May 11/14 10:33 am - The Women's Tour: Stage 5 results and final GC

Posted by Editoress on 05/11/14
 

Marianne Vos takes Friends Life Women's Tour overall victory
Marianne Vos cemented victory in the inaugural Friends Life Women's Tour by taking her third consecutive stage victory in Bury St Edmunds, out sprinting Giorgia Bronzini and Amy Pieters on Angel Hill.

The ensuing time bonuses ensured Vos finished 30 seconds clear of stage winners Emma Johansson and Rossella Ratto in second and third places, with the latter also claiming the Matrix Fitness Best Young Rider jersey for the highest placed Under-23 rider.

Italian duo Bronzini and Susanna Zorzi, who claimed the week's overall combativity award, were fourth and fifth overall, with Pieters just edging Lucy Garner and Hannah Barnes in sixth, seventh and eighth places.

Garner also took the Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research Best British Rider jersey, inheriting it on Sunday morning in Harwich after Lizzie Armitstead withdrew through illness and then defending it from Barnes in the final sprint, despite clipping the barriers in the final corners.

For the second day running Lotto Belisol Ladies' Emma Pooley was in the thick of the action, winning the Combativity Award for her constant attacking on the 108.3 kilometre stage through Tendring and Suffolk.

Loes Gunnewijk, Lauren Hall and Lisa Brennauer joined Pooley, but with no Rabo Liv rider in the font group they were brought back, setting up the final sprint finish of the week into Bury St Edmunds' Angel Hill, where packed crowds awaited.

For the third day running it was Vos who powered clear, our sprinting Bronzini, with Pieters and Barnes in close attendance behind.

Vos' consistent run of top three finishes and bonus points saw her claim the YodelDirect Points jersey, while Sharon Laws and Jolanda Neff's week long battle for the Strava Queen of the Mountains jersey ended in favour of the British rider, three points ahead of her Swiss counterpart.

Women's Tour press release

Team Crowned Best Overall at Inaugural Women's Tour
Optum Pro Cycling presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies closed out England's inaugural Women's Tour in style on Sunday, winning the overall team classification prize. The 5-woman squad successfully defended a one minute and four second lead on team standings they had gained one day earlier. The defense came on the fifth and final day of racing, a 67 mile trip from Harwich to Burt St. Edmunds.

"We knew we had to work as a unit and stay near the front of the race in what figured would be a chaotic finish in Bury St. Edmunds if we hoped to win best team, and the women executed perfectly," said Performance Director Kevin Field. "I have been impressed by the depth and cohesiveness of our team all season long, and they showed that to the world today at a very historic event."

The team celebrated in a pristine closing ceremony in Bury St. Edmunds, signed autographs (and Union Jacks), and posing for photos as they made their way through the massive crowds. It was an excellently produced week of racing at England's first ever women's UCI ranked stage race, sponsored by Friend's Life. It was a shining example of the popularity and viability of women's racing on an international scale, with nightly primetime television coverage and millions of spectators on the five beautiful race courses in southeast England.

"I overheard a rider say that this was bigger than the Olympics," said Lauren Hall, who claimed two top ten finishes in the race. "I feel like the race was really bringing in the communities and engaging with fans, especially all of the young girls we met on the tour who look up to us. It's was great opportunity to represent Optum internationally - I actually heard people yelling "Optum" from the side of the road!"

The day of racing also saw Hall launch into a dangerous four-woman breakaway that looked like it could make it to the finish line. An unfortunate flat for Emma Poole (Lotto-Belisol) caused her to drop out the break, perhaps taking away the horsepower it needed to make it to the finish line alone. Reabsorbed with 10 kilometres to go, the stage was set for another field sprint, won for the third time by world champion Marianne Vos.
Optum Pro Cycling presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies press release

Results from the fifth and final stage in the UK

Previous Stages
Stage 1 
Stage 2 
Stage 3

Stage 4