Tom Boonen sprinted to the win after an Omega Pharma-Quick Step demonstration of force on the second stage of the Tour of Qatar. We have already posted several reactions and have gathered a few more below.

Jacopo Guarnieri (Astana, punctured out of the front group with 4km to go, 46th +0.48)

“Not so nice getting a flat tire with 4k to go when you are at the front….hey where’s my sweet piece of good luck today?”

Gatis Smukulis (Katusha, in a long solo break, 16th +0.18)

“Today it was again a hard stage because of the wind. We knew especially in the last part there would be a strong crosswind, so I talked with our sports director and decided to try to escape. We had two opportunities to succeed today – a successful break, or if the group were to catch me, we’d put one more Katusha rider among the leaders.

“I went in an escape with 80 km to go and was alone for more or less 20 – 30 km.  Finally when I saw the crosswind I realized it would be impossible to stay in front and the leading group caught me.  In the end I gave my best but it was difficult to do something against the motivation of the sprinters.”

Kjell Carlström (sports director IAM whose best rider was Kristof Goddaert in 54th)

“We lost everything in just a few minutes.  We completely missed out on this stage.  We must take the lessons from today and learn never to repeat our mistakes.  If we can do that, then this will be important.

“With the exception of a short 20 kilometres just after the feed zone, the group road à bloc with close to an average of 45 km/h over the 160 kilometre stage.  The deciding factor came after 110 kilometres when a crash in the peloton delayed most of our riders.  At the same time Omega Pharma-Quickstep pushed to the front of the pack and turned on the speed with the intention of causing a major rupture in the group.  Only Matteo Pelucchi was able to get himself back into the second peloton on the road.  But he was then hit with a puncture which forced him out of the group with Greipel and company.  Elmiger, Goddaert, Haussler and Hinault were ensconced in the third group.  But considering the wind, it was impossible for them to get back to the front of the race.

“I think Martin Elmiger can really make use of the time trial as a way to test himself against strong competition.  As for the rest of the stages, we will do everything we can to try and win one, but it will also be a good opportunity for the team to practice racing together in the pack, keeping the best position possible.  Those will remain our goals until we reach Doha.”

Alex Sans Vega (sports director NetApp-Endura whose best rider was Blaz Jarc in 23rd)

"Today was another day in the wind. We've expected the echelons and they built up right after the start. The strong crosswind split the field in several groups. We were well presented in the first group, but after 30 km the peloton came back together. And this is how it stayed until 55 km before the finish.

"We knew that the race's decisive attack would happen right at this point. The course changed direction and with it a new wind situation occurred which was perfect for a new leading echelon. Unfortunately, then a crash happened. Lucky us, our riders were not involved but we were delayed by the crash. Like this we missed the first group and thereby the chance on a good result."

Arturas Kasputis (sports director Ag2r whose best rider was Lloyd Mondory in 39th)

"The peloton was riding hard from the first kilometre and the pace remained very high for the entire stage. The wind and the many changes of direction led to several splits.

"Regarding Ag2r-La Mondiale, Sebastien [Turgot] crashed at the midpoint but he was able to continue without too many problems. Lloyd [Mondory] had a punctured 5km from the finish but managed to return to the second group after doing a very hard effort.

"Tomorrow, we have a 10.9k time trial. We have nothing to lose we will give our best to achieve something good. In particular, we are looking to Patrick Gretsch and Damien Gaudin who are specialists in this discipline."

Roberto Reverberi (sports director Bardiani whose best rider was Marco Coledan in 19th)

”This year the wind is making an impressive selection, with echelons since the first km. Yesterday we were not able to go into the first positions of peloton when the wind turned. While today we did a better race and Coledan, really suitable for this kind of conditions, did a good performance. We are worried about Battaglin’s situation after the incident [he crashed, ed.] but we hope that all is okay. Now after tomorrow's time trial, we hope to find some bunch sprints for Fortin and Ruffoni”.