Degenkolb eclipses Kristoff to win Milan-San Remo

The 26-year-old Giant-Alpecin rider recovered from a poor position in the finishing straight to secure the biggest win of his career ahead of Katusha's Kristoff.

Australia's Michael Matthews (Orica-GreenEdge) edged out Peter Sagan (Tinkoff-Saxo) to complete the podium in a mass bunch sprint at the conclusion of a rainy 106th edition of La Primavera, the first of five monuments of the cycling season.

A number of riders - including world champion Michal Kwiatkowski (Etixx-QuickStep) and 2013 champion Gerald Ciolek (MTN-Qhubeka) - saw their chances disappear in a crash on the sinuous descent of the Poggio inside the final five kilometres of the 293km race.

Welshman Geraint Thomas (Team Sky) and Italian Daniel Oss (BMC) lit the torch paper with an impressive attack following the penultimate Cipressa climb inside the final 20km. The duo held a slender advantage going onto the Poggio before Thomas was joined by Oss's BMC team-mate Greg Van Avermaet at the summit.

But the pair's slender lead came to nothing as the streamlined pack reformed on the fast run down to San Remo - although a cluster of sprinters, including Britain's Mark Cavendish (Etixx-QuickStep) and Germany's Andre Greipel (Lotto-Soudal), were distanced.

Led out by bearded veteran Luca Paolini, Kristoff launched his sprint early on the slightly uphill closing straight. But Degenkolb was able to catch and pass the in-form Norwegian to take the first monument of his career.

The impressive Matthews denied Slovakian sensation Sagan a place on the podium while Italy's Niccolo' Bonifazio (Lampre-Merida) took fifth place ahead of Frenchman Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis) and Swiss veteran Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing). It was the first time Cancellara has not made the podium of a completed monument in five years.

EARLY BREAK: Four riders - Jan Barta (Bora-Argon 18), Sebastian Molano (Colombia), Maarten Tjallingii (LottoNL-Jumbo) and Andrea Peron (Novo Nordisk) - broke clear inside the opening 10km of race before being joined by seven companions in the form of Stefano Pirazzi (CSF Bardiani), Adrian Kurek (CCC Sprandi Polkowice), Matteo Bono (Lampre-Merida), Serge Pauwels (MTN-Qhubeka), Julien Berard (Ag2R-La Mondiale), Tiziano Dall'Antonia (Androni Giocattoli) and Marco Frapporti (Androni Giocattoli).

The 11-man leading group built up a maximum lead of almost ten minutes before Trek, Katusha, Tinkoff-Saxo and Lampre-Merida combined to half the deficit going over the first climb of the day, the Passo del Turchino.

With the heavy rain finally easing up, most riders stripped off their leg warmers and capes ahead of the business end of the race. The gap had come down to 2:30 as the leaders approached the Tre Capi coastal climbs 55km from the finish in San Remo.

SKY PILE ON THE PRESSURE: Team Sky came to the front of the pack on the Capo Mele to set the pace for their man Ben Swift, who finished third in 2014. With Bono, Berard, Pauwels and Pirazzi riding clear of their fellow escapees, Sky continued to drive the chase on the Capo Berta.

On the descent of the Berta - and under the pressure of Sky's pace-setting - scores of riders skidded on the wet roads to create chaos with 35km remaining. Despite losing Salvatore Puccio to a crash, Sky suddenly found themselves with three riders - Thomas, Swift and Luke Rowe - clear in the pursuit of the remnants of the break.

Bono was the last man to be caught from the escapees, the Italian gobbled up by the Sky-led pack at the start of the Cipressa. Zdenek Stybar (Etixx-QuickStep) and BMC's Van Avermaet both had a dig before Thomas counter-attacked following a smart move by Oss with 18km remaining.

Stybar and BMC's Philippe Gilbert were among the riders who crashed on the wet descent of the Poggio after Thomas was finally pegged back. But although the roads were still wet, the sun came out on the Ligurian coast in time to shine on Degenkolb as he put in a trademark kick to beat his rivals at the conclusion of an enthralling race.

With next year's race introducing the challenging Pompeiana climb near the finish, Degenkolb, a sprinter with a fine pair of climbing legs, will be once again among the favourites to take the win in San Remo. Given his current form, the German powerhouse may have another monument to his name by then. Next stop: Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders.