(Montreal) Less than a minute separated the falls of Magdeleine Vallières-Mill and Clara Émond in the last three kilometers of the second stage of the Women’s Tour of Spain. Alberta’s Alison Jackson, teammate of the two Quebecers, then stood out in the sprint to give victory to the EF Education-Cannondale team in Moncofar.
Jackson was helped by her American teammate Kristen Faulkner 500 meters from the finish before racing to victory. The Hungarian Blanka Vas (SD Worx – Pro Time) and the Dutch Karlijin Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ) followed closely in second and third row.
After this stage contested in the rain, the Canadian champion celebrated the tenth professional victory of her career by dancing with enthusiasm, surrounded by her teammates. Enough to make even a few opponents smile.
“We are really happy with this victory! I stayed with her (Alison) all day so that she had everything she needed,” Magdeleine Vallières-Mill told Sportcom.
Idoia Eraso (Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi), Angela Oro (BePink-Bongioanni) and Marione Allione (Winspace) were the first to attack on this 130.2 kilometer course. They were joined by three competitors with whom they gave themselves a 3-minute lead. Once the breakaway resumed 50 kilometers later, the peloton separated slightly and EF Education-Cannondale wanted to position its leader.
“We chased for Alison to get back into the lead group, but it wasn’t a big gap, then we worked to place her well in the last kilometers. It’s a great team victory,” underlined Magdeleine Vallières-Mill.
It wasn’t just party time for the EF Education-Cannondale training at the end of the day. While Vallières-Mill congratulated the day’s winner, Clara Émond was in tears right next to her and needed help to get off her bike.
“The end of the race was a bit chaotic for everyone, the roads were really slippery,” admitted Émond, who fell twice rather than once before crossing the finish line.
The first fall occurred opposite the poster indicating the remaining three kilometers. Seven runners were involved in the sequence. Some were still getting back on the road when Vallières-Mill slipped in a roundabout 700 meters further on, causing six other cyclists to fall.
Clara Émond slipped a second time afterwards. An X-ray of her elbow will determine if she will be able to compete in the third stage on Tuesday.
In the end, Émond and Vallières-Mill finished 92e and 94e. Quebecer Olivia Baril, from Movistar training, followed closely and finished 95e. For her part, Adèle Normand (Eneicat – CMTeam) is at 141e step.
With her second place, Blanka Vas now occupies the lead in the provisional general classification. She holds a lead of 8 seconds over Alison Jackson and 9 seconds over the Italian Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek).
The Tour of Spain will resume on Tuesday with a 130.2 kilometer stage presented in the mountains, between Lucena del Cid and Teruel.
reference: www.lapresse.ca