Lorena Wiebes got Team SD Worx off to a banging start at the Tour of Scandinavia. The European champion unleashed her devils in the final straight, just managing to catch the escaped Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig on the line. With that great performance, Wiebes celebrated her return to competition with her tenth win of the season.
“I wasn’t sure if we would get back in time,” she admitted after her victory, “but I always sprint in full anyway I am very happy to get back on track with a win. This gives me confirmation that I have recovered after my illnesses.”
Three years after her last participation, Lorena Wiebes started the Tour of Scandinavia in exactly the same way as before, by triumphing in the very first stage. “The team played a key role for me. The descent towards the local lap would be decisive. I remembered from my previous participation in 2019 that it is a really fast and tricky descent where positioning is very important. There, we used up almost the entire team. We kept Niamh behind to control the attacks on the climbs. Great work by Team SD Worx!”
“After the first climb, it was quite hectic. Everyone was on the limit and Liane Lippert was in front with Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig. A reduced peloton grabbed them by the scruff of the neck, but then Cecilie attacked again. She held on for a long time, but luckily for me the timing was right.”
“To be honest, I was not fully confident that we would still make it in time. But I always launch my sprint fully and then I see what the result is. I am happy that I was able to sprint back. For me too, it was a question mark how my legs would be after the illness. But today I got the confirmation: they are good. I hope there will still be sprint opportunities. Tomorrow is not for me, but the third and fifth stages might end in a sprint.”
