For the elite women’s peloton, the Spring Classics ended on Sunday with a soggy day at Liege-Bastogne-Liege. After a string of three runner-up finishes, world time trial champion Annemiek van Vleuten finally got back on the top step of the podium with an emphatic solo win.
The gallery you see below comes courtesy of Rhode Van Elsen who was at the race shooting for Kristof Ramon.
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- Riders shelter from the elements as they prepare for the race ahead.
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- The ever-smiley Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig wasn’t put off by the miserable conditions.
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- Team presentation wouldn’t be Annemiek van Vleuten’s only visit to the podium …
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- It was the third edition of the women’s Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
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- Being from Yorkshire, Lizzie Deignan is well used to rubbish weather.
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- Israeli champ Omer Shapira has had a handful of top-five finishes so far this year.
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- Wet floors.
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- Kasia Niewiadoma has had another great start to the year. She’s done nine races so far — all of them one-dayers — and finished top 10 in all but two. She won Amstel Gold Race with a stellar late attack.
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- Liege-Bastogne-Liege is one of the only big races Marianne Vos hasn’t won.
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- Jolanda Neff (Trek-Segafredo) leads the bunch up the Côte de Brume.
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- It wasn’t Anna van der Breggen’s day. After winning Fleche Wallonne the world champion had to settle for 12th on Sunday.
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- Lizzie Deignan was a promising seventh in just her third race back.
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- Van Vleuten made her move on the Cote de la Redoute with a little over 30km to go.
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- Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek Segafredo) and van der Breggen tried to follow but couldn’t get on terms.
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- Van Vleuten crosses the line solo to win by more than 90 seconds.
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- It’s her second win for the year, after Strade Bianche.
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- Van Vleuten’s done seven races for the year, all of them one-dayers. Her results: fourth, first, seventh, second, second, second, first.
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- The Dutchwoman has wrapped up her Spring Classics campaign in great fashion. She will now turn her attention to races like the Tour of Yorkshire, which starts this weekend.
Please excuse the interruption…
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