2 September 2020, Gyöngyös-Kékestető (HUN)
Attila Valter wrapped up an already successful Tour de Hongrie for CCC Team in impressive style today, taking an emphatic stage win on the final day of racing and securing the overall victory on home soil.
The final and queen stage of the race lived up to expectations with a fierce battle for the yellow leader’s jersey that ultimately saw Valter, who finished third overall in 2019, grinning from ear to ear and punching the air with delight after powering away from the rest of the field in the closing meters of the race.
CCC Team protected the interests of their General Classification contender all day, maintaining a watchful eye at the front of the bunch and keeping the Hungarian rider in a good position as race leader at the start of the day Kaden Groves’ Mitchelton – SCOTT team set the tempo behind the breakaway.
With just one rider out at the front of the race as it approached the summit of the second categorized climb, Michał Paluta bridged the gap alongside three others to take the pressure of the rest of the team behind him ahead of the decisive summit finish at Gyöngyös-Kékestető.
At the ten-kilometer to go mark, a reduced peloton was back together with the pace only continuing to increase with every stroke of the riders’ pedals, and shortly after it was Valter’s teammate Łukasz Wiśniowski, who put in a huge effort at the front to help whittle the group down further.
Valter’s grit and determination as well as his strength on the climbs were clearly evident as he launched himself off the front of a small chasing group, overtaking Damien Howson (Mitchelton – SCOTT) inside the final kilometer and riding to an impressive double victory on the line.
Valter’s stage win took CCC Team’s tally up to four at the five-day stage race with Jakub Mareczko taking home the green jersey as winner of the Points Classification following his victories on stages two, three, and four.
The Winner’s Interview with Attila Valter
Congratulations Attila. How are you feeling after taking today’s stage win and the overall title at the Tour de Hongrie?
“This is an amazing feeling and the first thing I need to say is that my team did an excellent job to help me achieve this goal. I cannot think of a better team to have been here with, everyone has been incredible. The last three stages have definitely given all of us a lot of motivation and I felt really good coming into this final stage.”
“I felt like I could get this result today and the way we have raced over the last few days made me feel even more confident. I knew every meter of the last climb and I knew what I needed to do. I waited a little bit longer to attack than last year when I went too early and wasn’t successful so this year, I was more patient. I am really happy to have won this stage and taken the overall victory. It feels great to finish a fantastic week off like this.”
What was it like racing on home soil this week?
“It’s been amazing racing on home soil and even though the situation is different this year, I have still taken a lot of strength and motivation from hearing people cheering for me all week. I am grateful for this support. I am so happy to be able to claim this victory at home. It feels really special to get this win especially after coming close and just missing out last year.”
It’s been an incredible week for CCC Team in Hungary. How would you sum up the race?
“It’s been an awesome race for us. As I said before, the team has been fantastic all week, everyone has worked hard and we really raced well together as a team. To win four out of five stages as well as the General Classification is really cool and I am so happy with what we did here.”
Quotes From the Finish Line
Sports Director, Gabriele Missaglia:
“It’s been an unbelievable five days for us at the Tour de Hongrie. At the start of the race, the objective was to win one stage with Mareczko and then go for the General Classification with Valter so, to come away with four stage wins and the yellow jersey is really special. I am really proud of what everybody, riders and staff, did here.”
“This was a really hard final stage with around 3500 meters of climbing but we had a strategy for the stage and the final climb which the guys executed perfectly. Wiśniowski was really strong in the final kilometers for Valter and helped set him up for the finish as we knew he needed to be patient and not be the first to attack. Valter knew this climb very well and we were confident that he could get this victory but you never know what can happen so it’s wonderful to be able to finish off the race with this win.”
Race Profile
Tour De Hongrie
Stage 5: Miskolc > Gyöngyös-Kékestető (188km)
Top 3: 1. Attila Valter (CCC Team) 2. Quinn Simmons (Trek – Segafredo) 3. Damien Howson (Mitchelton – SCOTT)
Top 3 on GC: 1. Attila Valter (CCC Team) 2. Quinn Simmons (Trek – Segafredo) 3. Damien Howson (Mitchelton – SCOTT)
