16th Tjejtrampet - 1.2

Sweden, May 29, 2005

2004 Results Results Past winners

De Goede good in Sweden

By Gabriella Ekström

Dutch sprinter Suzanne De Goede has taken out the edition of Tjejtrampet, Sweden's biggest women's race. In a bunch sprint, she beat Swedish Junior National Team rider Monica Holler, with talented Dane Mie Becker Lacota (Team Mermaid/Renault) in third.

How it unfolded

At 11 o'clock, 76 pro and elite riders took the start of Sweden's biggest race for women. Behind them, many thousand leisure riders would follow, but the elite only cared about the course that laid ahead of them. In the cold and windy weather that seems to be typical for Gärdet in May, the riders travelled down the whole width of Valhallavägen and picked up speed as they passed the Wennergren Center and hit the highway.

The first serious attack of the day came after 12 kilometres, and turned out to be highly interesting. Swedish junior Marie Lindberg (Swedish junior nat. team) got away and was joined by Danish rider Mie Becker Lacota (Team Mermaid/Renault) after a little while. At only 16 years of age, Mie already has a solid reputation in Denmark, and has been described as Denmark's biggest cycling talent ever. Although Mie holds a high international standard, she is still too young to take part in the races she would like to start.

"I'm not saying that it's easy to win a lot of Danish races," Mie said in an interview with feltet.dk, "But I'd like to participate in races with more international competition." Despite her young age, Mie was allowed to take the start in the Swedish category 1.2 race, and her presence at the front was welcomed by Lindberg.

The Dutch Van Bemmelen AA-Drink sensed the danger early and placed themselves at the front of the bunch, but the Lindberg-Lacota duo increased their lead. After 18 raced kilometres, the sun came out and started to dry the roads that were partly wet because of an early morning rain. In the empty streets of Kista's industrial area, Lacota started to take longer turns at the front, and the duo's lead grew to 30 seconds.

Lacota passed the intermediate sprint at Edsviken first, and rounded the lake to start the climbs at the farthermost side of the lake. At this point, the Finnish national team riders had joined the Dutch girls at the front of the peloton, but a bad crash at the front hampered the peloton just as they were about to enter the climb.

The gap to the duo grew while the peloton tried to regroup themselves, and a second crash in a roundabout close to Mörby Centrum had the same effect. Once the peloton got regrouped again, the time gap was starting to come down. At this point, 17-year old Lindberg had grown tired, and could only follow the Danish riders wheel. Lacota had a never say die approach, and continued to fight the peloton off.

At the last intermediate sprint, won by Lacota, the gap was down to 16 seconds, but it took the effort of the whole Van Bemmelen team to keep it there. In the peloton, last year's U23 European Champion Monica Holler (Swedish national team) had positioned herself close to Van Bemmelen's sprinter Suzanne De Goede. The peloton had now split up in two groups, each about 25 riders strong.

Lindberg and Lacota was caught shortly before the riders passed the line for the first time, and while Lindberg was swallowed up, Lacota positioned herself for the finale. With the threat of the break gone, the Van Bemmelen team could set the sprint up as they wanted, but they faced a strong headwind over the finishing straight, and it would be a battle for positions. Holler still held Van Goede's wheel, but had to face the wind a little too long and the blonde Swede was beaten by ten centimetres by De Goede in a hard sprint. Lacota recovered well enough to finish third behind the two sprinters.

De Goede admitted after the stage that she didn't have to work a lot herself, except for a few attempts to get away close to the finish. She also told the press that she had been truly nervous about the break that stayed away so long, and that it took a serious effort from her team to bring the break back.

Second placed Holler was disappointed with her placing, but said that she had enjoyed a good ride to the finish, having used the fact that a Swedish rider was at the front to make the other teams work. Lindberg at the front was not in the same team as Holler, since she was a junior rider, but Holler admitted that she wasn't sure if all the other riders knew that.

Results

1 Suzanne De Goede (Ned) Van Bemmelen AA-Drink    1.17.08
2 Monica Holler (Swe) Sweden                             
3 Mie Becker Lacota (Den) Scandinavian Mix               
4 Bertine Spijkerman (Ned) Team@work cycling             
5 Nathalie Van Katwijk (Ned) RSC De Zuidwesto            
6 Catharina Mulders (Ned) Team Merida                    
7 Jaccolien Wallaard (Ned) Team@work cycling             
8 Maaris Meier (Est) Estonia                             
9 Paula Suominen (Fin) Finland                           
10 Karin Aune (Swe) Sweden                               
11 Aud Kari Berg (Nor) Norway                            
12 Mirella Ehrin (Swe) Team Stockholm                    
13 Anna Engstrand (Swe) Nässjö/Sandviken                 
14 Tiina Nieminen (Fin) Finland                          
15 Emma Karlsson (Swe) Sweden Juniors                    
16 Emma Johansson (Swe) Sweden                           
17 Laura Lepasalu (Est) Estonia                          
18 Kata-Liina Normak (Est) Estonia                       
19 Maria Ehrin (Swe) Team Stockholm                      
20 Suzanne Kuiper (Ned) Team Merida                      
21 Renske Doedee (Ned) RSC De Zuidwesto                  
22 Frederika Van Der Wiel (Ned) Team Merida              
23 Line Foss (Nor) Norway                                
24 Marie Vidung Døssland (Nor) Norway Junior team        
25 Emilia Fahlin (Swe) Sweden Juniors                    
26 Jannie S. Schmidt (Den) Denmark                       
27 Jolanda Van Dongen (Ned) RSC De Zuidwesto             
28 Marie Lindberg (Swe) Sweden Juniors                   
29 Imke Hartogs (Ned) Team Merida                        
30 Madelene Olsson (Swe) Västerås CK/Svane           0.19
31 Loes Markerink (Ned) Team@work cycling                
32 Kirsten Wild (Ned) Team@work cycling                  
33 Karin De Krijger (Ned) RSC De Zuidwesto           0.30
34 Sissy Van Alebeek (Ned) Van Bemmelen AA-Drink     0.39
35 Josephine Groenveld (Ned) Van Bemmelen AA-Drink       
36 Nikoline Hansen (Den) Denmark                         
37 Catrine Josefsson (Swe) Team Stockholm            0.51
38 Line Ramsund (Nor) Norway                             
39 Linn Torp (Nor) Norway                                
40 Adrie Visser (Ned) Van Bemmelen AA-Drink          1.13
41 Sisse Hermansson (Den) Denmark                    1.19
42 Frøydis Warsted (Nor) Norway Junior team          1.27
43 Grete Treier (Est) Estonia                        1.35
44 Hedda Bjøralt (Nor) Norway Junior team            3.27
45 Therese Carlsson (Swe) Västerås CK/Svane          4.29
46 Clara Sandell (Fin) Finland                       6.05
47 Malin Alzén (Swe) Nässjö/Sandviken                6.25
48 Jeanette Kulhanek (Swe) CK Master/Valhalla            
49 Caroline Eriksson (Swe) Team Stockholm                
50 Susanne Berner (Swe) Team Stockholm                   
51 Christina Guri (Swe) Nässjö/Sandviken                 
52 Daniela Profir (Swe) CK Falken                        
53 Ulrika Andersson (Swe) Team Stockholm                 
54 Heli Luoma (Fin) Finland                         14.06
55 Kristine Saastad (Nor) Norway Junior team             
56 Mikaela Hjelm (Swe) Sweden Juniors                    
57 Josefine Östfeldt (Swe) CK Falken                     
58 Madeleine Araya (Swe) CK Falken                       
59 Åsa Birath (Swe) Fredrikshofs IF                      
60 Linda Josefsson (Swe) CK Master/Valhalla              
61 Anna Holmström (Swe) CK Master/Valhalla               
62 Linnea Börjesson (Swe) Scandinavian Mix               
63 Lisa Svenningsson (Swe) Scandinavian Mix              
64 Jonna Svensson Ohlin (Swe) Scandinavian Mix           
65 Linda Brisevall (Swe) Nässjö/Sandviken                
66 Moa Nilsson (Swe) CK Master/Valhalla             16.11
67 Jenny Forsberg (Swe) Västerås CK/Svane                
68 Sara Hård (Swe) Scandinavian Mix                      
69 Nina Lund (Den) Denmark                          18.28
70 Gurigard Ravnsborg (Nor) Norway Junior team      28.37
71 Claudia Garcia (Swe) Fredrikshofs IF                  
72 Ulrika Hansson (Swe) Fredrikshofs IF                  
73 Ronja Thomenius (Swe) Fredrikshofs IF                 
74 Lotta Silwer (Swe) Fredrikshofs IF                    
75 Karoline Haverstad (Nor) Scandinavian Mix             
DNF Maria Landström (Swe) Sweden                         
DNF Linda Forss (Swe) Sweden

Past winners

2004 Tiina Nieminen (Fin) Finland
2003 Leontien Zijlaard-Van Moorsel (Ned) Farm Frites-Hartol
2002 Leontien Zijlaard-Van Moorsel (Ned) Farm Frites-Hartol
2001 Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel (Ned)
2000 Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel (Ned)
1999 Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel (Ned)
1998 Susanne Ljungskog (Swe)
1997 Jorunn Kvalö (Nor)
1996 Monique Knol (Ned)
1995 Debby Mansveld (Ned)
1994 Monique Knol (Ned)
1993 Monique Knol (Ned)
1992 Monique Knol (Ned)
1991 Tea Vikstedt (Fin)
1990 Marianne Berglund (Swe)

Past winners courtesy of Mario Stiehl, www.world-of-cycling.com