Andre Greipel wins stage 4 sprint at Tour of Austria

Team Columbia’s André Greipel won the fourth stage of the 60th edition of the International Tour of Austria on Wednesday, outsprinting Astana’s René Haselbacher and Danilo Hondo (Serramenti) at the end of a 216.8-kilometer race from Lienz to Wolfsberg.

Elk Haus-Simplon’s Thomas Rohregger managed to extend his lead in the overall standings by two seconds.

The day was marked by an early break of two riders – Tom Stamsnijder from team Gerolsteiner and Silence-Lotto professional Olivier Kaisen – who rolled off the front of the field at the 32km mark.

The two eventually built up their lead to more than 12 minuties, but the peloton – led by Greipel’s Columbia squad – reeled the escapees back into the field with just seven kilometers remaining.

Greipel, a stage winner at this year’s Giro d’Italia, credited his team for the win.

“Every victory is great, but this was especially nice because of the difficulty of the day,” the 26-year-old Greipel said. “It has been a demanding stage today, but my team has worked very well.”

Haselbacher said he had a feeling that Greipel and his Columbia teammates were the ones to shadow on Wednesday’s stage.

“Over the Griffener – the last KOM of the day – I noticed that Tom Boonen (Quick Step) was having problems,” he said. “That is why I chose to watch Greipel. I was right, but 200 meters in front of the finish line he started his sprint and I probably waited too long. Still, I am satisfied with the outcome. I may just have to do better tomorrow.”

Stage Results
1. André Greipel (G), Columbia 216.8km in 5:33:51 (38.9kph)
2. René Haselbacher (A), Astana
3. Danilo Hondo (G), Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni
4. Werner Riebenbauer (A), ARBÖ Wels Gourmetfein
5. Edvald Boasson Hagen (N), Columbia
6. André Korff (G), Volksbank
7. Roberto Ferrari (I), LPR Brakes
8. Danilo Napolitano (I), Lampre
9. Peter Wrolich (A), Gerolsteiner
10. Sebastian Schwager (G), Milram, all s.t.

Overall, after stage 4
1. Thomas Rohregger (A), Elk Haus-Simplon, at 19:14:59
2. Ruslan Podgornyy (Ukr), LPR Brakes, at 0:09
3. Chris Anker Sørensen (Dk), CSC, at 0:27
4. Vladimir Gusev (Rus), Astana, at 0:29
5. Giampaolo Caruso (I), Ceramica Flaminia, at 1:35
6. Davide Rebellin (I), Gerolsteiner, at 2:16
7. Walter Fernando Pedraza (Col), Tinkoff, at 2:47
8. Janez Brajkovic (Slo), Astana, at 2:58
9. Jure Golcer (Slo), LPR Brakes, at 3:25
10. Leonardo Moser (I), Serramenti PVC Diquigiovanni, at 3:28