Van Dijk wins stage 3 of the Ladies Tour of Qatar

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Ellen Van Dijk (Boels Dolmans) soloed to victory on the third stage of the Ladies Tour of Qatar, taking her second consecutive win in Madinat Al Shamal. Stage one winner Kirsten Wild (Hitech Products) bounced back from a bad day to take second with Loretta Hanson (Australia) in third.

A crosswind in the opening kilometres makes advance bookings a necessity at the Ladies Tour of Qatar. Almost twenty minutes before stage 3 got underway outside Al Zubara Fort, riders were already filing towards the start line. An early delegation from Liv-Plantur even had the foresight to bring their teammates’ bikes too, saving places for them on the front row of the peloton. It was going to be one of those days.

And so it proved. The decisive selection of the stage, and, indeed, of the entire 2016 Ladies Tour of Qatar, formed inside the opening two kilometres, when a 13-rider echelon wrestled its way up the road, never again to be recaptured.

Three hours later, stage honours would eventually fall to Ellen van Dijk (Boels Dolmans), who married guile to strength as she forged clear with 1500 metres to go to claim a fine solo victory, while Trixi Worrack – who had two Canyon-SRAM teammates for company in the front group – finished among the chasers take over at the head of the general classification.

Overnight leader Katrin Garfoot (Orica-AIS), meanwhile, slips to fourth overall after she missed that crucial first selection. Despite a desperate chase which at one point on the finishing circuit seemed to be bearing fruit, the Australian was never again able to get back on terms.

“The first kilometre was one big fight,” Van Dijk said of the early salvoes that ultimately decided the race. “We had to fight until the end and we also had to play it smart and wait until the right moment. And in the end, it worked out absolutely well.”

Van Dijk had two Boels Dolmans teammates for company in front, Christine Majerus and Romy Kasper, and they found common cause with the Canyon-SRAM trio of Worrack, Tiffany Cromwell and Lisa Brennauer for much of the afternoon.

Together they worked to maintain the elite group’s early advantage, which yawned out to almost two minutes over the Garfoot group after 30 kilometres. With fast finishers Shelley Olds (Cylance) and Kirsten Wild (Hitec Products) on board and eyeing a potential sprint, however, and with Garfoot’s Orica-AIS teammate Gracie Elvin sitting on the back policing the move, the leaders lost some of their momentum by the time they reached the 13.5-km finishing circuit at Madinat Al Shamal, which they covered four times.

The impressive Hanson and Anouska Koster (RaboLiv) were also part of the leading split, but at one point it almost seemed as though their early endeavour would be for naught, as the Garfoot group, just five-strong in the opening kilometres, had now swelled into something approaching a peloton, with Wiggle-High5 and Liv-Plantur – who each missed the move – now sensing they might be able to salvage something from the day. With two laps to go, the gap stood at 1:20, and it dropped to just over 45 seconds approaching the bell, but ultimately the firepower of the survivors in the front group would prove telling.

Elvin's attack

A shade over ten kilometres from the finish, and having realised that there was now no way back for Garfoot, Elvin opted to play her hand. It briefly appeared as though the Australian was about to pull off the perfect heist. As her erstwhile companions hesitated – concerned, no doubt, by the prospect of dragging either Wild or Olds to the line for a sprint – Elvin forged on alone to build up a lead of 15 seconds.

Boels Dolmans eventually took matters in hand to bring back Elvin, with Luxembourg champion Christine Majerus particularly generous in her efforts, and the Australian was swept up with 3 kilometres to go. From there, Canyon-SRAM’s Tiffany Cromwell – and Worrack herself – worked diligently on the front to ensure that the gold jersey would fall to their team at day’s end.

“It was a really tough day for us, we had to do a lot of work to get the jersey,” Worrack said afterwards. “After two kilometres, the bunch was split and it was just crazy.”

In the finale, however, it was Van Dijk who would snatch stage honours away from the fast finishers. Winner in Madinat Al Shamal last year, and second to Wild here in 2013, she sensed her moment, powering clear with 1500 metres remaining and holding her advantage to claim a solo victory.

Not surprisingly after such a trying day, the chasing group splintered on the run-in. Wild beat Hanson in the sprint for second place, seven seconds down, while Worrack rolled home in 5th place to take possession of the gold jersey. The German leads Kasper by 17 seconds and Van Dijk by 31 ahead of Friday’s final stage in Doha. “We’ll try to defend it tomorrow,” she said. “There’s one more stage and we’ll put everything together.”

Garfoot, meanwhile, came in 59 seconds down, though she remains in 4th overall and just three seconds off the third step of the podium. For others, the day was far from over. The last group on the road rolled in almost 19 minutes down after a day spent chasing shadows in the wind. A cruel business, the Tour of Qatar.

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