It was a strong showing from the entire Lidl-Trek team after a hectic finale in Ravenna
The first stage of the Giro d’Italia Women saw a fast and frantic bunch sprint to Ravenna. Under Saturday’s blazing sunshine on the Adriatic coast, the women’s WorldTour peloton kicked off nine days of racing with a flat route which included four laps of a technical finishing circuit. A small breakaway established itself in the early part of the day, but they were never given a gap of more than one minute, kept on a tight leash by the hungry sprinters’ teams who wanted a chance to fight for the first pink jersey.
The break was reeled in as the bunch hit the final three laps, and then it was time for the leadout trains to form. Lidl-Trek’s sprinter, Elisa Balsamo, was kept well-positioned by her teammates throughout, despite chaos in the peloton. The likes of Fleur Moors and Lucinda Brand ensured that the Italian rider came under the flamme rouge exactly where she wanted to be in the first five positions of the bunch, then it was time for Balsamo to surf wheels and pick her moment to sprint.
She opened up her ferocious kick while following the wheel of Lorena Wiebes, who eventually went on to win the stage. Although Balsamo could not quite make it past her long-time sprint rival, second place was a strong result after an impressive collective team performance. There are still plenty more stage wins to fight for and the team will take confidence from the opening day as we head into the next week. Our GC leaders, Niamh Fisher-Black and Isabella Holmgren, made it through the stage safely without losing any time.
Photo: Anouk Flesch
In Elisa's words
At the beginning it was quite an easy stage, but then when we entered the final circuit, it was a big fight for every corner. I think my team did an amazing job. I really want to say thank you. Also, in the last kilometres, they did an amazing job and I was in the perfect place for the sprint. Lorena was stronger, but I think I did my best.
I think we need to keep our confidence high, because every day is a new day, and we are a good team, so we have to keep fighting.
