CYCLING – Lorena Wiebes won the Tour of Drenthe for the fourth time in a row this afternoon. Just before the finish, Wiebes pulled away from Elisa Balsamo with force majeure and crossed the line first.
The start of the Tour of Drenthe took place this afternoon around 1:45 PM in Beilen. An adjusted round because due to insufficient police presence and environmental regulations, this year the race had to be ridden on a closed course on and around the Col du VAM. This year the finish was also not in Hoogeveen, but on top of the VAM mountain.
The strong wind broke the peloton into pieces. Valerie Demey took a lead with more than 80 kilometers to ride. The Volkerwessels rider took a lead of more than two minutes. However, the peloton kept control of Demey and with just under 40 kilometers to go, the Belgian was taken back.
The Drenthe riders Anniek Mos and Meike Uiterwijk Winkel did not play a significant role in the final and were not visible at the front.
At the start of the last lap, Puck Pieterse pulled the first peloton apart and a group of eight riders took a small lead over the first part of the peloton. In addition to Pieterse, Lorena Wiebes, Charlotte Kool and Elisa Balsamo were also contenders in the leading group.
However, this group was also taken back 19 kilometers before the finish. A group of about thirty riders then rode together to the foot of the VAM mountain. About four meters from the finish the fight for a good position started. Due to the narrow roads, several riders ducked onto the side of the road. Yet all riders remained in the saddle.
In the last part uphill it was ultimately Lorena Wiebes who rode away from Balsamo. Puck Pieterse finished third.
