After more than a month without races, Lorena Wiebes immediately showed her class as a sprint star in La Vuelta a Burgos. The European champion made her first appearance since the Amstel Gold Race and in a windy stage, there was no limit to her sprinting prowess as she took the victory in the opening stage. In doing so, Wiebes also secured the first leader’s jersey of the Tour. “Nice to already have a stage in my pocket. I hope to be able to strike again,” said Wiebes, immediately looking ahead.
In this first stage of the Vuelta a Burgos, the wind played a dominant part. All day, it was important to stay attentive at the front in order not to miss a potential echelon. There was a headwind in the last ten kilometres, which made it difficult for the breakaway to stay away. As a result, the race culminated in a sprint finish. Elisa Balsamo started early, but there was no limit to Lorena Wiebes. The Dutch rider sprinted convincingly to victory.
Wiebes had a rest period after the Amstel Gold Race, after which she quietly picked up her training again. The Vuelta a Burgos is her first race after 32 days without a race number. Wiebes said, “It was a difficult stage. There was a lot of headwind. It was also very fast on the last climb of the day. But my squad Team SD Worx had it well under control. I was able to get ready for a sprint. There was chaos in the finale, so our lead-out did not go as planned. But I was able to get a good position and ride my own sprint from there.”
Thinking of the GC lead and the first leader’s jersey, Wiebes added, “A tricky uphill finish awaits tomorrow, where we want to go for the stage win again with the team. In addition, we don’t want to lose any time with Demi Vollering, because in the fourth stage the general classification will be determined. This leader’s jersey is nice, but it’s more about stage wins with me anyway.”
