Biniam Girmay: "It feels unreal to achieve a podium from such a strong field of riders"

Biniam Girmay entered the GP de Québec as one of the main favourites and he delivered as, on his first trip to North America, he's finished on the race's podium ahead of Wout van Aert.

"I’m very happy with this third place at my first participation in the GP de Québec! It feels unreal to achieve a podium from such a strong field of riders with many of world’s best classic riders," Girmay said after the finish. "The level was very high and the pace was hard from the start. Of course we expected a challenging race on this course with several tricky corners and the long and steep climb towards the finish."

With the explosive hills of Québec but a lot of interest for a sprint finish, the route was perfectly suited to Girmay. The leader of Intermarché - Wanty - Gobert Matériaux raced relatively under the radar throughout the day, saving his legs towards the decisive final lap, where he had to make his effort count.

Counting on his sprint, Girmay stayed in the pack as Benoît Cosnefroy attacked for the victory. Intermarché tried to put on a chase but without effect as everyone looked at the sprinters, and Girmay in the end had the speed to finish in the podium, only beat by Michael Matthews in the run-up to the line, and finishing ahead of Wout van Aert.

"But actually my teammates did all the work for 90 percent of the race, I only had to focus on the final 500 meter. I want to thank them for their work, this achievement is also for them," he concluded. Tomorrow's race at GP de Montréal will be a more difficult task, but also a more accurate effort to that of the World Championships which he is preparing for.