niki Terpstra (NED/Etixx) 22hr 43min 26sec, 2. Oliver Naesen (BEL) 31, 3. Peter Sagan (SVQ) 1:00, 4. Greg Van Avermaet (BEL) 01:02, 5. Jos van Emden (NED) 1:03, 6. Wilco Kelderman (NED) 1:11, 7. Zdenek Stybar (CZE) 1:15, 8. Jon Izagirre (ESP) 1:19, 9. Tom Dumoulin (NED) 1:22, 10. Bob Jungels (LUX) 1:31

BACK TO WINNING WAYS: Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark poses with the winner's plate after beating Naomi Osaka of Japan at the Japan Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament in Tokyo Sunday. (AP)

TOP THREE: From left, second placed Belgium's Oliver Naesen, overall winner Netherlands' Niki Terpstra and third-placed Slovakia's Peter Sagan celebrate on the general ranking podium after the seventh and last stage of the Eneco Tour cycling race,...