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July 26/15 10:56 am - La Course Tour de France


Posted by Editoress on 07/26/15
 

Anna van der Breggen victorious in rain-soaked finish

As in 2014, a Dutch rider won La Course by Le Tour, with Anna van der Breggen succeeding her compatriot and Rabo-Liv teammate Marianne Vos on the Champs-Élysées. A prestigious win for the rider who claimed La Flèche Wallonne Féminine in April.

Winning solo on the most beautiful avenue in the world is a privilege reserved for the gutsiest riders in the Tour de France. On Sunday, July 26, Anna van der Breggen (Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team) showed it can also be done in the second edition of La Course by Le Tour. The Dutch rider launched the decisive attack under driving rain with 6 km to go, shortly after the start of the 13th and final lap of the Parisian circuit (for a total of 89 km).

Foiling the bunch on the Champs-Élysées takes a special kind of performance, considering how eager sprinters are to pounce on this type of finishes. It rained hard almost all day long, making the road and cobblestones slippery and putting a damper on the peloton's aggression. The first breakaway did not come until the seventh lap, when Aussie Gracie Elvin went on a solo adventure. The Orica–AIS rider spent just over a lap out front, but she was caught after enjoying a maximum buffer of 20 seconds over the front of the peloton. Her teammate and fellow countrywoman Lizzie Williams seized the chance to attack, but that did not stick either.

Meanwhile, a war of attrition was in full swing in the peloton. With even the slightest sudden touch of the brakes and the shallowest curves turned into danger zones, riders were falling all over the place. The first mass tumble took place during the second lap and eliminated three riders from the race. Further falls punctuated the race, including one that took down favourite Pauline Ferrand-Prévot just before the flamme rouge. Last year's jinx continued for the world champion, who saw her hopes dashed by a fall in the same place as last year.

However, the French rider was able to draw some comfort from the fact that it was teammate Anna van der Breggen who was leading the race. The Dutch cyclist, who had shot out of the bunch with 6 km to go, built up a lead of up to 13 seconds, just enough to hold off the charge of a soaked but roaring peloton driven by the sprinters' teams.

It was on the finish line that Anna van der Breggen realised she had it in the bag. She raised her arms at the end of her effort and savoured a prestigious victory with one second to spare on a peloton spearheaded by Belgium's Jolien D'Hoore (Wiggle Honda Pro Cycling) in second place and the Netherlands' Amy Pieters (Team Liv-Plantur) in third. 25-year-old Anna van der Breggen claimed one of the most beautiful victories in her career to go with this year's La Flèche Wallonne and Giro d'Italia. Her triumph was dedicated to 2014 champion Marianne Vos, who had to sit out this year's edition due to injury.

The horrible weather did little to stop the second edition of La Course by Le Tour from showing once again just how spectacular ladies' cycling can be.
ASO press release

 

Results from the 2nd edition of La Course by Le Tour de France

Paris/Champs-Élysées Circuit, 89 km
1 Anna van der Breggen (Ned) Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team 2:05:01
2 Jolien D'Hoore (Bel) Wiggle Honda at 0:01
3 Amy Pieters (Ned) Team Liv - Plantur
4 Elizabeth Armitstead (GBr) Boels Dolmans Cycling Team
5 Lotta Lepistö (Fin) Bigla Pro Cycling Team
6 Lisa Brennauer (Ger) Velocio - SRAM
7 Emma Johansson (Swe) Orica - AIS
8 Lucinda Brand (Ned) Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team
9 Kirsten Wild (Ned) Hitec Products
10 Christine Majerus (Lux) Boels Dolmans Cycling Team
11 Roxane Fournier (Fra) Poitou-Charentes.Futuroscope.86 all s.t.
12 Sara Mustonen (Swe) Team Liv - Plantur 0:05
13 Chloe Hosking (Aus) Wiggle Honda
14 Joëlle Numainville (Can) Bigla Pro Cycling Team
15 Carmen Small (USA) Bigla Pro Cycling Team
16 Pascale Jeuland (Fra) Poitou-Charentes.Futuroscope.86
17 Tiffany Cromwell (Aus) Velocio - SRAM all s.t.
18 Annette Edmondson (Aus) Wiggle Honda 0:08
19 Giorgia Bronzini (Ita) Wiggle Honda
20 Mia Radotic (Cro) BTC City Ljubljana
21 Eugenia Bujak (Pol) BTC City Ljubljana
22 Moniek Tenniglo (Ned) Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team
23 Christina Siggaard (Den) Matrix Fitness
24 Coryn Rivera (USA) Unitedhealthcare
25 Kelly Druyts (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Pro-Duo all s.t.
26 Maria Giulia Confalonieri (Ita) Ale Cipollini 0:16
27 Floortje Mackaij (Ned) Team Liv - Plantur 0:20
28 Trixi Worrack (Ger) Velocio - SRAM
29 Barbara Guarischi (Ita) Velocio - SRAM both s.t.
30 Fanny Riberot (Fra) France 0:31
31 Iris Sachet (Fra) France
32 Amy Cure (Aus) Lotto Soudal Ladies
33 Lotte Kopecky (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Pro-Duo
34 Coralie Demay (Fra) France all s.t.
35 Gracie Elvin (Aus) Orica - AIS 0:42
36 Amanda Spratt (Aus) Orica - AIS s.t.
37 Véra Koedooder (Ned) Bigla Pro Cycling Team 0:46
38 Anouska Koster (Ned) Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team s.t.
39 Helen Wyman (GBr) Matrix Fitness 0:48
40 Mathilde Favre (Fra) France 0:51
41 Daiva Tuslaite (Ltu) Inpa Sottoli Giusfredi 0:54
42 Nina Kessler (Ned) Lensworld.eu - Zannata 0:56
43 Lucy Martin (GBr) Matrix Fitness
44 Rushlee Buchanan (NZl) Unitedhealthcare
45 Loren Rowney (Aus) Velocio - SRAM
46 Melissa Hoskins (Aus) Orica - AIS
47 Chantal Blaak (Ned) Boels Dolmans Cycling Team
48 Romy Kasper (Ger) Boels Dolmans Cycling Team
49 Lizzie Williams (Aus) Orica - AIS all s.t.
50 Katharine Hall (USA) Unitedhealthcare 1:14
51 Charlotte Becker (Ger) Hitec Products 1:15
52 Emilie Moberg (Nor) Hitec Products 1:16
53 Julia Soek (Ned) Team Liv - Plantur 1:20
54 Kelly Van Den Steen (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Pro-Duo 1:34
55 Anna Stricker (Ita) Inpa Sottoli Giusfredi 1:58
56 Thalita De Jong (Ned) Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team 2:24
57 Hannah Barnes (GBr) Unitedhealthcare
58 Pauline Ferrand Prevot (Fra) Rabo Liv Women Cycling Team both s.t.
59 Leah Kirchmann (Can) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Stategies 2:37
60 Emilie Aubry (Sui) Bigla Pro Cycling Team 3:55
61 Polona Batagelj (Slo) BTC City Ljubljana s.t.
62 Miriam Bjørnsrud (Nor) Hitec Products 3:56
DNF Lauren Kitchen (Aus) Hitec Products
DNF Thea Thorsen (Nor) Hitec Products
DNF Annie Ewart (Can) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Stategies
DNF Ariane Horbach (Ger) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Stategies
DNF Maura Kinsella (USA) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Stategies
DNF Alison Tetrick (USA) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Stategies
DNF Brianna Walle (USA) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Stategies
DNS Megan Guarnier (USA) Boels Dolmans Cycling Team
DNF Eleonora Van Dijk (Ned) Boels Dolmans Cycling Team
DNF Tayler Wiles (USA) Velocio - SRAM
DNF Emilia Fahlin (Swe) Wiggle Honda
DNF Amy Roberts (GBr) Wiggle Honda
DNF Chloe McConville (Aus) Orica - AIS
DNF Iris Slappendel (Ned) Bigla Pro Cycling Team
DNF Lucy Garner (GBr) Team Liv - Plantur
DNF Claudia Lichtenberg (Ger) Team Liv - Plantur
DNF Cari Higgins (ISA) Unitedhealthcare
DNF Alexis Ryan (USA) Unitedhealthcare
DNF Aude Biannic (Fra) Poitou-Charentes.Futuroscope.86
DNF Charlotte Bravard (Fra) Poitou-Charentes.Futuroscope.86
DNF Severine Eraud (Fra) Poitou-Charentes.Futuroscope.86
DNF Amélie Rivat (Fra) Poitou-Charentes.Futuroscope.86
DNF Elena Cecchini (Ita) Lotto Soudal Ladies
DNF Isabelle Beckers (Bel) Lotto Soudal Ladies
DNF Jessie Daams (Bel) Lotto Soudal Ladies
DNF Carlee Taylor (Aus) Lotto Soudal Ladies
DNF Susanna Zorzi (Ita) Lotto Soudal Ladies
DNF Fiona Dutriaux (Fra) France
DNF Soline Lamboley (Fra) France
DNF Shelley Olds (USA) Ale Cipollini
DNF Annalisa Cucinotta (Ita) Ale Cipollini
DNF Arianna Fidanza (Ita) Ale Cipollini
DNF Malgorzata Jasinska (Pol) Ale Cipollini
DNF Marta Tagliaferro (Ita) Ale Cipollini
DNF Nel De Crits (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Pro-Duo
DNF Demmy Druyts (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Pro-Duo
DNF Ann-Sofie Duyck (Bel) Topsport Vlaanderen-Pro-Duo
DNF Claudia Cretti (Ita) Inpa Sottoli Giusfredi
DNF Alice Arzuffi (Ita) Inpa Sottoli Giusfredi
DNF Tatyana Riabchenko (Ukr) Inpa Sottoli Giusfredi
DNF Anna Trevisi (Ita) Inpa Sottoli Giusfredi
DNF Kim De Baat (Bel) Lensworld.eu - Zannata
DNF Mariel Borgerink (Ned) Lensworld.eu - Zannata
DNF Sofie De Vuyst (Bel) Lensworld.eu - Zannata
DNF Annelies Dom (Bel) Lensworld.eu - Zannata
DNF Kaat Van Der Meulen (Bel) Lensworld.eu - Zannata
DNF Olena Pavlukhina (Aze) BTC City Ljubljana
DNF Ursa Pintar (Slo) BTC City Ljubljana
DNF Martina Ritter (Aut) BTC City Ljubljana
DNF Heather Fischer (USA) Matrix Fitness
DNF Kimberley Le Court De Billot (Mri) Matrix Fitness
DNF Melissa Lowther (GBr) Matrix Fitness
DNF Anna Ramirez (Esp) Bizkaia-Durango
DNF Olga Dobrynina (Rus) Bizkaia-Durango
DNF Dorleta Eskamendi Gil (Esp) Bizkaia-Durango
DNF Lierni Lekuona Etxebeste (Esp) Bizkaia-Durango
DNF Ainara Sanz (Esp) Bizkaia-Durango
DNF Elena Utrobina (Rus) Bizkaia-Durango


 


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