Skip to content

Paris-Nice: Richie Porte takes overall victory with stage seven win

Richie Porte, Paris-Nice 2015, stage seven, Col d'Eze
Image: Richie Porte: Won the final stage and overall title

Team Sky’s Richie Porte claimed overall victory of Paris-Nice for the second time in three years after winning stage seven’s individual time trial on Col d’Eze.

Porte started the day 36 seconds down on overnight leader Tony Gallopin (Lotto Soudal) in second place but comfortably overhauled that deficit on the 9.6km uphill course.

His time of 20min 23sec was 13 seconds faster than runner-up Simon Spilak (Katusha) and 24 seconds quicker than third-placed Rui Costa (Lampre-Merida), but more importantly, it was 1min 39sec ahead of an under-par Gallopin.

Richie Porte, Michal Kwiatkowski, Simon Spilak, Paris-Nice 2015
Image: Porte was joined on the final podium by Michal Kwiatkowski, left, and Simon Spilak

The result gave him a 30-second overall victory over second-placed Michal Kwiatkowski (Etixx – Quick-Step), who finished fifth on the stage, 29 seconds down, with Spilak ending the race on the same time in third.

Porte’s Team Sky team-mate Geraint Thomas dropped one place to fifth overall, 41 seconds down, after finishing seventh on the day.

Team Sky’s Sir Bradley Wiggins, the world time trial champion, did not start the stage, which was played out in wet and blustery conditions just outside Nice.

Stage seven result

More from 2015 Cycling News

1 Richie Porte (Aus) Team Sky, 20:23
2 Simon Spilak (Slo) Katusha, +13secs
3 Rui Costa (Por) Lampre-Merida, +24
4 Tony Martin (Ger) Etixx – Quick-Step, +29
5 Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) Etixx – Quick-Step, same time
6 Andrew Talansky (USA) Cannondale-Garmin, +37
7 Geraint Thomas (GB) Team Sky, +39
8 Ion Izagirre (Esp) Movistar, +50
9 Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal, +54
10 Gorka Izagirre (Esp) Movistar, +55
Selected other
29 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal, +1:39

Final general classification

1 Richie Porte (Aus) Team Sky, 29:10:41
2 Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol) Etixx – Quick-Step, +30secs
3 Simon Spilak (Slo) Katusha, same time
4 Rui Costa (Por) Lampre-Merida, st
5 Geraint Thomas (GB) Team Sky, +41
6 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal, +1:03
7 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana, +1:05
8 Rafael Valls (Esp) Lampre-Merida, +1:24
9 Gorka Izagirre (Esp) Movistar, +1:38
10 Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal, +2:18

Around Sky