"The guys did an amazing job and I wanted to win and pay them back" - Elia Viviani disappointed about losing the Surf Coast Classic

Elia Viviani was very close to winning the Surf Coast Classic on Thursday, but one man was a touch faster in the final meters and so it was actually Biniam Girmay's time to raise his hands after crossing the line. The Ineos Grenadiers rider couldn't quite hide his disappointment afterwards.

"It was a good day out but I'm a bit disappointed. When you lose in the last 50 metres, you can’t be happy about that," Viviani said in a flash interview after the race.

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"I knew it was a tailwind sprint and so I waited until 200 metres to go and then I went and played my cards. In the last 50 metres, I saw Girmay’s wheel coming up next to me. I tried to hang on and stay ahead but he pipped me on the line.

"The guys did an amazing job. Swifty, Ganna and Josh Tarling were perfect and I wanted to win and pay them back for the job done. It’s not often I enjoy a great lead out like that, that doesn’t happen often in races in any team," he complimented his teammates. "With a lead out I can still have a chance at winning races, because I’m still fast in sprints," he thinks.

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