Amy Pieters wins Stage 2 of the Women's Tour in Walsall as all eyes turn to Atherstone for the first-ever Time Trial in Tour history.
Dutch Cyclist Amy Pieters (SD Worx) claimed the fourth AJ Bell Women's Tour stage victory of her career in Walsall on Tuesday, as debutante Clara Copponi moved into the race lead after a dramatic finale.
Pieters won from a 10-rider group who broke clear inside the final 10 kilometres of racing, and took advantage of support from team-mate Demi Vollering to out-sprint Copponi (FDJ Nouvelle - Aquitaine Futuroscope). Movistar Team's Sheyla Gutierrez took third.
Overnight race leader Marta Bastianelli (Alé BTC Ljubljana) finished within the peloton, 46 seconds behind the leaders, and conceded the AJ Bell blue jersey to Copponi, who is making her debut in the race in 2021.
Copponi and Pieters are level on time, while only six others are within 10 seconds of the race lead going into Wednesday's individual time trial in Atherstone, North Warwickshire.
“It was a hectic final”, said Pieters after claiming her fourth career win in the AJ Bell Women’s Tour. “I think the whole day was pretty hectic. There was still a small gap after the last corner but I thought I just need to start to sprint. It was an urgent sprint but it went well at the end. “The whole day was really aggressive, I think that we were the only ones attacking. We kept attacking with the team and at the end we went away and it was a really good group and luckily we made it.”
After setting off from Walsall’s Victorian Arboretum in wet conditions the peloton tackled 10 laps of a 10-kilometre circuit featuring the climb of Barr Beacon on every lap. The penultimate lap brought multiple attacks, with the race-winning move going clear and building a lead of half a minute on the run back to the finish in Walsall town centre.
British rider Pfeiffer Georgi (Team DSM) went clear in the last kilometre, leading through the final turn on to the Lichfield Street finishing straight, but with only a handful of metres' of advantage over the fast-charging Pieters and Copponi. Georgi held on to take fifth and top Brit on the day, moving her up to eighth overall, just 10 seconds off the overall lead. Behind the leading 10, Lorena Wiebes (Team DSM) led in the main field.
The Sigma Sports Points jersey also changes shoulders from Bastianelli to Coppponi while Elise Chabbey (Canyon SRAM Racing) takes the ŠKODA Queen of the Mountains jersey. Team TIBCO Silicon Valley Bank’s Nina Kessler retains the Eisberg Sprints jersey having won two of the day’s intermediate sprints.
Highlights of Stage Two are on ITV4 at 20:00 on Tuesday 5 October and available on demand via the ITV Hub.
Stage Three of the AJ Bell Women’s Tour is the race’s first ever individual time trial. Taking place over a 16.6-kilometre (10.3-mile) course starting and finishing in Atherstone town centre in North Warwickshire. The first rider starts at 12:01.
Cllr Izzi Seccombe, Leader of Warwickshire County Council, said: “It will be so exciting for fans of cycling in Warwickshire to have such a unique opportunity to see cyclists of such a high calibre competing in the county when Atherstone hosts the Women’s Tour’s first ever time trial on Wednesday.
“Warwickshire has a rich history in hosting high-level cycling events having previously played host to legs of both the men's and women's Tour of Britain over the last few years and has also been selected as the location for the Commonwealth Games Road Race in 2022 demonstrating that the county is a world-class location for cycling and cyclists
“A we continue to look at cautiously and safely open up our economy more broadly and welcome more visitors to the county, as well as being fantastic entertainment for spectators, this event will be of huge economic benefit to the area. It’s an opportunity for local businesses in Atherstone to celebrate and embrace cycling as the time trial comes past their front door, as well as for others to maximise on business opportunities from increased customers and visitors to Warwickshire.”
The AJ Bell Women’s Tour is sponsored by AJ Bell, one of the UK’s leading online investment platforms, helping people invest for the long term via ISAs, pensions and general investment accounts. It has a rich history of supporting elite level sport including badminton, cricket, rugby, squash and triathlon, and recently sponsored the men’s AJ Bell Tour of Britain in September, won by Wout van Aert.
More information about the Women’s Tour can be found online: https://www.womenstour.co.uk/
Find out more about the Teams that will be taking part: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/news/article/2289/world-s-best-cycling-teams-announced-for-the-women-s-tour-coming-to-warwickshire-in-october-2021
Find out more about the route of the Atherstone Time Trial here: https://www.womenstour.co.uk/stages/stage-3/
Find out more about being a spectator at the Atherstone Time Trial: https://www.northwarks.gov.uk/info/20235/cycle_races/1316/cycle_races/