Marianne Vos lined up in Ypres for the start of Gent-Wevelgem as the defending champion, but also as something of an unknown quantity after just one previous appearance on the road this season.
That appearance resulted in a top 10 at Strade Bianche but still, illness prevented the Jumbo-Visma leader from riding the Trofeo Alfredo Binda last weekend.
A week out from the Tour of Flanders, Vos hit the ground running again at Gent-Wevelgem. She had to settle for second, but losing out in a sprint to a world champion in such sizzling form as Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo) is no disgrace.
"I had a slight cold and it was not wise to travel to Italy for the race [Binda] last weekend. Instead tried to recover well for these races, so I was pretty happy to be here racing again," Vos said.
"Of course you always want to go for the win, but I think I can be satisfied with second today."
Vos came to the finish in Wevelgem as part of a 50-rider group, as the revamped, tougher route didn't end up whittling down the field significantly. Her Jumbo-Visma teammates joined in on an attacking run-in to Wevelgem before Coryn Labecki put her in position for the mass sprint.
As the bunch spread across the road, she managed to find a way out and surged to the right as Balsamo – winner of the past three WorldTour races – went from range on the left, but she was unable to nip the world champion on the line.
"In hindsight it's always easy to do things differently, but this is a pretty difficult sprint – you come in on a long stretch so to time it right is very difficult," Vos said.
"It's not easy if you make a mistake. Maybe I didn't really make a mistake, then Elisa is just faster. I caught up a little but couldn't make the speed faster again anymore. Elisa is very fast and in great form at the moment."
As for Vos' own form, she is clearly in a good place considering her lack of racing. The Classics season intensifies with Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday ahead of Sunday's Tour of Flanders, with Amstel Gold Race to follow on April 9.
"I was curious about my form, so this is a good result and bodes well for the coming weeks," who added that confidence is running through the Jumbo-Visma set-up amid the success of the men's squad.
"That makes a very good atmosphere. The team structure is on a very high level. It's great to see the guys doing so well. That's a motivation for us as well."
