Vos nabs first road win of 2013 in Drentse 8

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World Champion Marianne Vos (Rabo Women) claimed her first win of the 2013 road season, on Thursday at Drentse 8 van Dwingeloo, the warm-up to Saturday's first World Cup race.

Vos sprinted ahead of her rivals at the end of the figure-eight course to win easily over Giorgia Bronzini (Wiggle Honda) and Emma Johansson (Orica-AIS), the Swede's second consecutive third place this season.

The 141.2km course, heavy with traffic furniture, narrow roads and a cobbled section, was testing for the 180-rider peloton and it was not surprising that a number of crashes marred the race with Ina Teutenberg (Specialized-lululemon) the worst casualty, taken to hospital with facial injuries. Chantal Blaak (Tibco-To The Top) was also hospitalised, but was later cleared of a suspected fractured collarbone. Valentina Scandolara (MCipollini-Giordana) was another non-finisher.

On the final lap of the three, Lauren Kitchen (Rabo Women) Maaike Polspoel (Sengers Ladies) and Ilona Hoeksma (Parkhotel) hit the front of the race but never gained more than 45 seconds, with the teams of Orica-AIS, and Vos controlling the bunch.

Rabo Women sports director Koos Moerenhout was impressed with Vos' victory.

"The course was quite closed," he said. "There was an attack by three riders, but they took no more than forty seconds. That was never dangerous. We knew that we Marianne in the mass sprint. Shortly before the finish there's a cobblestone strip, but the team, especially Megan Guarnier, did very good work."

Having prevailed at last week's Cyprus Sunshine Cup Afxentia mountain bike stage race, Vos clearly had no trouble re-adapting to the road.

"Well, she continues," said Mourenhout. "Cross, mountain bike or on the road. There is nothing she can't do."

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