Nickolas Zukowsky did not have the desired experience at his baptism of the Tour of Flanders. Victim of a fall and a mechanical problem, the cyclist from Sainte-Lucie-des-Laurentides was forced to retire on Sunday.
“One of the worst feelings of my life is not finishing a race,” regretted Zukowsky, forced to retire a little after halfway through the 274 km event. “I hate, hate not finishing a race. »
The day had however started well for the Quebecer and his new Swiss Q36.5 team, which placed Filippo Colombo in the breakaway of the day with Hugo Houle and company.
Zukowsky was about to discover his first cobbled sections when a misguided maneuver by Filip Maciejuk caused a slaughter in the main peloton.
The Pole from Bahrain was looking to reposition himself up front by moving up outside on his left, but he bounced into a crevice in the turf by the side of the road, which propelled him towards Tim Wellens. The Belgian fell heavily, causing an attack of which Wout van Aert, Peter Sagan and Julian Alaphilippe were among others victims.
Zukowsky couldn’t avoid the piling up of bodies either. He quickly fell back on his spare bike to continue on his way. However, the seatpost collar was apparently loose, so that the seat gradually descended to the frame.
As the team car was too far away, the 24-year-old cyclist had to climb Old Kwaremont in this awkward position.
“I was pedaling like on my girlfriend Simone’s bike,” illustrated the 1.85m guy, referring to Simone Boilard, a professional cyclist who is about thirty centimeters shorter…
Zukowsky did his best before setting foot a few kilometers further, when the peloton was already starting to break up. He took a teammate’s spare mount, but his first Tour of Flanders adventure ended soon after.
“I was ready to fight to get as far as possible, but I already knew that a group in front, with two or three teammates, would soon be taken out by the marshals. I was not tempted to take risks by riding for an hour or an hour and a half on a teammate’s bike, which was far from adjusted for me. I end this on a negative note. It’s a shame, but these are things that happen. »
On the phone, Zukowsky did not hide his enthusiasm after the experience he had just had, starting with the presentation of the riders in Bruges until his retirement.
“It was really amazing,” said the man who had spent more than 100 km on a breakaway in the classic Through Flanders on Wednesday. “It’s a race that I want to do again in the future, that’s for sure. If it is, it feeds my appetite even more to come back to race. »
Maciejek, the one who caused the collective fall, was disqualified in the middle of the test. He apologized within the hour on social networks for his “error in judgment”.
Zukowsky praised the brilliant effort of his teammate Colombo, who hung on long before reaching the finish in the 50e place. The 25-year-old Swiss is a mountain bike specialist, having finished second in the World Cup standings last year.
“He is used to doing 1h15 races and there, to do 6h30 like that, hats off! On the bus earlier, I have rarely seen a guy so tired and burnt out! He really gave his all. »
Back in the evening at his home in Nice, Zukowsky will return to the North on Thursday in anticipation of Paris-Roubaix, where he will experience another prestigious baptism next Sunday.
Lotte Kopecky won the women’s event for the second year in a row, beating SD Worx teammate Demi Vollering and Italy’s Elisa Longo Borghini by 36 seconds. Quebecer Gabrielle Pilote Fortin (Cofidis) did not finish the race.