Another close finish for the Lidl-Trek women's team in Belgian as Shirin van Anrooij goes head-to-head with Marianne Vos in a two-up sprint to the line.
Lidl-Trek have been praised for their teamwork multiple times this Classics season already and Dwars door Vlaanderen was another race where the spirit of the group shone through the Belgian grey skies.
The Team started the day with a plan: to race together and to make the race hard. They did just that and after the race resumed following a 20-minute neutralised period, it didn’t take the Team long to get back into the thick of the action.
With 15-kilometers to go, van Anrooij and Elisa Longo Borghini were part of a six-rider group of race favorites and it was clear that they would be fighting it out for the victory.
Blink and you’ll miss the front 6-rider group with @x_shirin & @ElisaLongoB
They have a 35-second gap over the next group with @Brodie_Mai @lucinda_brand & @lizziedeignan #DDV24 #DDVwomen pic.twitter.com/AjwuoMK569
— Lidl-Trek (@LidlTrek) March 27, 2024
The two Lidl-Trek riders didn’t want the full group to head onto the finish straight together and kept the pace high and attacks going and, in the end, with five kilometers to go, van Anrooij and Vos (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) were going head to head to the finish.
The 22-year-old Dutch rider for Lidl-Trek held her nerve over tense final kilometers but, in the end, Vos’ powerful sprint proved half a bike length too much with van Anrooij having to settle for second place – although still a strong result – on the line.
Lidl-Trek ended the day with three riders in the top ten with Longo Borghini coming home sixth and Lucinda Brand ninth from the second chase group on the road.
3️⃣ in the top 🔟 at #DDV24 #DDVwomen 💪 pic.twitter.com/BBd9zTrC6B
— Lidl-Trek (@LidlTrek) March 27, 2024
Shirin's reaction
“It was a stressful and chaotic day. We just tried to make it a race really hard after 30 kilometers but then, of course, the race was neutralized because of a car accident. After that we stuck to our plan to be aggressive and to go full gas from the next cobbled sector. It was a successful plan and we managed to make a good gap and, in the end, I tried to play the game against Marianne, but she was just the strongest in the sprint.
We already had the plan to race aggressively before the race, but then during the neutralization, Ina and Lucinda suggested to be even more aggressive as soon as the race resumed, and go for the attack again. When me and Elisa were up front we knew we had to try to go away, because neither of us were going to win the the sprint against those six riders.
Of course, this isn’t a victory but it feels a bit like one to me. It’s my first big podium in a Belgian race, I was there and I was able to play the game, not get too stressed and just sit on which I normally would never do because I always just want to race. I think again it was just a perfect race with the Team. We all raced together and it was just really cool to be up there. I did a good sprint but it was just not enough.
I wasn’t that confident coming into this race after Gent-Wevelgem, I did not feel the way I wanted to feel but then today, was just proof, even if just to myself, that the shape is there and that I need to believe it. Together with Elisa, we’ve been in a lot of finals now and I think we will be there in Flanders again and I hope we can play the game together with the entire team.”
Dwars door Vlaanderen photo gallery
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Marianne Vos of The Netherlands and Team Visma-Lease a Bike, Puck Pieterse of The Netherlands and Team Fenix-Deceuninck, Lotte Kopecky of Belgium, Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy and Team Lidl - Trek compete in the breakaway during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Marianne Vos of The Netherlands and Team Visma-Lease a Bike and Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek attack in the breakaway during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek and Marianne Vos of The Netherlands and Team Visma-Lease a Bike attack in the breakaway during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Marianne Vos of The Netherlands and Team Visma-Lease a Bike and Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek attack in the breakaway during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek attacks in the breakaway during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek on second place poses on the podium ceremony after the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek on second place, race winner Marianne Vos of The Netherlands and Team Visma-Lease a Bike and Letizia Paternoster of Italy and Team Liv-AlUla Jayco on third place pose for a photograph on the podium ceremony after the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek celebrates at podium as second place winner during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Brodie Chapman of Australia, Lucinda Brand of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek and Sofia Bertizzolo of Italy and UAE Team ADQ lead the peloton during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Ellen van Dijk of The Netherlands and Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy and Team Lidl - Trek compete passing through a Varentstraat cobblestones sector during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: Brodie Chapman of Australia and Team Lidl - Trek competes during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Elizabeth Deignan of Great Britain and Team Lidl - Trek and Audrey Cordon-Ragot of France and Team Human Powered Health compete during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Brodie Chapman of Australia and Team Lidl - Trek, Ruth Edwards of The United States and Team Human Powered Health and Elizabeth Deignan of Great Britain and Team Lidl - Trek lead the peloton during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy, Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands, Ellen van Dijk of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek, Demi Vollering of The Netherlands, Mischa Bredewold of The Netherlands, Lotte Kopecky of Belgium and Team SD Worx - Protime, Grace Brown of Australia and Team FDJ - SUEZ compete during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Demi Vollering of The Netherlands and Team SD Worx - Protime, Elizabeth Deignan of Great Britain and Team Lidl - Trek, Elisa Longo Borghini of Italy and Team Lidl - Trek, Nina Buljsman of The Netherlands and Team FDJ - SUEZ and Lucinda Brand of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek compete passing through a Berg Ten Houte cobblestones sector during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: Lucinda Brand of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek competes during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: Lucinda Brand of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek and the women's peloton is stopped due to a two-car accident after the men's race, there will be no climb of the Knokteberg - Trieu during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek, Lea Teutenberg of Germany and CERATIZIT-WNT Pro Cycling Team, Yara Kastelijn of The Netherlands and Puck Pieterse of The Netherlands and Team Fenix-Deceuninck compete during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
WAREGEM, BELGIUM - MARCH 27: (L-R) Lucinda Brand of The Netherlands and Team Lidl - Trek, Marianne Vos of The Netherlands and Team Visma-Lease a Bike, Mischa Bredewold of The Netherlands and Team SD Worx - Protime, Shirin van Anrooij of The Netherlands and Elizabeth Deignan of Great Britain and Team Lidl - Trek compete during the 12nd Dwars door Vlaanderen 2024, Women's Elite a 129.9km one day race from Waregem to Waregem on March 27, 2024 in Waregem, Belgium. (Photo by Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
