Kool outsprints Vos in Pilar de la Horadada
May 2 nd 2023 - 17:30 [GMT + 2]
Team DSM’s Charlotte Kool claimed a remarkable sprint win in the second stage of La Vuelta Femenina by Carrefour.es by beating Jumbo-Visma’s Marianne Vos in the final few meters of the race. A bittersweet ending for Vos, who had to counter a powerful attack from Canyon//SRAM’s Chloe Dygert with 350 meters to go. The American rider anticipated the sprint chasing some bonus seconds that could well have meant taking the Red jersey that Jumbo-Visma’s Anna Henderson wore today. With her second position in Pilar de la Horadada, Vos grabbed 6” bonus seconds and kept the GC lead in the Jumbo-Visma ranks ahead of Wednesday’s stage to La Roda.
159 riders took the start in the 2nd stage of La Vuelta Femenina by Carrefour.es, which covered 106,6 kilometres between Orihuela and Pilar de la Horadada, at 14:23. Cantabria Deporte’s Susana Perez and Laboral Kutxa’s Usoa Ostolaza were the first attackers of the day, yet failed to go clear. It was 19 kilometres into the race that Coralie Demay (St Michel – Mavic – Auber93), Catalina Soto (Bizkaia – Durango), Iurani Blanco (Laboral Kutxa – Fundación Euskadi) and Andrea Casagranda (Bepink) succeeded at establishing the day’s breakaway. Their advantage went up to 1’16” clocked at kilometer 40.
Two-woman breakaway
A crosswind section spurred the peloton to speed up, as much as to nearly catch the breakaway with 58 kilometres to go. As the bunch came close, Blanco accelerated and Demay jumped on her wheel, conforming a two-woman breakaway while Soto and Casagranda were brought back by the bunch. Blanco and Demay only stayed at the front for 20 kilometres, as the pack sped up in the approach to San Miguel de Salinas (IS, km 78,3). SD Worx’s Femke Markus was first across the intermediate sprint to claim six bonus seconds as Jumbo-Visma’s Riejanne Markus claimed four bonus seconds to become the virtual GC leader.
Some attacks ahead of a bunch sprint
The 1,2% average gradient of the Puerto de Rebate (cat 4, km 87,3) hid a lumpy road with sections as steep as 13%. Several Canyon//SRAM riders attacked, causing some splits in the peloton as FDJ-SUEZ’s Jade Wiel sprinted to go ride across the summit in first position and claim the polka dot jersey as first leader of the Mountains classification. The run-in to Pilar de la Horadada was quite rolling, and the pack regrouped for a mass sprint that was almost frustrated by Chloe Dygert’s late surge.