The second stage of the UAE Women’s Tour left us what, without a doubt, can be considered the first great stage of women’s cycling in 2023. A day in which the feared fans made an appearance almost from the start and throughout the day in a stage that ended up being decided by the sprint and in which the German Lorena Wiebes managed to avenge the defeat suffered against Charlotte Kool this Thursday on arrival in Dubai with her victory at the Al Mirfa finish line.
The day started at a very high pace and the wind and the plains in the middle of the desert caused the peloton to split into several groups, with a first group of 19 cyclists led by Charlotte Kool, Wiebes, Longo Borghini, Norsgaard or Cordon-Ragot rolling with more than a minute over a second group and more than 3 minutes over the third group at kilometer 40 of the race.
The work of Kool’s DSM, which put several riders in the front group, meant that the difference between the first two groups remained around a minute and in almost five minutes on a third group that seemed to run out of options to integrate again. The battle continued between the front group, already reduced to just 10 cyclists, and the second group, which managed to reduce the gap to 30 seconds, although, 42 kilometers from the finish line, both groups managed to get together, leaving this first group with more than 50 runners.
The merger in the front group slowed down the pace and that encouraged the second peloton, which gradually closed the gap of five minutes thanks to the work of the FDJ so that there was a total regrouping of the peloton with 20 kilometers to go for goal. In the final 10 kilometres, the race toughened up again, with several riders setting a strong pace that sent the peloton splitting into two groups again before a sprint in which the DSM put the train in motion for Kool although on this occasion Wiebes, well positioned behind the Dutchwoman, managed to avenge her defeat yesterday to raise her arms as the winner of this second stage. Wiebes and Kool will face the third and decisive stage of this Saturday with a route of 107 kilometers between Hazza bin Zayed Stadium and the final climb to Jebel Hafeet, with 10.8 kilometers of climbing at 6.7% that will decide the virtual winner of the UAE Women’s Tour.
Classification of the second stage of the UAE Women’s Tour
1. Lorena Wiebes (ALE/SD Worx) 3.35:28
2. Charlotte Kool (NED/DSM) mt
3. Pfeiffer Georgi (GBR/DSM) mt
4. Marta Lach (POL/Ceratizit-WNT) mt
5. Chiara Consonni (ITA/UAE ADQ) mt
General classification after the second stage of the UAE Women’s Tour
1. Lorena Wiebes (ALE/SD Worx) 6:22:26
2. Charlotte Kool (NED/DSM) mt
3. Chiara Consonni (ITA/UAE ADQ) at 0:10
4. Liane Lippert (ALE/Movistar) at 0:13
5. Marta Bastianelli (ITA/UAE ADQ) mt