2021 World Championships in Flanders: Road Races

[Samu Cuenca]

That leadout by ELB was the most explosive move of her entire career, a massive pull that gapped most of the other riders.

Just like with Kaisa, her sprints have also improved this year.

 

[Pirazziattacks]

Definitely. She'll be kicking herself that she had those legs on a course like this that just wasn't selective enough for her to get the gap. Getting the bronze from the sprint here, however, is pretty remarkable given the names that were still in that group and what Kasia's sprinting has historically been like. Has she Anna van der Breggened her sprinting up to "alrightish"?

Was that really even a sprint from Niewiadoma? I thought she finished 3rd because she tried to close the gap caused by Longo Borghini's leadout and no one else had the legs.

 

[Red Rick]

Dutch tactics were completely fine. It just wasn't hard enough for Van Vleuten, AvdB just wasn't good enough, Vollering wasted herself trying to get back and Vos just got beaten 1v1.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Just like with Kaisa, her sprints have also improved this year.

Well, in fairness, ELB's couldn't have got that much worse. She tried to decapitate a one-armed van Vleuten last year.

 

[tobydawq]

Does anybody know why Emma Norsgaard was commentating and not riding this race?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Was that really even a sprint from Niewiadoma? I thought she finished 3rd because she tried to close the gap caused by Longo Borghini's leadout and no one else had the legs.

You might be right, I was paying more attention to who was going to win the race at that point and hadn't even initially noticed she'd got the bronze. I figure when it's that close to the finish it can count as a sprint though, it isn't often we have much reason to praise Kasia's sprinting skills

 

[TourOfSardinia]

Dutch tactics were completely fine. It just wasn't hard enough for Van Vleuten, AvdB just wasn't good enough, Vollering wasted herself trying to get back and Vos just got beaten 1v1.

Like I said burnt matches - no one left to assist Vos.

 

[BlueRoads]

They tried to put pressure on the other teams while saving Vos for the sprint. They actually did everything mostly right, but in the end the Italian team was just too strong, and Vos couldn't quite match Balsamo.

I would have bet on Vos in a smaller group, but if you have such a big group with so many other good and better sprinters still in the group I think you shouldn't gamble on your sprinter if you have 6 other great riders in the group and the next big team has 3... I think gambling on Vos to take it here was always a risk and they should have done something more with their team strength. Well, at least one of the strongest teams, the Italians or the Dutch, were always going to lose out with their riding... so they might just as well have let go Ellen van Dijk...
Naah, sorry, not impressed with a lot of negative "controlling" racing from many teams today.

Congratulations to Balsamo though, her win was deserved.

 

[RedheadDane]

Does anybody know why Emma Norsgaard was commentating and not riding this race?

What?

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Does anybody know why Emma Norsgaard was commentating and not riding this race?

? She was riding. I believe it was Christina Siggaard, who was commentating, though I didn't watch it on Danish televison.

 

[memyselfandI]

Fantastic Italy! Was bit meh as Dutch had seven riders there but hell to the no.

 

[tobydawq]

Oh. That explains a lot... I just heard that she referred to "when she won Omloop" so I thought it must have been her.

Weird that she didn't feature at all (I only watched the final 25 kms so I don't know if anything happened to her).

Edit: And yes, I now realise that Norsgaard hasn't actually won Omloop...

 

[Samu Cuenca]

I would have bet on Vos in a smaller group, but if you have such a big group with so many other good and better sprinters still in the group I think you shouldn't gamble on your sprinter if you have 6 other great riders in the group and the next big team has 3... I think gambling on Vos to take it here was always a risk and they should have done something more with their team strength. Well, at least one of the strongest teams, the Italians or the Dutch, were always going to lose out with their riding... so they might just as well have let go Ellen van Dijk...
Naah, sorry, not impressed with a lot of negative "controlling" racing from many teams today.

Congratulations to Balsamo though, her win was deserved.

In a group like that, you can never really bet against Vos. And I doubt they expected the Italians to be so strong at the end.

Also a great ride by Henderson, who was clearly stronger than Deignan and could have finished high up, if she hadn't been doing all that work.

 

[RedheadDane]

? She was riding. I believe it was Christina Siggaard, who was commentating, though I didn't watch it on Danish televison.

It was Siggaard who was commentating. Seems like she has more-or-less become the main expert for women's cycling on Danish TV2.

 

[Breezy1985]

Man where was she hiding all that hair. Mario/Pippo level stuff fair play to her

 

[Mayomaniac]

5 years after the junior WC Balsamo wins the big one.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Oh. That explains a lot... I just heard that she referred to "when she won Omloop" so I thought it must have been her.

Weird that she didn't feature at all (I only watched the final 25 kms so I don't know if anything happened to her).

There was a split on one of the climbs, and she got caught behind it. It probably didn't make a difference, but Uttrup attacked shortly after, which didn't make it easier for the group to come back. She finished 83rd at 9 minutes.

 

[Breezy1985]

I know this anthem now better than my own I heard it so often this year

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Oh. That explains a lot... I just heard that she referred to "when she won Omloop" so I thought it must have been her.

Weird that she didn't feature at all (I only watched the final 25 kms so I don't know if anything happened to her).

She was caught behind the split on the Flandrien circuit and wound up in group 3 (there's a picture. Group 2 was able to make the junction thanks to some strong TT engines in it, but group 3 never caught back on, the Danes had people like Cille up front that they dare not risk dropping back, so there wasn't much help for Norsgaard and eventually the gap went up past a minute and a half and they sat up.

 

[BlueRoads]

Dutch tactics were completely fine. It just wasn't hard enough for Van Vleuten, AvdB just wasn't good enough, Vollering wasted herself trying to get back and Vos just got beaten 1v1.

They could have tried attacks way earlier, I've seen van Vleuten go on straight roads often enough to know that when she does a serious attack there won't be 40 riders following her. Van der Breggen was always only there as a helper, so why not bury herself earlier for a serious attack? Vollering, that was indeed bad luck. But van Dijk was really, really strong, but they didn't trust her at all. And Vos is not really the dominant sprinter anymore she once was. So I wouldn't call their tactics totally fine. It's something that can happen, but fine is too much for me.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

It was Siggaard who was commentating. Seems like she has more-or-less become the main expert for women's cycling on Danish TV2.

It doesn't look like she will bounce back from her injury, so getting a job there like her good friend Trine Schmidt has got with ES, is probably not a bad development. She is also nutrisionist, so she could be staying in the sport in that capacity as well.

 

[yaco]

That was a brilliant lead out by the Italians in the last kms - Hats off to Cassani and his riders - For the last four years they've nailed their tactics, rode as a team and therefore received their just rewards - Gotta say it is next to impossible to create a gap on the Leuven circuit

 

[Red Rick]

Blaak super critical about their own team work.

 

[RedheadDane]

I know this anthem now better than my own I heard it so often this year

That, and the Slovenian.
At least they haven't been playing it on bagpipes yet...

 

[Libertine Seguros]

So Anna van der Breggen is now officially done on the bike.

Flèche Wallonne will never be the same again.