Guarischi wins RideLondon Grand Prix

It was a day for the sprinters at the RideLondon Grand Prix as Barbara Guarischi (Velocio-SRAM) stormed to the victory ahead of Ale Cipollini teammates Shelley Olds and Annalisa Cucinotta, and Annette Edmondson (Wiggle-Honda) was fourth.

Guarischi, who avoided a large crash that took down many riders at the start of the last lap, relied on a strong lead-out from her Velocio-SRAM teammates to orbit the final 1.3km circuit and keep her protected for the final sprint. She launched her sprint late, behind Olds and Bronzini, but managed to come around them at the finish line.

"Trixi [Worrack] brought me through on the last corner and we were out there a bit long. But we knew that, and we knew it was a long straight and also a head wind. So I stayed smart and used the side of the Ale Cipollini lead out. I still went a little early and at one moment I thought, oh no, but I'm here now, so there's no point to lose time, there's only one way and that is to win, boom!" Guarischi said.

Although it was not a UCI-sanctioned event, there were several world-class teams on the start line including Wiggle-Honda, Velocio-SRAM and Orica-AIS, all committed to making the women’s Grand Prix criterium a challenging one.

Several attacks set the scene for an aggressive race during the first few laps, however, Ale-Cipollini pulled back most of those moves, working for their American sprinter Olds.

A breakaway of three riders eventually gained some seconds on the field that included Amy Roberts (Wiggle Honda), Lydia Boylan (Team WNT) and Lucy Chittenden (Bonita Squadra Corse).

The three riders were brought back shortly after they had established a gap, and so too was an unsuccessful counter move from Wiggle Honda’s Emilia Fahlin. As soon as Fahlin was reabsorbed into the field Molly Weaver opened up a gap but she too was quickly reeled back in.

The most dangerous move of the day set off with four laps to go, eight kilometres, with Lisa Brennauer (Velocio-SRAM) and Annette Edmondson (Wiggle Honda). The pair gained a sizable lead as Ale Cipollini desperately chased to bring them back before the final sprint.

The Italian team successfully brought the pair back as the teams with fast sprinters set up for a bunch kick with under three laps to go. A new group formed that included Chittenden, Danielle King (Wiggle-Honda) and Lucy Martin (Matrix Pro Cycling). Ale Cipollini, again, brought the three escapees back into the mix.

Velocio-SRAM emerged as the dominant lead-out train on the bell lap, just as a crash in the middle of the field took down many riders. Wiggle-Honda and Ale Cipollini also had a strong presence at the front of the field with under one kilometre go.

Despite Ale Cipollini's huge effort to keep the field together, it was Guarischi who took the win, leaving Olds and Cucinotta for the remaining podium places, and Edmondson in fourth.

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