Kimberley Wells sprinted to second in Rome on Monday to snag UCI points at the 1.2-rated GP della Liberazione. The 30-year-old jumped from fourth wheel behind the Alé Cipollini train to open her sprint and was passed in the final 50-metres by Marta Bastianelli (Alé Cipollini). It’s the first UCI podium for the High5 GoExPro Australian Women’s Road Development Team in Europe this spring.
“I’m happy coming in second and standing on the podium today,” said Wells. “I always want to win of course, but with everything that’s happened lately – being sick and all – my result today is a promising sign that I’m getting my strength back. To have most of my sprint left at the end of a hard race shows that I’m on the upswing.”
Race organisers modified the city centre course on Monday morning due to flooding. Heavy rains had left part of the original course underwater.
“It was a circuit race, and they shortened the lap,” Wells explained. “We did 18 laps of five kilometres. The course change didn’t impact tactics or the team plan.”
“There were 1100 metres of climbing in total and a few other technical elements,” Wells added. “There were two U-turns, and one was on a downhill. With 350-400 metres to go there was a sharp-right hander.”
The technical nature of the course took its toll on the field. Punctures and single rider crashes whittled down the field.
“The course was heavy, and it took a lot of energy,” Wells noted. “We thinned out the bunch quite a bit by the end.”
The High5 GoExPro Australian squad animated the action. The green and gold jersey was a constant sight up the road or at the head of affairs.
“We were in the breakaway attempts all day,” Wells said. “There was a lot of wind about, especially at the top of the course, and the headwind really killed the break’s chances of staying away.”
“Being able to do the Women’s WorldTour races like Flèche is awesome,” said Wells. “After doing such big races, coming to a non-WorldTour race, we have the chance to be a bit more in control and really impact the outcome of the race. Having the opportunity to race at both levels offers a lot of benefits.”
The escape attempts continued all the way to the finish line. In the final kilometre, two riders remained up the road.
“The team looked after me in the end,” said Wells. “The attacks were neturalised, and Cipollini lined it up into the final corner one, two, three. I had to fight my way into fourth wheel around that corner.”
“I hit Cipollini early and tried to hang on,” Wells added. “Marta was able to come over me in the last 50 metres.”
Bastianelli celebrated across the line. Wells hung on for second place. Arianna Fidanza (Astana) rounded out the podium.
“The podium was really fun,” said Wells. “It was a very Italian podium. It had live music, a smoke machine. They even popped out some confetti. First through third got giant trophies, so flying home with that will be a bit of a challenge. There were flowers and the heaviest bottle of champagne I’ve ever lifted, too. It was a good day.” |
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