The 25-year-old Italian took control of the jersey upon winning Strade Bianche, the first race on the calendar, and remains atop the overall standings after the UCI's latest update. A fourth-place finish at last week's Ronde van Drenthe boosted her points total, and a ninth-place finish in Cittiglio on Sunday earned her a few more. Elena Cecchini, however, is closing in on the top spot.
Like her compatriot Longo Borghini, the Canyon-SRAM rider has finished in the top 10 of every WorldTour race so far. She came into the Trofeo Alfredo Binda sitting third in the standings behind Longo Borghini and Lucinda Brand (Team Sunweb) after a runner-up performance at the Ronde van Drenthe. Finishing fifth on Sunday propelled Cecchini into second in the rankings, 35 points behind Longo Borghini. Annemiek van Vleuten rose to third, with Brand – who did not race Sunday – dropping to fourth.
Coryn Rivera (Team Sunweb), unranked last week, jumped to sixth thanks to her Trofeo Alfredo Binda victory.
Trofeo Alfredo Binda third-place finisher Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Cervélo Bigla Pro Cycling) leapfrogged fellow Dane and reigning world champion Amalie Dideriksen (Boels Dolmans) to regain her position atop the WorldTour's young rider ranking, which awards points to the top three finishers in the youth classification of every WorldTour race.
"The team was so strong today, I have rarely seen something like this," Uttrup Ludwig said via a team release. "They were all the time in the front, making sure we had food and water while controlling the race the whole time. It was such an amazing team effort and I am so proud to be on this team. I’m overwhelmed, it has been a crazy day and what a start to the season.
"I felt quite good, I think I had diamonds in my legs today. I’m really proud to wear the young rider’s jersey. I’m up against some world class riders and we’ll just take it one race at a time."
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The Women's WorldTour continues this coming weekend with Gent-Wevelgem, with the Tour of Flanders to follow before a full complement of races in the Ardennes, as the series has added both a women's Amstel Gold Race and a women's Liège-Bastogne-Liège this year.
