Lesser Known Road Racing for Women Thread

[Didinho]

Last race for Mieke Docx with Lotto. Still looking for a new team. Told her she would win from the break today and just woke up with her in 6th place. So happy for her, let the legs do the talk. Good way to finish the season. Hope a team pick will give her a spot now.

Edit: she ended 5th in GC.

 

[yaco]

See what happens if you put your team in the right races to match their level. Two wins for Liv Alula Jayco at Chongming and they have a good chance at Guangxi on Sunday.

 

[Didinho]

Only a top 8 on PCS for the stage. They just added Knijnenberg (3rd today) as GC winner but nothing else.

 

[OneManGrupetto]

Only a top 8 on PCS for the stage. They just added Knijnenberg (3rd today) as GC winner but nothing else.

That looks right. She got four bonus seconds from today so I think she's won by a second over Tamara Dronova-Balabolina (Roland). Shame for the latter, she's been massively over-raced (66 days, 7018km) by Roland to try and fulfil their WTW calendar and deserves some sort of reward for it.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Still no times up, but I timed it as 15" from Talbot to tenth place, so Knijnenberg has 3" (because of bonus) over Van Rooijen. But how much faster would the pack have gone without the crash? Might they have recovered those three seconds?

Nevertheless, credit to Knijnenberg, good to see gambles paying off and something unpredictable in a race of flat stages.

 

[yaco]

Believe it or not, this is the second time this race has been won in a breakaway. Talbot will be rueing losing an unnecessary 1m and 25s in stage two.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Only a top 8 on PCS for the stage. They just added Knijnenberg (3rd today) as GC winner but nothing else.

Though it should be a top 9: they have missed Quinty Ton in 8th, and given that place to Daniela Campos, the last of the late escapees.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Still no times up, but I timed it as 15" from Talbot to tenth place, so Knijnenberg has 3" (because of bonus) over Van Rooijen. But how much faster would the pack have gone without the crash? Might they have recovered those three seconds?

What I hadn't realised when typing that was that Van Rooijen had picked up 2" at an intermediate sprint on today's stage, so only needed the chase to close by one extra second. Copponi really did determine the winner.

Although 2nd is probably not much consolation to her, she only got that because she didn't hang around too much at the scene of the accident: if she had remounted a bit more slowly, or peddled in chatting to a team-mate, it wouldn't have affected her time, but could have left her behind Dronova on countback.

Which serves as another example of why countback of total results is such a flawed tiebreaker, and should surely be replaced by best placings.

 

[RedheadDane]

Anyone knows why UAE are only starting with 3 riders in Guangxi?

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Anyone knows why UAE are only starting with 3 riders in Guangxi?

I assume it's because they only have 3 fit riders in the area. Swinkels is apparently sick, but I don't know if that's also the case for Van Rooijen and Al Sayegh. According to the UCI rules they shouldn't be allowed to start with fewer than 4 riders, but they have probably been granted permission.

If they hadn't been allowed to start, the race wouldn't live up to the 90 rider requirement for a WWT race so that is most likely the reason for the exemption (UAE could still be handed a penalty though).

 

[RedheadDane]

I assume it's because they only have 3 fit riders in the area. Swinkels is apparently sick, but I don't know if that's also the case for Van Rooijen and Al Sayegh. According to the UCI rules they shouldn't be allowed to start with fewer than 4 riders, but they have probably been granted permission.

If they hadn't been allowed to start, the race wouldn't live up to the 90 rider requirement for a WWT race so that is most likely the reason for the exemption (UAE could still be handed a penalty though).

What would have happened if they'd put them all on the startlist, and then those who aren't actually fit had just DNSed,

 

[Samu Cuenca]

What would have happened if they'd put them all on the startlist, and then those who aren't actually fit had just DNSed,

I believe they would have had to start the race or at least be present at the sign in for the team to avoid punishment.