Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike) admitted that the revived Milan-San Remo Girls was a troublesome one to foretell as a entrance group of 12 riders barreled down the descent off the long-lasting Poggio and onto the streets of San Remo.
A late assault from Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Staff ADQ) triggered Vos and teammate Pauline Ferrand-Prévot to hesitate and by the point they reacted it was too little too late as SD Worx-Protime made the catch and Lorena Wiebes launched her dash to take the historic victory.
Italian champion Longo Borghini delivered her assault simply after the hectic descent and it was SD Worx-Protime’s Lotte Kopecky who initiated the chase, spending all her matches to ensure Wiebes was in prime place within the ultimate straight.
“I seemed again and noticed Pauline was coming there, too, and I additionally knew that if I did it, then I’d not have a dash left. It was a bit of little bit of a raffle however that is bike racing and that makes this ultimate so attention-grabbing,” Vos mentioned.
Vos nonetheless managed to complete second place, whereas Ferrand-Prévot initially crossed the road in fourth however was later relegated to twelfth for deviating from her line.
“It was onerous to foretell what the race was going to present. Ultimately, I am very proud of how we raced as a crew and the way I acquired to the ultimate. After which, in a dash in opposition to Lorena Wiebes, you understand it’ll be very onerous however we tried. I believe we will be glad with second,” Vos mentioned.
“In fact, you at all times attempt to go for the win and purpose for the best spot, however I do know in a dash in opposition to Lorena it’s onerous to beat her, however you at all times attempt. Right now, I wasn’t that far off, so I am a bit disenchanted however on the identical time glad with how we raced. I didn’t make any errors so, sure, I will be blissful.”
The revived girls’s race at Milan-San Remo turn out to be the fourth of the 5 Monuments for the ladies’s peloton – alongside the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and Vos has raced all of them, profitable Tour of Flanders in 2013.
The ladies raced 156km from Genoa to San Remo, together with the long-lasting Cipressa and Poggio climbs. A gaggle of 12 emerged excessive of the Poggio and down the descent. It included Vos, who mentioned her precedence was to stay in management via the tough switchbacks.
Ultimately, she sprinted side-by-side on the left of Wiebes, however regardless of the explosive drag race to the road, she was not quick sufficient to outsprint her compatriot.
Requested if this 12 months’s race was a sign of what we might count on to see in future editions of Milan-San Remo Girls, Vos mentioned it was powerful to say as a result of there are such a lot of elements at play together with distance, climate and wind.
“I believe, it is onerous to inform. Possibly subsequent 12 months will probably be completely completely different. I do not know if there are conclusions you may make for this version, however you might really feel the strain within the bunch was excessive. Everybody needed to place effectively. The crashes might need had an affect and a few riders had been out of constructing a distinction, early assault or excessive tempo,” Vos mentioned.
“The winds performed a giant function; a tailwind does not assist as a result of it’s a excessive tempo and nobody can get away, however a headwind does not assist both once you need to make a distinction, so in the long run, Lorena was climbing effectively and it was onerous to get away.”
Nonetheless, she mentioned she loved the brand new race on the calendar, suggesting just one minor enchancment to the gap, by including 20km to 30km and growing the overall to nearer to 180km.
“It was an exquisite race. I am blissful we did it as we speak and hopefully, there are various extra editions to come back. It is nice to have it on the calendar. It was a unbelievable version. We’ve got so many stunning races and this suits effectively into the calendar. For enchancment, I do not know, we are going to simply sit up for the following,” Vos mentioned.
“It’s an choice to make it longer. That’s the particular difficulty with the boys’s race however I do not know if that may have made a distinction in as we speak’s race, to be sincere. Ultimately, the ultimate is similar and the riders can deal with the distinction.”
