Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) sprinted to victory in the final stage of the Simac Ladies Tour ahead of teammate Lorena Wiebes and Marthe Truyen (Fenix-Deceuninck).
In winning the final stage, Kopecky picked up a time bonus and secured the GC victory 2 seconds ahead of Franziska Koch (dsm-firmenich PostNL), who moved down to second, and 7 seconds ahead of Zoe Bäckstedt (Canyon//SRAM Racing), who took third and the youngest rider classification.
How it Happened
Stage 6 started and finished in Arnhem under stormy weather that brought a mixture of sun and showers for the 145.8 km that the women tackled. The first 90 km took place on a 45 km circuit (2x) with the final 55 km on an 8.1km circuit (7x).
Ruby Roseman-Gannon (Liv AlUla Jayco) was the first to try her luck with a little less than 90km to go, but was pulled back easily. It was then Ilaria Sanguineti (Lidl-Trek) who tried her luck with a little more than 70km remaining. But she, too, was reeled back in with around 60km remaining as the peloton transitioned to the 8.1km circuit.
The next attacks came from, Visma-Lease a Bike but these were quickly neutralized by SD Worx-Protime. It was then Ruby Roseman-Gannon (Liv-AlUla-Jayco) trying her luck again with less than 45 km to go. Joined by Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek), Karlijn Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ), and Femke Gerritse (SD Worx-Protime), it looked like a group with potential, but dsm-Firmenich PostNL countered the move and the peloton was back together again.
With less than 40km to go, Silke Smulders (Liv AlUla Jayco) attacked on her own and became the sensation of the race. Holding a gap ranging from 10 seconds to 45 seconds, she rode all the way to the line before she was caught in the final meters by the sprinters.
The sprint to the line by the peloton was a mad dash, with SD Worx-Protime uncertain if they had left it too late. Wiebes led out Kopecky early and it looked like they might not be able to nab Smulders, but in the last 20 meters Kopecky surged ahead through the middle and Smulders was resigned to fourth, behind Wiebes and Truyen.
Rider Reactions
Lotte Kopecky:”After the crash yesterday I didn’t really think I would be able to have these legs today. Silke Smulders rode in front and was very strong. It was very close, but the whole team rode themselves empty to close the gap. It was close, but just enough. I only win in the last centimeter, I think.”
SD Worx-Protime brought their best and had no real challengers.
Franziska Koch: “We knew it was going to be a hard fight today. The girls left everything on the road today for me and we just missed a fast finish to take away the seconds. I think we can be proud of how we raced as a team though and I am very grateful for the hard work the girls did for me.”
Koch’s fans were out in force, but in the end she had to give up the yellow jersey to Kopecky.
Silke Smulders: (4th, stage 6) “I am proud of my effort, I think I was super strong and I almost made it, so I have to be really happy with that.”
Silka Smulders won the red jersey for most aggressive with her 40km solo ride (photo:simacladiestour)
Retiring Riders Farewell
Before the start of stage 6, the peloton gave a farewell to retiring riders Christine Majerus (SD Worx-Protime), Audrey Cordon-Ragot, and Alice Wood (Human Powered Health).
The peloton says farewell to Majerus, Cordon-Ragot, and Wood (photo:simacladiestour)
RESULTS