Australia's Baker shows Road World Championships form at Simac Ladies Tour

Georgia Baker continued her run of strong performances on the second stage at the Simac Ladies Tour securing the combativity award for her efforts in the day's decisive breakaway into Ede. 

The Australian is a primary GC option for BikeExchange-Jayco in the six-day race in the Netherlands this week and is showing top form ahead of home UCI Road World Championships in September.

“I was in the breakaway with two other girls, and we tried the best we could. I ended up solo in the last 25km and just tried to TT towards the end, but unfortunately it got back. It was a really hard race, I ended up with [the prize for] most aggressive,” Baker said.

Much as expected, stage 2 of the Simac Ladies Tour came down to a bunch sprint where Lorena Wiebes (Team DSM) took her second victory in as many days. But before that, a breakaway of three riders played the main role in circuit race in and around Ede.

Her two companions were Lieke Nooijen (Parkhotel Valkenburg) and Senne Knaven (AG Insurance-NXTG). The three riders went away within the first ten kilometres of the three-lap, 117.8-kilometre stage and were up to 1:50 minutes ahead of the peloton.

Swedish rider Clara Lundmark (GT Krush Tunap Pro Cycling) tried to bridge on her own but never succeeded, and later her teammate Anneke Dijkstra attempted the same after Knaven had dropped back to the peloton at the start of the final lap when the gap had been reduced to only 29 seconds.

Baker then rode Nooijen off her wheel and continued alone. While Nooijen and Dijkstra were reeled in, Baker extended her advantage again, but eventually the sprinters’ teams brought the peloton closer and closer.

Baker had to slow down to go around a crashed police motorbike after a right turn with 15km to go and when she looked around and saw the chasing peloton only a few metres behind her she decided to give up. Her break ended after more than 90 kilometres off the front.

Baker entered the Simac Ladies Tour on the back of a winning performance at the Commonwealth Games earlier in August, having taken victory in the elite women's road race and placed fourth in the time trial, and she will soon don the green and gold jersey of her nation again.

Baker, who came back to the road from the track this season, was recently named to the Australian team that will compete at the September 18-25 World Championships in Wollongong. Also named to the elite women's road race team are Grace Brown, Brodie Chapman, Alexandra Manly, Sarah Roy, Amanda Spratt and Josie Talbot. Baker will also compete in the elite women's time trial, alongside Brown.