Lepistӧ wins the final stage of the Aviva Women’s Tour 2016 as Armitstead wins the overall leaders yellow jersey in the third edition of the Women’s Tour.
Lizzie Armitstead rides comfortably into Kettering and claims the third yellow jersey title of the Women’s Tour.
With everything still to play for at the beginning of stage five of the Aviva Women’s Tour in Northampton, five girls were within striking distance of a podium finish in this years edition of the Tour.
Marianne Vos had closed the gap to fourth on Armitstead by twelve seconds the day before and confirmed she was her biggest rival starting the final day, fifteen seconds down.
Ashleigh Moolman Pasio was only eight seconds behind in second place and Elisa Longo Borghini third at ten seconds. The final closest rival came from Amanda Spratt at seventeen seconds.
The race got underway in perfect conditions and the main objective of the day for Armitstead was to defend her slender advantage. Bugbrooke provided the first opportunity for her rivals to reclaim valuable seconds, and after only eight-point-five kilometers of racing, saw an active and fast peloton approach the Chain Reaction Points sprint.
Wiggle High5’s Dani King tried to get on front of a steaming Boels Dolman’s Express but a perfect lead-out from Chantal Blaak saw Armitstead cross the line first in a pinnacle point of the day.
Blaak second, with Wiggle High5’s Jolien D’Hoore third. Vos missed out on any bonus seconds, Armitstead extends her lead by three.
The first break of the day went around twenty-five kilometers into the stage. Orica GreenEdge’s Taylor Wiles drifted into the right-hand gutter, falling off into a ditch causing a minor ripple in the peloton. But this was enough to see eight girls go off the front.
Elena Ceccini, Molly Weaver, Loren Rowney, Marta Batinnelli, Eugenia Bujak, Lotto Lepistӧ, Janneke Ensing and Lauren Kitchen.
Bujak lead the group across the first Strava Queen of the Mountain’s at Newham Hill after thirty-point-six kilometers of race were covered. The lead group dropped to seven as Loren Rowney slipped off the back and the gap back to the peloton now around a minute-and-a-half.
The first jersey in this years Women’s Tour had now been sealed, United Healthcare Pro Women’s Team’s Katie Hall lead through most of the race.
The seven lead riders extended their gap on the run into the second Strava Queen of the Mountain’s climb at Neasby after fifty-nine-point-one kilometers. Molly Weaver was the virtual race leader on the road and race by around three-minutes.
Bujak took maximum points once again as the lead extended to four-minutes-and-thirty-seven-seconds.
The peloton began to claw back the deficit on the run into the final Chain Reaction Points sprint into Desborough. Only twenty kilometers remaining, the gap had dropped to under a minute and Armitstead was back in the leaders jersey.
Lepistӧ lead the group across the line as Rabo Liv began the final chase into Kettering.
Staying away for most of the day, Finnish girl Lotta Lepistӧ took the stage victory on a technical final kilometer that ramped-up towards the line ahead of Bastianelli and Checchini.
Canadian Leah Kirchmann lead the bunch sprint a further fifteen seconds back, and all the main contenders were safely in there too.
Stage 5 Top Twenty
1 81 LEPISTÖ Lotta 00″ CBT FIN B:13″
2 31 BASTIANELLI Marta ‘ ‘ ALE ITA B:08″
3 4 CECCHINI Elena ‘ ‘ LPR ITA B:04″
4 154 KITCHEN Lauren ‘ ‘ HPU AUS
5 111 BUJAK Eugenia ‘ ‘ BTC POL
6 41 *WEAVER Molly ‘ ‘ TLP GBR B:01″
7 102 ENSING Janneke 11″ PHV NED
8 42 KIRCHMANN Leah 15″ TLP CAN
9 12 D’HOORE Jolien ‘ ‘ WHT BEL B:01″
10 91 VOS Marianne ‘ ‘ RBW NED
11 16 PIETERS Amy ‘ ‘ WHT NED
12 131 *BARNES Alice ‘ ‘ DRP GBR
13 123 *GUTIERREZ RUIZ Sheyla ‘ ‘ CPC ESP
14 21 ARMITSTEAD Elizabeth ‘ ‘ DLT GBR B:03″
15 106 *BUURMAN Eva ‘ ‘ PHV NED
16 33 FAHLIN Emilia ‘ ‘ ALE SWE
17 43 *MACKAIJ Floortje ‘ ‘ TLP NED
18 36 TREVISI Anna ‘ ‘ ALE ITA
19 83 MOOLMAN-PASIO Ashleigh ‘ ‘ CBT RSA
20 116 RADOTIC Mia ‘ ‘ BTC CRO
Catch-up with the stage five winner talking to the media on CyclingShorts here
General Classification Top Twenty
1 21 ARMITSTEAD Elizabeth 00″ DLT GBR 16h00’39”
2 83 MOOLMAN-PASIO Ashleigh 11″ CBT RSA 16h00’50”
3 15 LONGO BORGHINI Elisa 13″ WHT ITA 16h00’52”
4 91 VOS Marianne 18″ RBW NED 16h00’57”
5 71 SPRATT Amanda 20″ OGE AUS 16h00’59”
6 42 KIRCHMANN Leah 40″ TLP CAN 16h01’19”
7 16 PIETERS Amy 43″ WHT NED 16h01’22”
8 11 JOHANSSON Emma 49″ WHT SWE 16h01’28”
9 72 ELVIN Gracie 50″ OGE AUS 16h01’29”
10 43 *MACKAIJ Floortje 53″ TLP NED 16h01’32”
11 14 KING Danielle ‘ ‘ WHT GBR ‘ ‘
12 34 JASINSKA Malgorzata ‘ ‘ ALE POL ‘ ‘
13 24 VAN DIJK Ellen ‘ ‘ DLT NED ‘ ‘
14 25 HARRIS Nikki ‘ ‘ DLT GBR ‘ ‘
15 13 BRONZINI Giorgia 01’00” WHT ITA 16h01’39”
16 5 CROMWELL Tiffany 01’13” LPR AUS 16h01’52”
17 41 *WEAVER Molly 01’28” TLP GBR 16h02’07”
18 23 *DIDERIKSEN Amalie 01’52” DLT DEN 16h02’31”
19 2 AMIALIUSIK Alena 02’00” LPR BLR 16h02’39”
20 22 BLAAK Chantal 02’40” DLT NED 16h03’19”
Roll of Honor after Stage 5
General classification Aviva
1st: 21 ARMITSTEAD Elizabeth Boels Dolmans Cyclingteam GBR
2nd: 83 MOOLMAN-PASIO Ashleigh Cervelo Bigla Pro Cycling Team RSA
3rd: 15 LONGO BORGHINI Elisa Wiggle High5 ITA
Points Chain Reaction Cycles
91 VOS Marianne Raboliv Womencyclingteam NED
Queen of the mountain Strava
53 HALL Katharine Unitedhealthcare Pro Women Team USA
Best British Adnams
21 ARMITSTEAD Elizabeth Boels Dolmans Cyclingteam GBR
Best young Stoke-onTrent European City of Sports
43 MACKAIJ Floortje Team Liv – Plantur NED
Best Team Aviva
Wiggle High
Stage 5 Combativity
111 BUJAK Euginia BTC City Ljubljana POL
Overall Combativity
33 FAHLIN Emilia Ale Cipollini SWE
