Lotte Kopecky (Belgium) gained the elite ladies’s highway race on the World Championships in Glasgow, soloing to victory after dropping Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Denmark) on the climb of Scott Road with 5.5km to go.
The pre-race favorite picked up her third rainbow jersey of the week – and Belgium’s first elite ladies’s highway title in half a century – along with her rasping late assault. Demi Vollering (Netherlands) pipped Uttrup Ludwig within the dash for second place, 7 seconds down on Kopecky.
Elise Chabbey (Switzerland) threatened an upset with an extended, solo stint on the head of the race, however the Swiss rider was introduced again by an elite group of chasers on the bell, the place defending champion Annemiek van Vleuten punctured out of competition.
That left Kopecky, Vollering, Uttrup Ludwig, Lizzie Deignan (Nice Britain), Christina Schweinberger (Austria) and Marlen Reusser (Switzerland) within the hunt for the rainbow jersey within the remaining 14km.
Kopecky had minimize a annoyed determine for a lot of the afternoon as she tried to marshal a chase and he or she was briefly caught on the incorrect facet of a break up within the entrance group when Deignan and Schweinberger ghosted early clear on the ultimate lap.
The Belgian bridged throughout to the 2 leaders within the firm of Reusser, nevertheless. Then, simply when the six-woman group had come again collectively, she responded to Uttrup Ludwig’s subsequent assault earlier than delivering her personal, decisive transfer on Scott Road.
Kopecky had opened a sizeable hole by the point she crested the summit, and though Uttrup Ludwig remained in sight all the way in which to the road, the Belgian wouldn’t be denied. She made mild work of the ultimate kick up Montrose Road and he or she had time to savour her victory as she crossed the road.
“It’s already been a tremendous yr and in addition a really onerous yr,” Kopecky mentioned earlier than mounting the rostrum. “It’s type of a dream that comes true and I hope to get pleasure from driving within the rainbow jersey subsequent yr.”
Silver medallist in Wollongong a yr in the past, Kopecky lined up because the excellent favorite after a season that has seen her declare victories on the Tour of Flanders and Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, and after a glowing Tour de France Femmes, the place she gained the opening stage and held yellow for six days en path to second place total. On the observe in Glasgow final week, in the meantime, she claimed rainbow jerseys within the elimination race and the factors race.
“I believed after these two world titles on the observe, it might be nearly not possible to win once more on Sunday. Three World Championships in seven days is just too loopy,” Kopecky mentioned. “I didn’t dream of this after I was a bit woman, again then I simply needed to be aggressive on the bike. I by no means knew I might change into this good. That dream solely got here later.”
The way it unfolded
The elite ladies’s highway race, 154.1km from Loch Lemond to Glasgow, began with out two marquee riders, time trial world champion Chloé Dygert (USA) and Tour de France Femmes podium finisher Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland).
Thankfully, apart from some showers at first, the solar got here out for many of the race.
The primary assaults got here from Eliška Kvasničková (Czech Republic) however her too-eager transfer was shortly introduced again as groups sought to whittle down the 200+-rider beginning bunch with 15km raced.
Juliette Labous (France), Sanne Cant (Belgium), Mischa Bredewold (Netherlands) and Elise Chabbey (Switzerland) joined Kata Blanka Vas (Hungary) however when Lizzie Deignan (Nice Britain) and Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (South Africa) to make a robust seven-rider assault and got down to construct their benefit en path to the longest climb of the day.
As they raced towards the darkish clouds looming over Glasgow and the Crow Highway climb the leaders held solely a 32-second benefit.
Paladin and Vas got here again on the climb, and a much-reduced peloton closed in on the leaders and the race got here again along with 100km to go.
In the meantime, Marianne Vos (Netherlands) was chasing behind the peloton with Belgium’s Marthe Truyen and Michaela Drummond (New Zealand) after falling behind on Crow Highway.
Kim Cadzow (New Zealand) attacked to get a head begin because the race entered the Glasgow circuit, however her transfer was shortly overtaken because the favourites got here ahead.
Marlen Reusser (Switzerland) put in an enormous surge and was joined by Anna Henderson (Nice Britain) on the primary climb of Montrose Road for the primary time with a small lead over a five-rider chasing group: Elise Chabbey (Switzerland), Soraya Paladin (Italy), Reijanne Markus (Netherlands), Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Denmark) and Poland’s Agnieszka Skalniak-Sojka, they usually got here collectively earlier than the top of lap 1.
Chabbey countered a probing transfer from Kopecky with 74.5km to go and shortly can be the breakaway of the day.
With 5 laps to go, Chabbey had 14 seconds and he or she continued to slowly construct the hole to greater than a minute as ways performed out behind.
With 4 laps to go the hole was a catchable 27 seconds however regardless of a solo try and bridge by Elene Cecchini (Italy), the favourites performed a ready sport.
When Cecchini got here again inside 50km to go, riders appeared round for anybody who would chase whereas Chabbey opened her result in 1:25.
The peloton got here via with three laps to go nonetheless with a 90-second hole to shut and it got here right down to none aside from defending champion Van Vleuten to steer the chase with teammate Reijanne Markus, coming ahead with 38km to go.
“I’ve to say I used to be not nervous earlier than the race however with Chabbey at 1:30… We noticed earlier than on this course that you simply don’t acquire a lot time, so I feel I actually must thank a very stable Sanne Cant firstly of the native laps after which Justine Ghekier,” Kopecky mentioned.
“I instructed her to attempt to preserve the tempo up, it doesn’t have to be a really onerous one however simply so she doesn’t acquire loads of time. I feel she did a very good job.”
The hole lastly began to go in the proper course approaching two laps to go, coming underneath the minute mark with 35km to go.
Van Vleuten pushed the tempo and introduced Silvia Persico (Italy) along with her, forcing Kopecky to reply. Quickly, the Belgian was on the head of the chase and shattering the sphere behind and Vollering obtained straight on her wheel.
Reusser, sensing the hazard, adopted the chase of Uttrup Ludwig and closed the duo down, however the hole was falling dramatically, underneath 30 seconds only one kilometre later.
As Kopecky appeared round on the state of affairs, Van Vleuten launched once more halving the space to Chabbey.
Heading towards Montrose Road with 31km to go, Kopecky attacked via the feed zone and pressed on, adopted by Russer, Deignan, Schweinberger, Utttrup Ludwig, and Vollering who needed to work to tug the Belgian again.
On the climb, Chabbey was coming into view, as was Van Vleuten as Uttrup Ludwig danced up the climb. The chasing group got here again collectively and, coming into two laps to go, they’d simply 20 seconds to shut.
Outcomes
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