Armitstead wins women's Ghent-Wevelgem

armitstead, ghent wevelgem, 2012

British road race national champion Lizzie Armitstead soloed to win the inaugural edition of the women's Ghent-Wevelgem in Belgium on Sunday.

Armitstead (AA Drink-Leontien.nl) broke free of the bunch on the second of four of the 113.7km race's climbs. Liesbeth De Vocht (Rabobank) was the only rider to try and jump to Armitstead's wheel, but couldn't keep pace and dropped back.

Armitstead then slipped into time trial mode to distance the chasers further. A group of five formed behind, but with two of Armitstead's AA Drink team-mates - Jessie Daams and Kirsten Wild - in attendance their chasing efforts were curtailed.

The Yorkshire woman soloed for 25 kilometres to reach Wevelgem and take the victory.

"It was a nice tactic, we have Kirsten Wild as a sprinter in the group, so I go on the climb to see what happens and we always have Kirsten for the sprint," Armitstead said at the finish.

It's Armitstead's second big win of 2012 after she won Omloop van het Hageland at the beginning of March. This latest win has particular resonance as it featured a similar course to the Olympic games road race this July - Armitstead's big target for the season.

In Italy on Sunday, Marianne Vos (Rabobank) won the Trofeo Alfredo Binda, second round of the 2012 UCI Women's World Cup.

Result

Women's Ghent-Wevelgem 2012, 113.7km

1. Lizzie Armitstead (GBr) AA Drink-Leontien.nl

2. Iris Slappendel (Ned) Rabobank Women Team

3. Jessie Daams (Bel) AA Drink-Leontien.nl

4. Lise Nøstvold (Nor) Hitec Products-Mistral Home

5. Kirsten Wild (Ned) AA Drink-Leontien.nl

Related links

British professional road wins 2012

Armitstead wins Omloop van het Hageland

Lizzie Armitstead: Rider Profile

 

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Nigel Wynn
Former Associate Editor

Nigel Wynn worked as associate editor on CyclingWeekly.com, he worked almost single-handedly on the Cycling Weekly website in its early days. His passion for cycling, his writing and his creativity, as well as his hard work and dedication, were the original driving force behind the website’s success. Without him, CyclingWeekly.com would certainly not exist on the size and scale that it enjoys today. Nigel sadly passed away, following a brave battle with a cancer-related illness, in 2018. He was a highly valued colleague, and more importantly, an exceptional person to work with - his presence is sorely missed.