Simac Ladies Tour stage 5: Audrey Cordon-Ragot blasts to time trial victory
This article originally appeared on Velo News
Audrey Cordon-Ragot (Trek Segafredo) won the stage 5 time trial of the Simac Ladies Tour, setting a time of 25:15 over the 17.8km course in the Netherlands.
The French national time trial champion beat stage 4 winner Riejanne Markus (Jumbo-Visma) by three seconds on the line in Watersley, whilst Amanda Spratt (BikeExchange-Jayco) finished third in 25:25.
Race leader Lorena Wiebes (Team DSM) finished fifth on the stage with a time of 25:36, enough to hold onto the leader's jersey with one stage remaining, though Cordon-Ragot moves into second, just six seconds off the lead.
"I cannot be more happy than I am at the moment," Cordon-Ragot said at the finish.
"I was not expecting that. I knew Riejanne would be my biggest opponent. All the girls from Jumbo are really good on time trials and really technical also, so I was like 'OK just do your best, do what you know how to do and we will see the result'. And it ended up being the fastest time.
"I just had a plan, I followed the plan. I had what I had to do in every part of the circuit. It was really technical and I really love it. In the end I just stayed in my bubble and did what I had to do and it was the right plan today."
"I really like when it's technical, I really like to ride my TT bike," she continued. "I think it's also a really good exercise before the worlds because we know the world championships is going to be also really technical, so for me coming here in Simac was a really good preparation for the worlds. I'm really happy to be there and to end this tour the best way, winning a stage."
After three sprint days and a hilly challenge on Friday, stage 5 of the Simac Ladies Tour offered a rare chance for the time trialists to show their ability, one of just two individual time trials in the Women's WorldTour calendar this season. Though set in the relatively flat roads south of Sittard, the 17.8km was not pan-flat and did have some gradual but possibly significant rises between Windraak and the Watersley sports park.
Despite being the only longer time trial on the WorldTour calendar - the other being a 4.75km TT in the Giro - the start list for Saturday's stage was missing some of the specialists, with Ellen van Dijk (Trek-Segafredo) deciding last minute to skip the race ahead of her world championships. The likes of Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) and Joscelin Lowden (Uno-X) were also missing.
It was first-off-the-mark Eva Buurman (Liv Racing Xstra) who set the first real benchmark, stopping the clock at 26:59, some 30 seconds faster than most of the first ten starters. However, it wasn't long before Lisa Klein (Canyon-SRAM), one of the few time trial specialists in the race, took the start and put an end to Buurman's time in the lead. At the intermediate timing point, Klein was seven seconds down on Buurman, but had a strong second half to beat the previous fastest time, finishing in 26:21.
Klein's time may have been expected to stand for a while, but in fact it was bettered just a few riders later by one of the youngest riders in the race, Elise Uijen (Team DSM). The former junior European time trial champion set a time of 26:11, taking 10 seconds out of Klein's time, certainly an impressive time in the 19-year-old's first pro-level ITT. After her effort, Uijen crashed shortly after the finish but was back on her feet quickly.
The first rider to break the 26-minute mark was Alice Barnes (Canyon-SRAM), who finished in 25:57 to take over the hotseat from Uijen, leading the standings after 28 finishers. Heading into the top-20 riders on GC, the best times started to fall significantly, with Amanda Spratt (BikeExchange-Jayco) taking over 30 seconds out of Barnes with a 25:25 finish. Julie De Wilde (Plantur Pura) then finished just three seconds down on Spratt as the early times all began to be beaten.
Stage 4 winner Riejanne Markus (Jumbo Visma) set a best time with 25:18, but needed a bigger margin to try to move up the GC after losing time on the race's opening stage.
Most of the top-10 could not better Markus's time, but a big effort from French national champion and third overall Audrey Cordon-Ragot (Trek Segafredo) eventually bettered the Dutch rider, setting a time of 25:15 which would prove to be the fastest of the day. With only race leader Lorena Wiebes (Team DSM) still to finish, her challenge was to retain her lead, which she did with a time of 25:36, fifth on the stage and holding onto to a six-second advantage over Cordon-Ragot, who moved up to second.
Karlijn Swinkels (Jumbo Visma) finished 7th with a time of 25:52, moving one place down to third overall. The biggest movers after the TT were Markus, Spratt, De Wilde and Ruby Roseman-Gannon (BikeExchange-Jayco), who all moved into the top-10 overall after strong against-the-clock efforts.
Sunday’s final stage around Arnhem will see the peloton take on seven laps of a countryside Posbank circuit, followed by five laps of a smaller circuit in Arnhem for a total of 150km of racing, the longest of the race.
Both circuits have small, one kilometer climbs on them, which whilst not particularly steep, could prove challenging when tackled repeatedly throughout the day. After winning two stages and looking strong on Friday's hilly fourth stage, the race looks like Wiebes's to lose, but the tricky circuits will give her competitors plenty of chances to test the Dutch rider before Sunday's finale.
Simac Ladies Tour Stage 5 Results
1 | CORDON-RAGOT Audrey | Trek - Segafredo | 25:15 |
2 | MARKUS Riejanne | Team Jumbo-Visma | 0:04 |
3 | SPRATT Amanda | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 0:11 |
4 | DE WILDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 0:13 |
5 | WIEBES Lorena | Team DSM | 0:21 |
6 | ROSEMAN-GANNON Ruby | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 0:36 |
7 | SWINKELS Karlijn | Team Jumbo-Visma | 0:38 |
8 | BARNES Alice | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 0:42 |
9 | HANSON Lauretta | Trek - Segafredo | 0:45 |
10 | HENDERSON Anna | Team Jumbo-Visma | 0:53 |
11 | JACKSON Alison | Liv Racing Xstra | 0:56 |
12 | UIJEN Elise | Team DSM | 0:56 |
13 | GHEKIERE Justine | Plantur-Pura | 0:57 |
14 | BREDEWOLD Mischa | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 0:59 |
15 | SCHWEINBERGER Christina | Plantur-Pura | 1:01 |
16 | CAMPBELL Teniel | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 1:02 |
17 | KOREVAAR Jeanne | Liv Racing Xstra | 1:04 |
18 | VAN DE VELDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 1:06 |
19 | KLEIN Lisa | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 1:07 |
20 | DRONOVA-BALABOLINA Tamara | Roland Cogeas Edelweiss Squad | 1:07 |
21 | KASPER Romy | Team Jumbo-Visma | 1:13 |
22 | PLUIMERS Ilse | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 1:16 |
23 | PALADIN Soraya | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 1:17 |
24 | GASPARRINI Eleonora Camilla | Valcar - Travel & Service | 1:21 |
25 | BAKER Georgia | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 1:28 |
26 | BACKSTEDT Elynor | Trek - Segafredo | 1:29 |
27 | KIRCHMANN Leah | Team DSM | 1:30 |
28 | HENGEVELD Daniek | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 1:34 |
29 | HARRIS Ella | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 1:36 |
30 | BUURMAN Eva | Liv Racing Xstra | 1:45 |
31 | RIJNBEEK Maud | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 1:47 |
32 | SMULDERS Silke | Liv Racing Xstra | 1:49 |
33 | GROSSETETE Maelle | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 1:50 |
34 | KOCH Franziska | Team DSM | 1:53 |
35 | VAN DEN BROEK-BLAAK Chantal | Team SD Worx | 1:54 |
36 | SCHOENS Quinty | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 1:59 |
37 | DIJKSTRA Anneke | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 2:00 |
38 | SANGUINETI Ilaria | Valcar - Travel & Service | 2:03 |
39 | BUJAK Eugenia | UAE Team ADQ | 2:04 |
40 | CIPRESSI Carlotta | Valcar - Travel & Service | 2:07 |
41 | PIRRONE Elena | Valcar - Travel & Service | 2:09 |
42 | TOMASI Laura | UAE Team ADQ | 2:10 |
43 | DUVAL Eugenie | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 2:11 |
44 | ZANETTI Linda | UAE Team ADQ | 2:12 |
45 | HOSKING Chloe | Trek - Segafredo | 2:12 |
46 | AHTOSALO Anniina | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 2:18 |
47 | KOOL Charlotte | Team DSM | 2:18 |
48 | KESSLER Nina | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 2:21 |
49 | WRIGHT Sophie | UAE Team ADQ | 2:22 |
50 | CANT Sanne | Plantur-Pura | 2:23 |
51 | RUEGG Noemi | Team Jumbo-Visma | 2:33 |
52 | LUNDMARK Clara | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 3:01 |
53 | VAN ROOIJEN Eline | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 3:04 |
54 | CONSONNI Chiara | Valcar - Travel & Service | 3:05 |
55 | VAN HAAFTEN Kirstie | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 3:06 |
56 | DE VRIES Femke | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 3:21 |
57 | PATUELLI Alessia | UAE Team ADQ | 3:36 |
58 | BAKS Marissa | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 3:55 |
59 | FOURNIER Roxane | Team SD Worx | 4:17 |
60 | LUTRO Amalie | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 4:20 |
61 | UNEKEN Lonneke | Team SD Worx | 4:20 |
1 | WIEBES Lorena | Team DSM | 13:33:17 |
2 | CORDON-RAGOT Audrey | Trek - Segafredo | 0:06 |
3 | SWINKELS Karlijn | Team Jumbo-Visma | 0:36 |
4 | MARKUS Riejanne | Team Jumbo-Visma | 0:40 |
5 | ROSEMAN-GANNON Ruby | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 0:48 |
6 | HENDERSON Anna | Team Jumbo-Visma | 1:01 |
7 | JACKSON Alison | Liv Racing Xstra | 1:03 |
8 | BREDEWOLD Mischa | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 1:10 |
9 | SPRATT Amanda | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 1:11 |
10 | DE WILDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 1:14 |
11 | KASPER Romy | Team Jumbo-Visma | 1:25 |
12 | PALADIN Soraya | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 1:28 |
13 | GASPARRINI Eleonora Camilla | Valcar - Travel & Service | 1:33 |
14 | GHEKIERE Justine | Plantur-Pura | 1:57 |
15 | DRONOVA-BALABOLINA Tamara | Roland Cogeas Edelweiss Squad | 2:04 |
16 | VAN DEN BROEK-BLAAK Chantal | Team SD Worx | 2:06 |
17 | DUVAL Eugenie | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 2:23 |
18 | SMULDERS Silke | Liv Racing Xstra | 2:31 |
19 | PLUIMERS Ilse | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 2:47 |
20 | SANGUINETI Ilaria | Valcar - Travel & Service | 3:04 |
21 | TOMASI Laura | UAE Team ADQ | 3:04 |
22 | BUJAK Eugenia | UAE Team ADQ | 3:05 |
23 | HARRIS Ella | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 3:07 |
24 | WRIGHT Sophie | UAE Team ADQ | 3:22 |
25 | SCHOENS Quinty | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 3:29 |
26 | HANSON Lauretta | Trek - Segafredo | 4:54 |
27 | KOREVAAR Jeanne | Liv Racing Xstra | 5:13 |
28 | GROSSETETE Maelle | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 5:41 |
29 | KESSLER Nina | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 6:12 |
30 | BACKSTEDT Elynor | Trek - Segafredo | 6:52 |
31 | CANT Sanne | Plantur-Pura | 6:52 |
32 | BARNES Alice | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 6:54 |
33 | CAMPBELL Teniel | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 7:13 |
34 | KIRCHMANN Leah | Team DSM | 7:42 |
35 | DIJKSTRA Anneke | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 8:25 |
36 | LUTRO Amalie | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 8:37 |
37 | LUNDMARK Clara | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 9:12 |
38 | PATUELLI Alessia | UAE Team ADQ | 9:48 |
39 | SCHWEINBERGER Christina | Plantur-Pura | 10:10 |
40 | VAN DE VELDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 11:12 |
41 | UIJEN Elise | Team DSM | 13:08 |
42 | VAN ROOIJEN Eline | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 13:33 |
43 | CIPRESSI Carlotta | Valcar - Travel & Service | 13:49 |
44 | BAKER Georgia | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 14:07 |
45 | KLEIN Lisa | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 14:15 |
46 | HENGEVELD Daniek | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 14:41 |
47 | RIJNBEEK Maud | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 14:56 |
48 | DE VRIES Femke | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 15:04 |
49 | HOSKING Chloe | Trek - Segafredo | 15:21 |
50 | AHTOSALO Anniina | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 15:27 |
51 | KOCH Franziska | Team DSM | 15:33 |
52 | KOOL Charlotte | Team DSM | 15:56 |
53 | UNEKEN Lonneke | Team SD Worx | 16:36 |
54 | PIRRONE Elena | Valcar - Travel & Service | 16:46 |
55 | VAN HAAFTEN Kirstie | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 17:08 |
56 | FOURNIER Roxane | Team SD Worx | 17:26 |
57 | RUEGG Noemi | Team Jumbo-Visma | 17:38 |
58 | CONSONNI Chiara | Valcar - Travel & Service | 17:42 |
59 | BAKS Marissa | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 18:12 |
60 | ZANETTI Linda | UAE Team ADQ | 23:11 |
61 | BUURMAN Eva | Liv Racing Xstra | 37:53 |
1 | WIEBES Lorena | Team DSM | 102 |
2 | SWINKELS Karlijn | Team Jumbo-Visma | 62 |
3 | MARKUS Riejanne | Team Jumbo-Visma | 45 |
4 | CORDON-RAGOT Audrey | Trek - Segafredo | 43 |
5 | TOMASI Laura | UAE Team ADQ | 39 |
6 | JACKSON Alison | Liv Racing Xstra | 33 |
7 | DRONOVA-BALABOLINA Tamara | Roland Cogeas Edelweiss Squad | 28 |
8 | PALADIN Soraya | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 27 |
9 | ROSEMAN-GANNON Ruby | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 25 |
10 | HENDERSON Anna | Team Jumbo-Visma | 23 |
11 | UNEKEN Lonneke | Team SD Worx | 25 |
11 | DE WILDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 19 |
12 | DE ZOETE Mylene | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 24 |
12 | GASPARRINI Eleonora Camilla | Valcar - Travel & Service | 17 |
13 | SPRATT Amanda | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 16 |
14 | BARBIERI Rachele | Liv Racing Xstra | 21 |
14 | DUVAL Eugenie | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 16 |
15 | SANGUINETI Ilaria | Valcar - Travel & Service | 12 |
16 | BREDEWOLD Mischa | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 8 |
17 | BARNES Alice | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 8 |
18 | HANSON Lauretta | Trek - Segafredo | 7 |
19 | BAKER Georgia | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 16 |
19 | KOREVAAR Jeanne | Liv Racing Xstra | 6 |
20 | COPPONI Clara | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 14 |
20 | UIJEN Elise | Team DSM | 4 |
21 | GHEKIERE Justine | Plantur-Pura | 3 |
22 | DIDERIKSEN Amalie | Trek - Segafredo | 9 |
22 | KASPER Romy | Team Jumbo-Visma | 2 |
23 | VAN DEN BROEK-BLAAK Chantal | Team SD Worx | 1 |
24 | SCHWEINBERGER Christina | Plantur-Pura | 1 |
26 | HENGEVELD Daniek | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 7 |
28 | RIJNBEEK Maud | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 6 |
29 | SEITZ Aline | Roland Cogeas Edelweiss Squad | 5 |
31 | HOSKING Chloe | Trek - Segafredo | 3 |
32 | CONSONNI Chiara | Valcar - Travel & Service | 3 |
37 | KOCH Franziska | Team DSM | 1 |
38 | AHTOSALO Anniina | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 1 |
1 | VAN HAAFTEN Kirstie | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 16 |
2 | WIEBES Lorena | Team DSM | 12 |
3 | GROSSETETE Maelle | FDJ - SUEZ - Futuroscope | 12 |
4 | HENDERSON Anna | Team Jumbo-Visma | 7 |
5 | SWINKELS Karlijn | Team Jumbo-Visma | 6 |
6 | VAN DE VELDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 5 |
7 | CORDON-RAGOT Audrey | Trek - Segafredo | 3 |
8 | PLUIMERS Ilse | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 1 |
1 | BREDEWOLD Mischa | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 13:34:27 |
2 | DE WILDE Julie | Plantur-Pura | 0:04 |
3 | GASPARRINI Eleonora Camilla | Valcar - Travel & Service | 0:23 |
4 | SMULDERS Silke | Liv Racing Xstra | 1:21 |
5 | PLUIMERS Ilse | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 1:37 |
6 | BACKSTEDT Elynor | Trek - Segafredo | 5:42 |
7 | LUTRO Amalie | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 7:27 |
8 | PATUELLI Alessia | UAE Team ADQ | 8:38 |
9 | UIJEN Elise | Team DSM | 11:58 |
10 | VAN ROOIJEN Eline | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 12:23 |
11 | CIPRESSI Carlotta | Valcar - Travel & Service | 12:39 |
12 | HENGEVELD Daniek | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 13:31 |
13 | RIJNBEEK Maud | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 13:46 |
14 | AHTOSALO Anniina | Uno-X Pro Cycling Team | 14:17 |
15 | KOCH Franziska | Team DSM | 14:23 |
16 | UNEKEN Lonneke | Team SD Worx | 15:26 |
17 | RUEGG Noemi | Team Jumbo-Visma | 16:28 |
18 | ZANETTI Linda | UAE Team ADQ | 22:01 |
1 | Team Jumbo-Visma | 40:41:45 |
2 | Plantur-Pura | 3:40 |
3 | Team BikeExchange - Jayco | 4:58 |
4 | Liv Racing Xstra | 6:52 |
5 | UAE Team ADQ | 7:33 |
6 | Valcar - Travel & Service | 8:41 |
7 | Canyon//SRAM Racing | 9:05 |
8 | Trek - Segafredo | 10:04 |
9 | Team DSM | 11:51 |
10 | Parkhotel Valkenburg | 12:02 |
11 | GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling | 20:55 |
12 | AG Insurance - NXTG Team | 25:04 |
13 | Team SD Worx | 34:18 |
Results provided by ProCyclingStats.
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