Sprints are all the time hectic, with dozens of the quickest riders on this planet barreling down the ending line, all wanting the identical factor: to be the primary throughout the end line. Warnings are shouted, elbows are thrown, errors occur and all however one rider is left disenchanted.
At this time, Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) was among the many disenchanted. The favorite for the quick and flat opening stage of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift rolled throughout the road in forty first. Her bike’s rear derailleur and chain dragging throughout the pavement, her eyes stuffed with tears.
The dream was to assert the yellow jersey on dwelling turf, with a Dutch sprinter and a Dutch group capturing the primary stage of the world’s most prestigious race. With Wiebes being the highest sprinter within the peloton and a wonderfully orchestrated lead-out at her disposal, the story virtually wrote itself. Nevertheless it wasn’t meant to be.
The group had performed its job. Wiebes had been delivered completely into the ending chute, poised to do what she does finest when she made contact with the shortly approaching entrance wheel of Anniina Ahtosalo (Uno-X Mobility). The impression had been gentle –everybody stayed upright– however unlucky. Wiebes’ derailleur and chain had come off, abruptly ending her momentum and bursting the yellow-jersey dream. Ahtosalo rode on to safe a second-place end and the house crowd nonetheless bought its Dutch hero in Charlotte Kool. Wiebes was devastated.
“Luck was not on our facet within the first stage of Tour de France Femmes with Lorena Wiebes not with the ability to dash for her possibilities as someone rode into her derailleur,” the group stated in an announcement post-race.
The group’s sports activities supervisor, Danny Stam, felt for his sprinter, placing phrases to her tears, stating: “It’s simply exhausting to take if you don’t even have the prospect to go in your luck. These final months Lorena was a number of instances the quickest in sprints. Taking the yellow jersey in her personal nation was an enormous dream for her. It’s simply actually unlucky she couldn’t go for it. Tomorrow, we are going to strive once more.”
The Tour de France Femmes continues with two phases on Tuesday, August 13. The morning stage consists of one other quick and flat 69.7-kilometre highway race between Rotterdam and Dordrecht. Weibes could get her redemption then.
The morning stage is adopted by a brief, 6.3-kilometre time trial within the afternoon. Come again right here for the tales of the races.
