Valverde wins Fleche Wallonne for 3rd time (The Associated Press)

Alejandro Valverde of Spain perfectly timed his attack to win the Fleche Wallonne (Walloon Arrow) classic for the third time and the second year in a row on Wednesday. Valverde, the runner-up at the Amstel Gold Race last week, won a sprint ahead of France’s Julian Alaphilippe and Swiss rider Michael Albasini at the top of the Mur de Huy after making his move a few hundred meters before the finish. Valverde joined the likes of Belgian great Eddy Merckx in a club of five riders to have won the race a record three times. To match a rider like Eddy Merckx is great, it gives me a lot of confidence and it shows that I still have the legs to perform well.” Despite the addition this year of a new climb with an 8.1 percent average gradient- the Cote de Cherave – to the 205.5-kilometer ride through the woods and hills, victory was again decided in the final ascent of the iconic Mur de Huy.