I just wanted to give it my all today. I trained hard this winter. My goal is for the end of the year but I knew I was strong so I just wanted to start the season well
In the women's elite race, it was Briton Evie Richards (Trek Factory Racing XC) who took the early lead until a puncture on lap four reopened the race as the Briton lost more than a minute and then struggled to find the rhythm.
It was a 2-man challenge between the Dutch Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and the French Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Ineos Grenadiers), with the young Dutch beating the French during the last lap. The world champion, the French Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Ineos Grenadiers) had to settle for silver, while the European champion, the French Loana Lecomte (Canyon CLLCTV) completed the podium.
I do not know what happened. Normally my start is good, but everyone was so fast that I thought I wasn't on the day. Then I recovered and Pauline and I kept switching places, with Evie Richards unlucky. Suddenly, I was faced with not knowing what to do, so I just tried to keep calm and it worked – Puck Pieterse
Runner-up Pauline Ferrand-Prévot said: “I just wanted to give it my all today. I trained hard this winter. My target is for the end of the year but I knew I was strong so I just wanted to start the season well.
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