2015 Liège–Bastogne–Liège

September 2019 2015 Liège–Bastogne–Liège 2015 UCI World Tour 13 28http://www.uci.ch/road/calendar/detail#date=20150401&view=list&categ=257&country=0&classc=0 2015 UCI Calendar 4 January 2015 Union Cycliste Internationale 2015_Liège–Bastogne–Liège_poster.jpg The riders on the podium after the race(from left to right: Julian Alaphilippe, Alejandro Valverde and Joaquim Rodríguez) 26 April 2015http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/uci-confirm-worldtour-calendar-2015 UCI confirm WorldTour Calendar 2015 4 January 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 253 km 6h 14' 20" Alejandro Valverde MOV 2015 ESP Julian Alaphilippe EQS 2015 FRA Joaquim Rodríguez KAT 2015 ESP 2014 2016 The 2015 Liège–Bastogne–Liège was a one-day cycling classic that took place in the Belgian Ardennes on 26 April 2015. It was the 101st edition of the Liège–Bastogne–Liège one-day cycling race and was the fourth cycling monument of the 2015 season. It was part of the 2015 UCI World Tour and was organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), the organisers of the Tour de France. 200 riders raced over a 253 km on off route that started in Liège, travelled south to Bastogne, then returned north by an indirect route to finish in Ans on the outskirts of Liège. The route included many hills, especially in the final 70 km off, which were the principal difficulty in the race. There were many attacks in the final part of the race, with several groups breaking away from the peloton and subsequently being caught. A small group came together on the final ascent to the finish line, where the race was decided in a sprint. It was won by the pre-race favourite, Alejandro Valverde (MOV 2015), ahead of Julian Alaphilippe (EQS 2015) and Joaquim Rodríguez (KAT 2015). This was Valverde's third victory in Liège–Bastogne–Liège and put him into the lead of the World Tour standings. Background thumbnail|upright|Eddy Merckx, photographed here during the 1967 Giro d'Italia, holds the record for the most wins in Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Liège–Bastogne–Liège, one of the oldest races on the cycling calendar, was established in 1892. Milano–Torino is the only current race to have begun earlier, although it did not exist as a regular event until the 1920s. Liège–Bastogne–Liège was founded as a precursor to a planned Liège–Paris–Liège event, which never came about, but eventually became one of the most important races on the cycling calendar in its own right.Cossins 2015 7–8 The race is seen as one of the cycling Monuments, alongside Milan–San Remo, the Tour of Flanders, Paris–Roubaix and the Giro di Lombardia.Cossins 2015 2 Because Liège–Bastogne–Liège is the oldest of the major races on the cycling calendar, it has the nickname fr La Doyenne (English: The Old Lady). It is particularly known as a race where the best one-day riders and the best Grand Tour riders can compete on relatively equal terms.Cossins 2015 7 In his book The Monuments, Peter Cossins wrote that Liège–Bastogne–Liège "is generally regarded as the toughest one-day race on the calendar".Cossins 2015 74 Eddy Merckx holds the record for the most victories, with five wins between 1969 and 1975.Cossins 2015 374 Liège–Bastogne–Liège was the fourth of the Monuments to take place in the 2015 season. Milan–San Remo and Paris–Roubaix were won by John Degenkolb (TGA 2015), while the Tour of Flanders was won by Alexander Kristoff (KAT 2015).Cycling Calendar and Races http://procyclingstats.com/races.php?c=1&year=2015 ProCyclingStats ProCyclingStats BV 9 October 2015 Liège–Bastogne–Liège was the final event of the spring classics season and came as the conclusion to the Ardennes classics, following the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne.Ardennes Classics http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/tag/ardennes-classics Cycling Weekly Time Inc. UK 9 October 2015 It was also part of the 2015 UCI World Tour, a season-long competition that included both one-day events and stage races. Teams As it was part of the UCI World Tour, the 17 UCI WorldTeams were automatically invited and obliged to send a team to Liège–Bastogne–Liège.http://www.uci.ch/mm/Document/News/Rulesandregulation/16/82/39/2-ROA-20150619-E_English.pdf UCI Cycling Regulations: Part 2: Road Races page 110 article 2.15.127 Union Cycliste Internationale 20 August 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150702030045/http://www.uci.ch/mm/Document/News/Rulesandregulation/16/82/39/2-ROA-20150619-E_English.pdf 2 July 2015 The race organisers ASO, the organisers of the Tour de France, also made eight wildcard invitations to UCI Professional Continental teams. The peloton was therefore made up of 25 teams. Six of the teams were also invited to La Flèche Wallonne. These included two Belgian teams (WGG 2015 and TSV 2015), two French teams (COF 2015 and EUC 2015), ROO 2015 and MTN 2015. The final two teams to be invited to Liège–Bastogne–Liège were BOH 2015 (whose invitation meant that they would participate in all five Monuments in 2015) and CUL 2015.Clarke Stuart Flèche Wallone and Liège-Bastogne-Liège wildcards announced http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/fleche-wallone-and-liege-bastogne-liege-wildcards-announced-161600 21 April 2015 Cycling Weekly 10 March 2015 Time Inc. UK As each team was required to enter between five and eight riders, the maximum size of the peloton was 200 riders.ASO 2015 9 ALM AST BMC OPQ FDJ IAM LAM LTB MOV OGE GRS GIA KAT BEL SKY TTS TFR UCI WorldTeams 2015 COF MTN EUC ROO TSV WGG BSE UHC UCI Professional Continental teams 2015 Route thumb|Profile of the 2015 Liège–Bastogne–Liège The route for the 2015 race was announced on 15 April. The route was 10 km off shorter than in 2014; it was therefore 253 km off in length. The changes came in the final section of the route, with the Côte de la Vecquée removed and the Col du Rosier and the Col du Maquisard added instead.Shorter Liège-Bastogne-Liège, more selective finale for 2015 http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/shorter-lige-bastogne-lige-more-selective-finale-for-2015/ 6 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 15 April 2015 The second change was a reduction in distance between the third-last and second-last climbs: the distance was cut from 25 km off to 16 km off, with a small unclassified climb also added. Cyclingnews.com described the first change as a "much harder combination" suggested that the new route would make the race more interesting than the 2014 edition, which it described as "painfully dull".Fotheringham Alasdair Alasdair Fotheringham Liege-Bastogne-Liege toughens up finale http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/liege-bastogne-liege-toughens-up-finale/ 6 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 23 April 2015 The race began in Liège, in Place Saint-Lambert outside the Prince-Bishops' Palace, with a neutral zone that took the riders out of the town to the south. The first 75 km off of the race brought the peloton south, through Aywaille to La Roche-en-Ardenne; although the roads were not flat there were no difficult or categorised climbs. Here the riders encountered the first classified climb of the day, the Côte de la Roche-en-Ardenne, a 2.8 km off on climb at an average gradient of 6.2%. After reaching the summit, the riders continued south for another 28 km off. This took them through Bertogne to Bastogne, which they reached after 107 km off of racing. This was the turning-point: from here the route turned to the north to return towards Liège. The northern leg of the race was both longer – 146 km off – and more difficult – it included nine categorised climbs.ASO 2015 2–6The climbs of Liege-Bastogne-Liege http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/the-climbs-of-liege-bastogne-liege-96553 6 October 2015 Cycling Weekly Time Inc. UK 24 April 2015 left|thumb|The Côte de La Redoute, photographed in 2007. Messages from fans to the riders can be seen painted on the road. After turning around at the Rond-point La Doyenne (named after the race itself), the peloton left Bastogne to the north-east. The first 17 km off were fairly flat and took the riders to Houffalize.ASO 2015 2–6 After a fast descent came the Côte de Saint-Roch, an 11.2% average climb over its 1 km off on length. Another fairly flat section followed: the route continued north for approximately 30 km off on fairly major roads through Gouvy and Vielsalm. At this point, with 86.5 km off to the finish line, there were still eight categorised climbs remaining.ASO 2015 2–6 The first three of these climbs came in quick succession. These were the Côte de Wanne (2.7 km off at 7.4%), the Côte de Stockeu (1 km off at 12.5%) and the Côte de la Haute-Levée (3.6 km off at 5.6%).ASO 2015 2–7 The Côte de Wanne was narrow and badly surfaced, with a dangerous descent following. The Côte de Stockeu was described by Cycling Weekly as a "killer climb", because of its steep gradient, its narrowness and its poor road surface. The Côte de la Haute-Levée was unique on the course because it included a 500 m -2 section of cobblestones. thumb|The view from the top of the final climb in Ans. The flamme rouge can be seen in the background. These climbs brought the riders to Stavelot. Soon afterwards, there was a hairpin turn that took them towards the two climbs new to the 2015 edition. The first of these was the Col du Rosier (4.4 km off at 5.9%), which was the longest climb of the day. The riders then descended through the town of Spa and turned west onto the Col du Maquisard (2.5 km off at 5%), which they crossed with 46 km off to the finish line. The route then crossed over the roads used for the southern leg as the riders entered the final section of the race.ASO 2015 2–7 The following climb was the Côte de La Redoute (2 km off at 8.9%), with 34.5 km off from the summit to the finish line.ASO 2015 2–7 Cyclingnews.com described La Redoute as "the most emblematic climb of the entire race".Fotheringham Alasdair Alasdair Fotheringham Liège-Bastogne-Liège preview: Who Can Beat Valverde? http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/liege-bastogne-liege-2015/preview/ 6 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 24 April 2015 It had an uneven gradient: the first 1 km off was at about 8%, before 500 m -2 at around 13% and another 500 m -2 at 6%. The riders descended down twisting roads, crossed over the uncategorised Côte de Sprimont, before coming to the penultimate climb, the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons (1.5 km off at 9.4%) with 19 km off to the finish line.ASO 2015 2–7 This was one of the most difficult climbs of the race, with frequent changes of gradient and a poor road surface. There was then another uncategorised climb and a steep descent into the outskirts of Liège.ASO 2015 2–7 The final climb of the day came with 6.2 km off remaining. This was the Côte de Saint-Nicolas (1.2 km off at 8.6%).ASO 2015 2–7 Cycling Weekly described it as "a succession of steep corners with nothing between". After the descent from the climb, the riders entered Ans, the finishing town. There was a long, straight road that started 2 km off from the finish line. After 500 m -2 of flat, the road climbed towards the finish at around 5%. With around 300 m off to go, there was a left-hand turn that took the riders to the finish line.ASO 2015 2–8 Pre-race favourites thumbnail|upright|Alejandro Valverde (MOV 2015) was one of the principal favourites for the race victory (photographed later in the season at the Vuelta a España). Recent editions of Liège–Bastogne–Liège had been won in several different ways. Andy Schleck (then riding for TTS 2009) had won a solo victory with a long-distance attack in 2009, while Dan Martin (TCG 2015) had attacked late on to win in 2013. The 2010 edition was won by a two-man breakaway and the 2011 edition by a three-man group. The defending champion, Simon Gerrans (OGE 2015) won the 2014 edition in a bunch sprint after a large group came to Ans together. The pattern of the 2015 edition was therefore hard to predict. One consistent pattern, however, was that recent editions of the race had been won by major names rather than by outsiders.Puddicombe Stephen Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2015 preview http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/liege-bastogne-liege-2015-preview-167929 6 October 2015 Cycling Weekly Time Inc. UK 23 April 2015 Alejandro Valverde (MOV 2015) had won La Flèche Wallonne during the week that preceded Liège–Bastogne–Liège and he was one of the major favourites to take the victory. Valverde had won the race on two previous occasions (in 2006 and 2008) and had also been on the podium on four other occasions. Valverde's status as the major favourite had the potential to work against him, however, as other riders were expected to mark him closely and perhaps prevent him from winning. Philippe Gilbert (BMC 2015) had suffered from this problem in the Amstel Gold Race.Puddicombe Stephen Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2015: Who will win? http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/liege-bastogne-liege-2015-who-will-win-167960 6 October 2015 Cycling Weekly Immediate Media Company 23 April 2015 7 October 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151007100050/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/liege-bastogne-liege-2015-who-will-win-167960 dead The other major favourite for the race was the reigning world champion, Michał Kwiatkowski (EQS 2015). Kwiatkowski had finished third in the 2014 Liège–Bastogne–Liège and had already won the Amstel Gold Race in 2015. Although he had not been as strong as had been expected in La Flèche Wallonne, the longer climbs of Liège–Bastogne–Liège were expected to suit him better. Other favourites included Martin, Joaquim Rodríguez (KAT 2015), Rui Costa (LAM 2015), as well as Vincenzo Nibali (AST 2015) and Tim Wellens (LTS 2015). Gerrans had suffered an injury earlier in the season and had not fully recovered; he was not expected to be able to defend his title. Similarly, Gilbert had suffered a fall in La Flèche Wallonne; he was also not as well suited to the route of Liège–Bastogne–Liège as he was to the other Ardennes classics. Race report The race began with hard racing for the first hour until the day's main breakaway was formed, with around 40 km off raced. The breakaway involved eight riders. These were Diego Ulissi (LAM 2015), Matteo Montaguti (ALM 2015), Otto Vergaerde (TSV 2015), Clément Chevrier (IAM 2015), Marco Minnaard (WGG 2015), Anthony Turgis (COF 2015), Cesare Benedetti (BOH 2015) and Rasmus Quaade (CUL 2015).Ryan Barry Valverde wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/liege-bastogne-liege-2015/results/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 27 April 2015 The group's lead soon extended to nearly eight minutes, while the peloton was led by EUC 2015; their work reduced the breakaway's lead by around three minutes by the time of the Côte de La Roche-en-Ardenne, 79 km off into the race.Stokes Shane Valverde triumphs in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, takes select sprint to the line http://cyclingtips.com.au/2015/04/valverde-triumphs-in-liege-bastogne-liege-takes-select-sprint-to-the-line/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingtips.com.au Wallace Media Pty Ltd 27 April 2015 After the turn in Bastogne, the breakaway continued. It was, however, reduced in numbers, as Quaade, Chevrier and Vergaerde all fell back before the peloton reached the Côte de Wanne, four hours into the race.Wynn Nigel Alejandro Valverde wins Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2015 http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/alejandro-valverde-wins-liege-bastogne-liege-2015-168251 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Time Inc. UK 26 April 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304091736/http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/alejandro-valverde-wins-liege-bastogne-liege-2015-168251 4 March 2016 dead KAT 2015 led the peloton as it approached the climb. On the climb itself, AST 2015 came to the front of the peloton and led the chase, with the breakaway's lead reduced to under a minute.Ryan Barry Liège - Bastogne - Liège: Elite Men As It Happened http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/liege-bastogne-liege-2015/live-report/ Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 9 October 2015 26 April 2015 On the Côte de Stockeu, Andriy Hrivko (AST 2015 yes), Gorka Izagirre (MOV 2015) and Simon Yates (OGE 2015) attacked and joined the lead group; more riders then bridged across to form a 21-man group. This included five AST 2015 yes riders, though not Nibali. On the Côte de la Haute-Levée, several riders attacked again to form a smaller breakaway; these were Tanel Kangert and Michele Scarponi (both AST 2015 yes), Manuele Boaro (SAX 2015), Esteban Chaves (OGE 2015 yes) and Julián Arredondo (TFR 2015). They had a 25-second lead at the summit and, although Boaro and Arredondo were dropped on the Col du Rosier, this increased to more than a minute for a short while. It was reduced to 45 seconds on the Col du Maquisard, however, as the MOV 2015 yes worked hard in the peloton to bring them back. thumbnail|left|Giampaolo Caruso (left) and Roman Kreuziger riding in a breakaway on the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons.|alt=See caption As the peloton approached the Côte de la Redoute, there was a large crash. Among the riders to crash were two previous winners of the race, Dan Martin and Simon Gerrans, as well as Fränk Schleck (TFR 2015 yes), Nicolas Roche (SKY 2015), Mathias Frank (IAM 2015 yes) and Yukiya Arashiro (EUC 2015 yes). Vincenzo Nibali was forced to unclip himself from his bike, but avoided crashing. The peloton was reduced to around 40 riders at the foot of the climb. Although there were no bad injuries in the crash, Roche and Arashiro took some time to stand up, with Roche looking particularly dazed. Many of the riders who crashed attempted to get back into the peloton, with Gerrans and Martin among them. Gerrans was forced to abandon the race shortly afterwards after he crashed for a second time.Wynn Nigel Martin, Gerrans and Roche caught up in Liege-Bastogne-Liege crash http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/martin-gerrans-and-roche-caught-up-in-liege-bastogne-liege-crash-video-168332 9 October 2015 Cycling Weekly Time Inc. UK 26 April 2015 thumbnail|Alejandro Valverde (MOV 2015) (centre) receiving the winner's trophy, with Julian Alaphilippe (left) and Joaquim Rodríguez. On the Col de la Redoute itself, Kangert was dropped from the breakaway; Scarponi and Chaves had a 35-second lead at the summit and were caught around 10 km 0 later. The riders then entered the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons, where Roman Kreuziger (SAX 2015 yes) and Giampaolo Caruso (KAT 2015 yes) attacked; they were quickly joined by Jakob Fuglsang (AST 2015 yes) and had an 18-second lead at the summit. Several riders attempted to form chase groups; eventually a six-man chase group was formed by Giovanni Visconti (MOV 2015 yes), Julian Alaphilippe (QST 2015), Rui Costa (LAM 2015 yes), Samuel Sánchez (BMC 2015 y) and Daniel Moreno (KAT 2015 yes). They stayed away for a short while and were then joined by around 20 other riders with 15 km off remaining as rain began to fall. Zdeněk Štybar (QST 2015 yes) took over the pace-setting in the peloton as it approached the Côte de Saint-Nicolas and he reduced the gap to Kreuziger, Caruso and Fuglsang. On the climb, Valverde came to the front of the group to control the pace. Nibali then attacked and, while he was not able to escape the group, several riders were dropped. These included Michał Kwiatkowski and Philippe Gilbert. Nibali's attack also brought the chasing group back to the leaders. The next attack came from Romain Bardet (ALM 2015 y) on the descent from the Côte de Saint-Nicolas. While he too was unable to break away from the group, his attack did cause Nibali to lose contact and reduced the group to ten riders. Giampaolo Caruso led the group into Ans and towards the climb to the finish. At the foot of the climb, Daniel Moreno, Caruso's teammate, attacked and built a small gap ahead of the group. The group did not initially chase him, as all the other riders looked for Valverde to do the work. Eventually Valverde did start to chase Moreno and caught him at the final bend. He opened his sprint from a long way out, with Joaquim Rodríguez (KAT 2015 yes) right behind him. Rodríguez slowed as they approached the line, however, and Valverde took the victory. Julian Alaphilippe came around Rodríguez in the final metres to take second place. Result thumb|The riders on the podium(from left to right: Julian Alaphilippe, Alejandro Valverde and Joaquim Rodríguez) Result (1–10) 1 Alejandro Valverde ESP MOV 2015 6h 14' 20" 2 Julian Alaphilippe FRA EQS 2015 + 0" 3 Joaquim Rodríguez ESP KAT 2015 + 0" 4 Rui Costa POR LAM 2015 + 0" 5 Roman Kreuziger CZE TTS 2015 + 0" 6 Romain Bardet FRA ALM 2015 + 0" 7 Sergio Henao COL SKY 2015 + 0" 8 Domenico Pozzovivo ITA ALM 2015 + 0" 9 Jakob Fuglsang DEN AST 2015 + 0" 10 Daniel Moreno ESP KAT 2015 + 0" Post-race analysis Rider reactions Valverde's win was his third victory at the race, and he became one of only six riders to have three or more victories in the race. Liège–Bastogne–Liège also concluded a very successful Ardennes week for him: he had two victories and one second-place finish in the three races. Valverde was the first rider since Philippe Gilbert in 2011 to win both La Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège in the same week and, although he was one place away from imitating Gilbert's Ardennes triple, he described it as a "great week".Fotheringham Alasdair Alasdair Fotheringham Valverde claims hat-trick of victories in Liège-Bastogne-Liège http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/valverde-claims-hat-trick-of-victories-in-lige-bastogne-lige/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 27 April 2015 Alaphilippe's second-place finish was the best for any French rider since Laurent Jalabert in 1998. He had entered the race in support of Kwiatkowski. When Kwiatkowski was struggling on the Côte de Saint-Nicolas, the Etixx-Quick Step directeur sportif sent a radio message to Alaphilippe to ride for himself; this was similar to the events in La Flèche Wallonne, where Alaphilippe also finished second to Valverde. He was frustrated on the finish line and waved his arm in the air; he said after the race "today I really felt I could have done something more".Fotheringham Alasdair Alasdair Fotheringham Alaphilippe takes France’s best Liège-Bastogne-Liège result since 1998 http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/alaphilippe-takes-frances-best-lige-bastogne-lige-result-since-1998/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 26 April 2015 Cyclingnews.com suggested after the race that he had the potential to win a Monument in the future.Five conclusions from Liège-Bastogne-Liège http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/five-conclusions-from-lige-bastogne-lige/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 28 April 2015 Several riders were injured in the crash 40 km off from the finish. The worst-affected was Yukiya Arashiro, who suffered several broken bones, while Gianluca Brambilla (QST 2015 yes) broke his collarbone. TLJ 2015 had two riders with injuries: Paul Martens broke his hand and Bram Tankink suffered from concussion and bruises. Nicolas Roche and Simon Gerrans both suffered some discomfort after their crashes, but neither had significant injuries.Injury update from Liege-Bastogne-Liege http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/injury-update-from-liege-bastogne-liege/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 28 April 2015 Dan Martin rode the Tour de Romandie the following week; after he suffered with his breathing through the race, he discovered that he had broken two ribs in the crash in Liège–Bastogne–Liège.News shorts: Astana respond to reasoned decision http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/news-shorts-astana-respond-to-reasoned-decision/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 7 May 2015 UCI World Tour rankings After his strong Ardennes week, Valverde moved into the lead of the UCI World Tour individual rankings, with Richie Porte (SKY 2015 yes) dropping to second place. Rui Costa also moved into the top ten. Spain moved ahead of Australia in the nations' standings, while QST 2015 yes retained their lead of the team rankings.Sports - CR - Ranking http://www.uci.html.infostradasports.com/cache/2/TheASP.asp@PageID%3D102007&SportID%3D102&CompetitionID%3D24055&SeasonID%3D488&EventID%3D12146&GenderID%3D1&ClassID%3D1&EventPhaseID%3D1186645&Phase1ID%3D1186658&TaalCode%3D2&StyleID%3D0&Cache%3D2.html?360119 uci.ch Union Cycliste Internationale 9 October 2015 26 April 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304113749/http://www.uci.html.infostradasports.com/cache/2/TheASP.asp%40PageID%3D102007%26SportID%3D102%26CompetitionID%3D24055%26SeasonID%3D488%26EventID%3D12146%26GenderID%3D1%26ClassID%3D1%26EventPhaseID%3D1186645%26Phase1ID%3D1186658%26TaalCode%3D2%26StyleID%3D0%26Cache%3D2.html?360119 4 March 2016 deadNews shorts: Valverde takes over WorldTour lead http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/news-shorts-valverde-takes-over-worldtour-lead/ 9 October 2015 Cyclingnews.com Immediate Media Company 28 April 2015 UCI World Tour individual rankings yes 1 Alejandro Valverde ESP MOV 2015 338 2 Richie Porte AUS SKY 2015 303 3 Alexander Kristoff NOR KAT 2015 237 4 John Degenkolb GER TGA 2015 232 5 Joaquim Rodríguez ESP KAT 2015 230 6 Michał Kwiatkowski POL EQS 2015 195 7 Rui Costa POR LAM 2015 194 8 Geraint Thomas GBR SKY 2015 184 9 Greg Van Avermaet BEL BMC 2015 178 10 Nairo Quintana COL MOV 2015 168 References 30em Sources Amaury Sport Organisation 2015 Livre de Route Roadbook fr http://velorooms.com/index.php?topic=2384.0 14 October 2015 Paris ASO 2015 Cossins Peter Monuments: the grit and the glory of cycling's greatest one-day races https://books.google.com/books?id=aQvsoQEACAAJ Bloomsbury Publishing London 2015 978-1-4088-4683-4 External links http://www.letour.com/indexLBL_us.html Category:Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liege-Bastogne-Liege Liege-Bastogne-Liege