Regardless of solely being 14.5 kilometres in size, the staff time trial that opened the Vuelta Femenina supplied substantial time gaps: There are over 5 minutes between total chief Anna Henderson (Staff Jumbo-Visma) and the pink lantern in 159th place, however many of the GC favourites are inside a minute of the pink jersey.
Behind Henderson, three of her teammates have the identical time. Marianne Vos might properly take over the pink jersey as a result of time bonifications within the subsequent couple of days, whereas Amber Kraak and Riejanne Markus are within the driving seat for the GC struggle.
Just one second behind, Canyon-SRAM’s GC playing cards Kasia Niewiadoma and Élise Chabbey are in an excellent place, forward of most of their rivals however with out the duties of the chief’s jersey – although Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka might goal bonus seconds so as to transfer into the race lead.
Trek-Segafredo’s GC chief is Gaia Realini. The minuscule Italian climber did properly to stick with her staff throughout the flat TTT and now sits 9 seconds behind Henderson, as do her extra skilled teammates, Lizzie Deignan and Amanda Spratt.
Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Staff), the winner of the 2022 Ceratizit Problem, the precursor to the Vuelta Femenina, is 12 seconds adrift in fifteenth place. The 40-year-old Dutch girl didn’t attain the type of earlier years within the Spring Classics however will wish to step up once more within the stage races. Liane Lippert has the identical time and is able to take Van Vleuten’s place if the veteran ought to falter.
Recent from an Ardennes triple that underlined her standing as the highest favorite for the Vuelta Femenina, Demi Vollering (Staff SD Worx) is 14 seconds behind. She will be able to rely on the assist of a powerful staff, although her climbing lieutenant Niamh Fisher-Black misplaced contact within the last metres of the TTT and sits at 19 seconds.
Évita Muzic, Marta Cavalli (each FDJ-SUEZ), Juliette Labous, and Esmée Peperkamp (each Staff DSM) all have a 25-second deficit. Cavalli and Labous are prone to be their groups’ GC playing cards, although Muzic is poised to take over if Cavalli continues to not be again at her finest, nonetheless struggling long-term results of her 2022 Tour de France Femmes crash.
Kristen Faulkner and Ane Santesteban carry the GC hopes of Staff Jayco-AlUla. 31 seconds down on Henderson, they’re nonetheless in placing distance, however the time loss from the TTT will put them on the again foot in comparison with lots of their rivals. Pauliena Rooijakkers could not comply with her Canyon-SRAM teammates to the end and now sits in fortieth place total, 37 seconds behind. Which means she’s going to most likely need to put her GC ambitions apart and assist Niewiadoma and Chabbey.
UAE Staff ADQ completed the TTT 41 seconds down. With such a deficit, their benefit is that they’ve a number of playing cards to play, as Silvia Persico, Mikayla Harvey, Olivia Baril, and Erica Magnaldi might all publish an excellent GC end result. Spain’s best-performing GC rider over the past years, Mavi García (Liv Racing TeqFind), has a 42-second deficit to make up.
Veronica Ewers (EF Schooling-TIBCO-SVB) misplaced 48 seconds, Simone Boilard (St Michel-Mavic-Auber 93) is at 59 seconds, and Claire Steels (Israel-Premier Tech Roland) is strictly one minute down on Henderson. They must race aggressively and take possibilities in the event that they wish to transfer as much as the very entrance of the race.
The primary GC stage will probably be stage 5 with the first-category Puerto de Navafría and a second-category mountaintop-finish on the Mirador de Peñas Llanas, adopted by stage 6 with two second-category climbs. The race total will probably be selected the ultimate stage ending on the Lagos de Covadonga after a 12.5-kilometre climb.
