ΔΕΗ Tour of Hellas Day 1
Fast-paced and spectacular, as expected, the opening stage of the ΔΕΗ Tour of Hellas delivered excitement from start to finish. The race began along the lakeside road of Ioannina and concluded after 171.6 km in Agrinio, where Belgian rider Mathis Avondts (Azerion Villa Valkenburg) emerged victorious, fending off a strong challenge from Georgios Bouglas.
The Burgos-Burpellet-BH rider fought for the win until the very end and was rewarded with second place—the best result achieved by a Greek rider since the revival of the country’s premier cycling race. Latvia’s Kristians Belohvosciks (Bike Aid) completed the podium, while Nikiforos Arvanitis (Team United Shipping) delivered an impressive performance, finishing 14th.
The victory was decided in a final sprint, with Avondts launching his move from the right in the closing meters of the long finishing straight leading to Agrinio’s central square. Showing superior strength, he crossed the line first, raising his arms beneath the cloudy spring sky to the applause of a large crowd that had gathered to cheer on the 120 riders.
The start in Ioannina also attracted a large and enthusiastic crowd. The early kilometres saw no decisive attacks, resulting in a compact peloton and, unfortunately, a crash involving several riders within the first five kilometres.
The first challenge—and the first available points—came at 16.4 km near the archaeological site of Dodona, where Loïc Bettendorff (Hrinkow Advarics) claimed maximum points at the stage’s only Category 3 KOM sprint.
From there on, the stage featured mainly descents and flat sections, preventing any meaningful breakaways from establishing a significant gap. Several attempts were made, but none gained more than a marginal advantage.
The first notable move came shortly after Dodona, when five riders—Dominik Amann (Vorarlberg), Lukas Dauge (Team Novo Nordisk), Bram Danklof (Azerion Villa Valkenburg), Cayden Luke Hopkins (Atom 6 Bikes – Cycleur De Luxe – Auto Stroo Team), and Lennard Sternsdorff (Bike Aid)—briefly went clear.
Approaching Arta, Cypriot champion Andreas Miltiadis showed his intentions of targeting sprint points early. He finished third in the first intermediate sprint in Arta, won by Josef Černý (Kasper Crypto4ME). Forty-two kilometres later, in Amfilochia, Miltiadis took maximum points, bringing his total to eight—level with Lennart Voege (Team Storck – MRW BAU), who placed second in both intermediate sprints.
A new group of five riders attempted to break away on the road to Agrinio, later growing to nine, but the peloton kept them under control within 15–20 seconds. On the technical circuit through Agrinio’s narrow streets, with two kilometres remaining, the peloton reeled them in, setting the stage for a bunch sprint.
The 23-year-old Avondts proved strongest, taking his second win of the season in 3:26:56, and the second of his career following his earlier victory at the lower-tier Salverda Bouw Ster van Zwolle (1.2) in early March. He also finished the day leading the points classification.
After the race, Avondts explained how he sensed victory in the closing meters:
“Coming out of the final roundabout, I told my teammate on the radio to go full gas, otherwise others might come from behind. He did a perfect job. In the last 500 meters, I followed and accelerated as hard as I could. At 300 meters, I saw the two riders ahead losing speed. I told myself, ‘I’m going to win,’ and looked for an opening behind the rider in front. It appeared perfectly on the right side. I passed him—and that was it. I can’t believe this is my first professional victory. I’ll be dreaming about this tonight. Thank you very much.”
Despite narrowly missing out on the win, Georgios Bouglas expressed satisfaction:
“I’m very pleased with today’s result in Greece’s top cycling race. I thank the fans for their support. Even though the victory didn’t come, this performance gives me confidence for an even better continuation.”
Ashmore Jack Clarck of Atom 6 Bikes – Cycleur De Luxe – Auto Stroo Team, took the lead in the U23 classification.
The ΔΕΗ Tour of Hellas continues tomorrow (May 6) with Stage 2, a 157.5 km route from Karpenisi to Larissa.
Text Credits: ΔΕΗ Tour of Hellas
Photo Credits: ICARUS Sports
Video Credits: ICARUS Sports