The third stage of Vuelta a Burgos was a classic sprint stage, thanks to SD Worx-Protime who delivered Lorena Wiebes to the line safely and without challenge. Clara Copponi of Lidl-Trek sprinted to second behind the Dutchwoman and Maike van der Duin (Canyon-SRAM) took second.
How it happened
- It was a pretty straightforward race for the women on Saturday, after some hectic racing at La Vuelta España Femenina and Itzulia Women, the mellow ride was welcome.
- A breakaway of three slipped up the road, with little hope of survival. SD Worx-Protime was determined to end the day in a sprint for Wiebes. Even when the break was joined by two more riders, and lost one, their antics did little to deter the planned finale. The break was caught within the final 5 km.
- Unfortunately, a large crash impacted the peloton with 2.3 km to go, with many riders going down including Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ-Suez), who is finally back in the peloton following an early season crash, along with her teammate and second-overall Évita Muzic, and white jersey wearer Shirin van Anrooij (Lidl-Trek).
- In the end, Wiebes won the stage handily, with little challenge. Copponi took over sprinting duties for Lidl-Trek with Elisa Balsamo out of the race and netted a second place, and Van der Duin rode in for an impressive third.
Stage Top 10
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Quick notes
- Race leader Demi Vollering finished safely within the bunch and will wear the leader’s jersey into the final stage on Sunday.
- There were a few key riders who went down in the late race crash. Muzic, who sits second on the general classification, was one who went down hard. After the race her team confirmed she held onto second overall, thanks to the 3 km rule, and will start stage 4 on Sunday.
GC Top 5
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Quote of the day
There’s always [extra] motivation to ride on your home roads, a lot of people were animated in the towns.
Sara Martin (Movistar) on riding in the breakaway during stage 2
What’s next?
From the Wheel Talk Newsletter:
The final stage includes a Category 1 and Category 3 ascent, and with 1,834 meters of elevation gain over 122 km, it is a great Vollering stage.
The Category 1 climb is not the finale, but instead starts with 35 km remaining in the stage. The road climbs for 13 km, with a tiny descent before the official start of Alto de Rozavientos, which is technically only 3.5 km. With a 9.3% average, it’s a good one. But it’s the proximity of the 3.2 km Cat 3 that precedes it and the unrelenting drag between the two that will make this stage a hard one to win.
After the peloton/small group/solo rider crests the climb they will descend for roughly 10 km before they ride to the finish 5 km later. The finish is also not flat, but a slow drag to the line in Canicosa de la Sierra.
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