Imogen Wolff has won her first pro victory of her career. The 18-year-old rider from Team Visma | Lease a Bike was the fastest in the final stage of the Vuelta a Extremadura Femenina in the sprint and ended her successful week in style.
Due to bad weather conditions, the third and final stage of the Spanish stage race was shortened significantly. The climbs of the Tornos and Honduras were cancelled, giving the peloton a relatively easy day. Team Visma | Lease a Bike had set its sights on a bunch sprint and brought Wolff, who finished third yesterday, in a straightaway to the finish.
The youngster entered the final corner first and held her lead until the line. In doing so, she recorded her first pro win of her career. “I am very happy with my first pro win. I didn’t expect it to come so soon”, the winner said. “The girls gave me full confidence to go for the day’s win. When they ride so hard in front of you, you want to finish it. I’m happy that that worked out.”
Wolff says she started the sprint with a lot of confidence. “I won the intermediate sprint at 10 kilometres and knew: if everything goes well, I’m able to win. The final was similar to yesterday, with a corner 100 metres from the finish line. I knew I had to go into the corner first and I did. After that I was able to hold on until the line.”
According to Jos van Emden, Wolff’s stage victory did not come completely out of the blue. “Imogen is a killer. She always rides for the win and has the right instincts. With that, she makes our team stronger”, the sports director said. “Initially, it was a disappointment that the stage was shortened, as we had set our sights on the final stage. When you can finish it like this, it’s amazing.”
With four top-ten finishes, a fifth and seventh place in the overall classification as well as the win in the youth classification, it was a successful week for the yellow-black brigade. “Apart from Thursday’s afternoon stage (in which Martina crashed and dropped out), we had three good days. The team deserves the compliments: they rode as one block and there was more conviction in the team. This offers perspective for the upcoming races.”
