| 2012 UCI World Tour, race 7 of 28 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Event poster with previous winnerTom Boonen | |||||||||||||
| Race details | |||||||||||||
| Dates | 25 March | ||||||||||||
| Stages | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Distance | 234.6 km (145.8 mi) | ||||||||||||
| Winning time | 5h 32' 44" | ||||||||||||
| Results | |||||||||||||
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← 2011 2013 → | |||||||||||||
The2012 Gent–Wevelgem was the 74th running of theGent–Wevelgem single-day cycling race. It was held on 25 March 2012 over a distance of 234.6 kilometres (145.8 miles),[1] and was the seventh race of the2012 UCI World Tour season.
In a mass sprint finish, the race was won byOmega Pharma–Quick-Step riderTom Boonen,[2] who in the process, became the fifth different rider to win the race three times. Boonen finished ahead ofLiquigas–Cannondale'sPeter Sagan andRabobank'sMatti Breschel, who completed the podium.[3]
As Gent–Wevelgem was a UCI World Tour event, all 18UCI ProTeams were invited automatically and obligated to send a squad. Seven other squads were given wildcard places into the race,[4] and as such, formed the event's 25-team peloton. Each team could enter up to eight riders, with the starting peloton being 195 riders.[5]
The 25 teams that competed in the race were:[5]
| Cyclist | Team | Time | UCI World Tour Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Tom Boonen (BEL) | Omega Pharma–Quick-Step | 5h 32' 44" | 80 |
| 2 |  Peter Sagan (SVK) | Liquigas–Cannondale | s.t. | 60 |
| 3 |  Matti Breschel (DEN) | Rabobank | s.t. | 50 |
| 4 |  Óscar Freire (ESP) | Team Katusha | s.t. | 40 |
| 5 |  Edvald Boasson Hagen (NOR) | Team Sky | s.t. | 30 |
| 6 |  Daniele Bennati (ITA) | RadioShack–Nissan | s.t. | 22 |
| 7 | Marco Marcato (ITA) | Vacansoleil–DCM | s.t. | 14 |
| 8 |  Steve Chainel (FRA) | FDJ–BigMat | s.t. | 10 |
| 9 | Filippo Pozzato (ITA) | Farnese Vini–Selle Italia | s.t. | – |
| 10 | Giovanni Visconti (ITA) | Movistar Team | s.t. | 2 |
A women's race was held for the first time in 2012, on the same day as the men's race but over a shorter course of 114 km (70.8 mi).AA Drink–leontien.nl riderLizzie Armitstead won after a solo breakaway of nearly 40 km (24.9 mi).[7]
| Cyclist | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Lizzie Armitstead (UK) | AA Drink–leontien.nl | 2h 49' 46" |
| 2 |  Iris Slappendel (NED) | Stichting Rabo Women Cycling Team | + 51" |
| 3 | Jessie Daams (BEL) | AA Drink–leontien.nl | + 51" |
| 4 | Lise Nøstvold (NOR) | Hitec Products–Mistral Home Cycling Team | + 51" |
| 5 | Kirsten Wild (NED) | AA Drink–leontien.nl | + 55" |