Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) used her trademark late-race attack to net a solo victory at the mid-week Dwars door Vlaanderen, in what is often referred to as the dress rehearsal for the Tour of Flanders.
The Italian Champion bridged across to a fading breakaway, and without even taking a breathe, launched herself off the front in what was a 30km solo effort into the finish line to take her 50th career win in Waregem.
"It was more like revenge for Milan-San Remo where they caught be with 150m to go," said Longo Borghini, who also made a late-race attack at the Milan-San Remo two weeks ago but was caught at the line, dreams of winning her home Monument shattered.
"I was very hungry for the victory here. I really wanted to prove that I was strong. There was some frustration in the last weeks, and I need to thank my trainer who is always keeping me calm. It is always nice to win with the tricolour and UAE jersey."
An unorganised chase group sprinted for the minor places on the podium won by world champion Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) for second place and Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) in third, narrowly holding off the next group behind.
Marlen Reusser of Movistar Team and Amber Kraak (FDJ-SUEZ) are joined in breakaway by Elisa Longo Borghini, and passed with 25km to race (Image credit: Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
How it unfolded
The women's peloton tackled a 128.5km route in and around Waregem for the mid-week Classics and a final test before the Tour of Flanders on Sunday. The ProSeries race saw the peloton compete across seven climbs and six cobblestone sectors on the edge of the Flemish Ardennes. The top of the last climb of the day, Nokere was positioned at 9.8 kilometres from the finish back in Waregem.
Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike) was noticeably absent from the start line due to illness, though she will still be racing at the Tour of Flanders on the weekend.
Several short-lived attacks came early in the race from Anna van Wersch (Lotto Ladies), and Yonna Van Dam (DD Group Pro Cycling), but all were brought back into the fold within the first 50km.
The first part of the race was also marred by several crashes, some who were forced to abandon included Hannah Kunz (UAE Team ADQ) and Martina Fidanza (Visma-Lease a Bike).
World Champion Lotte Kopecky at the start (Image credit: Luc Claessen/Getty Images))
As the race hit the halfway mark, accelerations came from World Champion Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) and Marlen Reusser (Movistar), causing a split in the field with a front group of about 20 riders, which stayed away for the rest of the race.
There was no rest in the front group as Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime) and Lianne Lippert (Movistar) continued over the Knokteberg. It was then that a small gap opened up for a four-rider breakaway; Reusser doing the lion's share of the pulling, along with Femke Gerritse (SD Worx-Protime), Lucinda Brand (Lidl-Trek), and Amber Kraak (FDJ-SUEZ).
The gap hovered at 20 seconds as Fenix-Dececunick managed a quick pace at the front of the field over the kilometre-long Mariaborrestraat and into the base of the Eikenberg inside 40km to go, but it wasn't enough to bring them back.
The leaders split apart over the Eikenberg with Brand and Gerritse dropping off the back. However, Reusser and Kraak pushed on with a slim eight seconds ahead of a determined group behind led by Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ).
Lucinda Brand of Lidl-Trek rides with Marlen Reusser of Movistar (Image credit: Luc Claessen/Getty Images)
A decisive chase group formed behind the leading pair with Longo Borghini, Gerritse, Elisa Balsamo, Ellen van Dijk and Anna Henderson (all Lidl-Trek), Elisa Chabbey (FDJ-SUEZ), Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) and Liane Lippert (Movistar) punching off the front.
But that move was shut down before reaching the Doorn cobbled sector and they rejoined the larger chase group behind that also included Kopecky and Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx-Protime), Pieterse, Christina Schweinberger and Millie Couzens (Fenix-Deceuninck), Maria Giulia Confalonieri and Marte Berg Edseth (Uno-X Mobility), Titia Ryo and Lotte Claes (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), Lucie Fityus (St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93) and Aurela Nerlo (Winspace Orange Seal).
Not content to sit tight in the group while a breakaway still lingered, Longo Borghini went again joined by Van Dijk and Niewiadoma in another attempt to bridge across to Reusser and Kraak.
Sensing her chase companions were fading, though, Longo Borghini left them behind and across the small gap alone, while Van Dijk and Niewiadoma were reabsorbed into the larger group behind.
Without even taking the chance to catch her breath, Longo Borghini attacked Reusser and Kraak, pushing on alone over the Huisepontweg cobble sector with 30km to go.
Reusser and Kraak initially separated behind Longo Borghini, but the pair reconnected over the first ascent of the Nokereberg and worked together 15 seconds behind the Italian.
Fully committed to her solo breakaway, Longo Borghini continued to set a quick pace as she approached the final roads toward Waregem, her gap opening to 25 seconds over the chasing duo and 30 seconds over the small field.
On the final ascent of the Nokereberg, Elisa Longo Borghini padded out her lead to 45 seconds, as Reusser and Kraak were brought back into the reduced group behind.
Sensing the race was about to be lost to Longo Borghini, Pieterse was the first to attack the group over the Nokereberg causing splits and taking with her Bredewold, Balsamo, Chabbey, and Niewiadoma, while Kopecky appeared to struggle to hold the pace.
The increased speed cut Longo Broghini's gap nearly in half to 20 seconds inside the final 6km of racing, but it was not enough to bring her back.
Niewiadoma tried to catch the chase group off-guard with her own attack, but she was quickly reeled back in, as the group succumbed to a game of cat-and-mouse. It allowed Longo Borghini's gap to flourish to more than two minutes by the time she crossed the line with the win.
Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews, overseeing the global racing content plan.
Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.
She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
'I’m not exactly sure what caused it. The legs just weren’t there' says SD Worx Protime rider after falling out of favourites group but then fighting back
When the American moved to Visma-Lease a Bike, he knew the superteam's big budget would accelerate his development, yet he didn't plan on having to re-learn how to pedal
