We’ve been here before … this year’s third stage is a repeat of 2017’s third stage. Something of a staging post as the race continues its westward sweep across the English Midlands, the start point is Atherstone, east of Birmingham.
The riders face 151 kilometres on the longest stage of the 2018 OVO Energy Women’s Tour. It’s not only the distance they have to contend with, but the up-down nature of the route makes for hard racing. The big teams with the most World Tour experience will have the hammer down all day, and those younger, less experienced squads will be struggling to hang on.
It’s even the knowledge that this is the third of five long days, with no chance of recovery that will be playing on the minds of the riders.
The peloton heads due south from Atherstone, via intermediate sprints at Kenilworth and Wellesbourne, before turning north for second-category climbs at Edge Hill and Burton Dassett.
🎥 Today's Warwickshire leg of the race is our longest stage for the second year running.
Discover the route with our @relivecc fly-through video.#OVOWT #UCIWWT pic.twitter.com/soqkz8xERh
— The Women's Tour (@thewomenstour) June 15, 2018
In 2017, Marianne Vos broke her collarbone in a crash in the sprint for the line on Royal Leamington Spa’s Newbold Terrace; she’s recovering from another collarbone break now, but has come to the Women’s Tour in fine form, loosing out by centimeters to Coryn Rivera yesterday.
This could be the day for Vos. Let’s hope the organisation hasn’t decided to suddenly shut the race down into one lane like they did last year … the sudden bottleneck that appeared to funnel the riders to the line was blamed by more than one rider I spoke to for Vos’ crash.
Elisa Longo Borghini (Wiggle-High5) is another contender, as are the Boels-Dolmans pairing of Chantal Blaak and Christine Majerus.