Elisa Longo Borghini wins Trofeo Alfredo Binda
Elisa Longo Borghini of Trek-Segafredo won Trofeo Alfredo Binda by attacking in the final 20 km. The Italian national champion, surrounded by Italian flags, finished a minute ahead of Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine Futuroscope) who crossed the line second and third from a small group of chasers.
How it happened
The first 100 km of racing was a constant fight to get away from the peloton. Alé BTC Ljubljana was particularly aggressive, with both Marlen Reusser and Marta Bastianelli on the attack.
As the race moved into the small laps two riders dangled off the front of the peloton. Tatiana Guderzo (Alé BTC Ljubljana) and Pauliena Rooijakkers (Liv Racing) clawed away from the peloton on the climb to Orino. With only 8 seconds advantage Marta Cavalli (FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine Futuroscope) jumped away from the peloton and joined Guderzo and Rooijakkers. Next Audrey Cordon-Ragot (Trek-Segafredo) made the bridge to the leaders, but as the break grew in numbers so did their threat.
The breakaway hit the descent to the finish line with only 7 seconds advantage while the teams who missed the move scrambled behind. Jumbo-Visma was especially keen to bring back the breakaway before the next lap began.
More riders jumped the shrinking gap between the leaders and the shrinking peloton and the race all came back together with 35 km to go.
Into the final two laps of the race, Anouska Koster jumped from a break of five to climb to Casalzuigno alone. When Koster was caught by the peloton with 28.2 km to Tiffany Cromwell (Canyon-SRAM) took advantage of a lull in the pace to attack.
Ruth Winder (Trek-Segafredo) brought the Australian back setting the stage for Tayler Wiles to make a move. When Wiles slowed Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-Sram) kicked, followed closely by Longo Borghini.
Longo Borghini threw the hammer down on the climb to Orino, putting pressure on a group of favourites who had separated from the remains of the peloton. Uttrup Ludwig, Vos, Soraya Paladin (Liv Racing) Mavi Garcia (Alé BTC Ljubljana), and Niewiadoma hit the top of the climb 5-seconds behind the Italian national champion.
Into the final lap of the race, Longo Borghini held a 15-second advantage over the chase of favourites. A large group chased 34-seconds behind the Italian national champion with 17 km to go.
With Marianne Vos, four-time winner of Trofeo Alfredo Binda, in the chasing group, the chase were looking at each other enough for Longo Borghini to slip farther away from the rest of the race.
As Longo Borghini crested the climb her advantage was just over a minute on the chasing group.
Under the Flamme Rouge, Longo Borghini had a minute 9 seconds on the chasers, even with Niewiadoma trying to get away from her companions on the run into the finish.
Longo Borghini had the time to shake her head and smile as she crossed the finish line with no chasers in sight. Into the final right-hander, the chasing group played the cat-and-mouse game, but no one could outsprint Vos on a finish she has perfected so many time. Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig crossed the line in third, for the third time in her career.
More to come.
The post Elisa Longo Borghini wins Trofeo Alfredo Binda appeared first on CyclingTips.