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July 9, Elite women cross country:
Leumann sprints to win in European cross country championships
Wloszczowska narrowly misses win; Lechner in third
Photos
The elite women's race was by far the race of the week with the battle coming right down to the line with Switzerland's Katrin Leumann taking the victory.
It was fast from the start, with three riders coming over the line together after the first lap. The experienced Esther Suss came (Swizterland) passed the line for the first time in the lead along with teammate Leumann and Italian Eva Lechner.
Throughout the race, riders swapped places, but the one to watch was Sabine Spitz (Germany), who seemed to be gunning for the podium after a slow start. Unfortunately, she left her final surge a bit late, but she did catch and pass Suss en route to a fourth place.
Lechner held on for a well deserved third place while the battle royale was taking place up ahead.
Poland's Maja Wloszczowska showed her strength after a slow start and worked her way to the front of the race while Leumann slipped to second, but was riding consistently throughout. The Swiss racer had apparently left her best for last because she not only closed the final five-second gap but still had enough left in the tank for a sprint finish in the end.
Leumann gave a bike throw that would make any sprinter pround and climbed to the top step of the podium with Wloszczowska in second and Lechner in third.
Full Results
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Katrin Leumann (Switzerland) | 1:47:26 | |
| 2 | Maja Wloszczowska (Poland) | ||
| 3 | Eva Lechner (Italy) | 0:00:23 | |
| 4 | Sabine Spitz (Germany) | 0:00:35 | |
| 5 | Esther Suss (Switzerland) | 0:00:53 | |
| 6 | Lene Byberg (Norway) | 0:01:14 | |
| 7 | Nathalie Schneitter (Switzerland) | 0:02:52 | |
| 8 | Aleksandra Dawidowicz (Poland) | 0:03:57 | |
| 9 | Elisabeth Osl (Austria) | 0:05:33 | |
| 10 | Gunn Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Norway) | 0:05:46 | |
| 11 | Laura Turpijn (Netherlands) | 0:06:15 | |
| 12 | Anja Gradl (Germany) | 0:07:18 | |
| 13 | Janka Stevkova (Slovakia) | 0:07:58 | |
| 14 | Rocio Gamonal Ferrera (Spain) | 0:08:56 | |
| 15 | Annika Langvad (Denmark) | 0:09:52 | |
| 16 | Anna Villar Argente (Spain) | 0:09:59 | |
| 17 | Evelyn Staffler (Italy) | 0:10:48 | |
| 18 | Hanna Klein (Germany) | 0:12:30 | |
| 19 | Daniela Veronesi (San Marino) | 0:12:38 | |
| 20 | Magdalena Sadlecka (Poland) | 0:13:52 | |
| 21 | Stefanie Wiedner (Austria) | 0:14:22 | |
| 22 | Maria Osl (Austria) | 0:15:41 | |
| 23 | Oxana Rybakova (Russian Federation) | 0:15:59 | |
| 24 | Anna Szafraniec (Poland) | 0:16:18 | |
| 25 | Eszter Erdelyi (Hungary) | 0:16:55 | |
| 26 | Margarita Fullana Riera (Spain) | 0:17:54 | |
| 27 | Nina Homovec (Slovenia) | 0:18:24 | |
| -1lap | Krompets Natalia (Ukraine) | ||
| -1lap | Maaris Meier (Estonia) | ||
| -1lap | Inbar Ronen (Israel) | ||
| -2laps | Elena Gogoleva (Russian Federation) | ||
| -2laps | Idit Shub (Israel) | ||
| DNF | Blaza Klemencic (Slovenia) | ||
| DNF | Tereza Hurikova (Czech Republic) |