The ADAC Cyclassics Hamburg – formerly the BEMER Cyclassics Hamburg – saw a very surprising winner. Rory Townsend won the WorldTour one-day race by narrowly holding off the peloton as the sole remaining early escapee. Arnaud De Lie (second), Paul Magnier (third), Jasper Philipsen (fourth), and Danny van Poppel (fifth) arrived just a little too late.
The course of the ADAC Cyclassics was somewhat changed compared to previous years. This year, the race started in Buxtehude – southwest of Hamburg – and the notorious Waseberg (800 meters at 8%) was climbed not three but five times. The top of the final climb was sixteen kilometers from the finish line. As always, the question was whether that would be enough distance for the sprinters to reel in the puncheurs.
The break of the day consisted of four riders. Among this quartet was a Belgian, Dries De Pooter. The Intermarché-Wanty rider was accompanied by Nelson Oliveira (Movistar), Johan Jacobs (Groupama-FDJ), and Rory Townsend (Q36.5). We would see the four up front for a long time. Their maximum lead of almost six minutes decreased during the local laps in and around Hamburg, but at the penultimate ascent of the Waseberg they still held a two-minute advantage.
Breakaway holds strong
On that penultimate climb, Jacobs briefly slipped away from the other three, but after the climb the break would regroup. Meanwhile, in the peloton, Mathias Vacek launched an acceleration. The sprinters were already struggling and there were some gaps opening up at the front of the peloton as well, but soon after, a regrouping occurred. The decisive moves for the puncheurs would have to happen on the last climb of the Waseberg.
The breakaway group on the Waseberg – photo: Cor Vos
While De Pooter definitively dropped from the breakaway, Vacek launched again in the peloton. This caused a small group to separate, including Vacek, Arnaud De Lie, Isaac Del Toro, Brandon McNulty, Paul Magnier, Marc Hirschi, Axel Laurance, and Jonas Abrahamsen. However, their cooperation was far from perfect. There were new attacks, more splits, and ultimately another regrouping. Yet, there were still three riders up front: Oliveira, Jacobs, and Townsend.
Townsend pulls off a stunt
Intermarché-Wanty, Alpecin-Deceuninck, and Uno-X Mobility worked together to catch the trio, but the attackers held strong. Entering the final kilometer, they still had ten seconds. Would it actually succeed?
Yes, it did – at least for one of them. Townsend first waited to see how the sprint would unfold in the closing kilometer, then launched his sprint from far out. While Oliveira and Jacobs gave up, the Irish champion sprinted as if his life depended on it. It gave him the biggest victory of his career, as the chasing pack – led by Arnaud De Lie – arrived just a moment too late.
🚴🇩🇪 | A big surprise in the streets of Hamburg. After a tougher race than in previous years, Rory Townsend stays clear of the peloton and wins! 🙌🇮🇪
📺 Watch the race streaming on HBO Max pic.twitter.com/bLIRlImr4o
— Eurosport Nederland (@Eurosport_NL) August 17, 2025
ADAC Cyclassics| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 04:24:06 | |
| 2 | " | |
| 3 | " | |
| 4 | " | |
| 5 | " | |
| 6 | " | |
| 7 | " | |
| 8 | " | |
| 9 | " | |
| 10 | " |
