A day after her relegation during the stage 2 sprint finish at La Vuelta Femenina, Lotte Kopecky was sprinting once more in A Coruña, recording another second place.
Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly) soloed to victory with a late attack in the hilly finale. She held off the reduced chasing group for her 10th career win, while Kopecky led the rest home just four seconds back.
It was another runner-up spot for the Belgian, who took second behind another EF rider, Noemi Rüegg, on day one in Salvaterra de Miñao.
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But Kopecky, who also picked up a fine and yellow card for her actions on stage 2, later told Sporza that she wasn't the team leader for SD Worx-Protime on another challenging day for the team.
"Things are really not going our way," she said, before noting that the team had resolved to work for Mischa Bredewold in the final, given her strength on the hills late in the stage.
"We had just decided that Mischa would sprint. It was clear that she was better on the climb, so the decision was quickly made.
"Anna van der Breggen and Mischa Bredewold were very strong on the climbs. I was struggling and had to drop back. I was confident I could still get back into the race, though, as Letizia Paternoster still had a few riders with her in the chase."
Kerbaol's attack, coming 2.2km from the line on a downhill run into the city, complicated matters, however. Liv-AlUla-Jayco led the chase behind the solo attacker, while SD Worx-Protime had a tougher time getting organised.
"The cobbles were tricky to ride on, and she chose the perfect moment to break away. With the roundabouts in the final 3km, it was difficult to mount a chase," Kopecky said.
"We lost sight of each other in the final bend. There was nothing wrong with my sprint. I know I can finish strongly, but today there was someone in front.
"This doesn’t help us at all for the time being."
Kopecky's pair of second places is the best the team has to show for the first three days of racing, though more opportunities for a victory lie ahead, while last year's third-placed finisher Van der Breggen will lead the team's GC challenge as the high mountains of the final weekend loom.
Kopecky currently lies second overall in the general classification at La Vuelta Femenina, now just two seconds down on red jersey Fransizka Koch (FDJ United-SUEZ) after she picked up 10 bonus seconds during stage 3.
She has an opportunity to take the race lead on stage 4, which should conclude with an uphill sprint, but Kopecky's primary concern is getting a stage victory.
"Above all, we really wanted to win the stage. Anything else is a bonus," Kopecky said. "If I can ride in the red jersey without a stage win, my Vuelta won’t have been a success."
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