Lotte Kopecky one second off pink after ironclad Blockhaus stage

Lotte Kopecky one second off pink after ironclad Blockhaus stage

"Last stage will be an exciting joust"

13/07/2024

Lotte Kopecky put in a fantastic performance in the queen stage of the Giro d'Italia Women. The world champion finished second in the stage that took in the mythical Blockhaus climb twice. With one stage to go, she now trails leader Elisa Longo-Borghini in the standings by just one mere second. "One more chance remains for me to take the pink," said the world champion.

Linked race Giro D'Italia Women - Linked cyclists Lotte Kopecky - Gekoppelde ploegleiders: Anna van der Breggen Danny Stam

Lotte Kopecky: "1 second difference is a bit sour. I did everything I could to take the pink jersey, but Elisa was just really strong today. One stage remains, so it will be an exciting battle on Sunday. It has already been three tough stages and the final stage also promises to be tough with a nice finale. Lidl-Trek will do everything to eliminate the bonification seconds. I rode a strong Giro so far, we'll see tomorrow if I manage to win the pink jersey."

Sport director Anna van der Breggen: "This was incredibly strong from Lotte. With the climb over the Blockhaus twice, this stage was even tougher than the Tourmalet. The directive was simple: try to follow as long as possible. We knew that Elisa Longo-Borghini would go on the attack, the key was to follow and see how far you get. Lotte said beforehand: I've never climbed this long before, I don't know what that's like. After today, she can't say that anymore (laughs). She did super well. This was a very strong performance. This is a victory in itself. If you start with the ambition to chase stages, and one day from the end you are one second from the overall victory... That can also be seen as a victory. If you can follow Elisa Longo-Borghini in such a tough stage, you are among the best climbers in the world. So this is an insane performance, which promises a lot towards the future."

"It was not only Lotte who outdid herself today, all the girls tried to hang on for as long as possible to provide Lotte and Niamh Fisher-Black and Blanka Vas with water bottles for as long as possible. Then Blanka Vas outdid herself by staying in front until the start of the second climb of the Blockhaus. Niamh also rode strongly. Tomorrow will be wildly exciting. Seeing how close Elisa Longo-Borghini and Lotte Kopecky were today, tomorrow promises to be another neck-and-neck race. We will want to control to finally grab the bonification seconds on the line to hopefully win the pink jersey. Lidl-Trek on the other hand will try to attack to clear the seconds on the line. So expect a joust."

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