Rivera sprints to RideLondon Classique victory

Coryn Rivera (Team Sunweb) picked up her fourth WorldTour win of the 2017 season Saturday at the RideLondon Classique, sprinting to a narrow victory in the British capital.

The peloton pushed through driving rain on the urban circuit to set up a bunch kick on the Mall. Canyon-SRAM's Lisa Brennauer and Cervelo-Bigla's Lotta Lepistö battled at the head of the sprint to lead into the final hundred metres, but Rivera surged past on their right and pipped Lepistö for the win. Brennauer settled for third.

"I'm absolutely elated," said Rivera in a post-race interview on BBC Sport. "It's crazy. It's raining. It's not the best conditions, but when there's a goal in front of you, you've got to commit to get after it. It was a crazy, chaotic finish with a lot of elbows and everything."

The peloton largely stayed together throughout the 66-kilometre race in the British capital. Claudia Koster (VeloConcept) launched the first attack in lap two of the 12-lap race, but the attempt was neutralised quickly. A handful of escape attempts followed but none had staying power, and the race proved more fast and strung out than attacking and animated.

"[In the rain], I think everyone rides a bit different, a bit faster average speed and a bit more careful through the corners," said Rivera. "Everyone is a little more cautious. It makes a greater margin for error, but you have to deal with it and everybody has to deal with it. It's a challenge for everyone.

"There were a lot sprinters here," said world champion Amalie Dideriksen, who sprinted in for seventh place. "Nearly every team came with a sprint, and when it's a criterium the speed is really high because everyone wants to ride the front to save energy in the corners. It gets really hard to get away and even harder to stay away. No one team had to take control because the nature of the race controlled it automatically."

Three intermediate sprints on laps three, six and nine provided a bit of drama with newly crowned British criterium champion Katie Archibald (Team WNT) successfully challenging Leah Kirchmann (Sunweb) on the first sprint. Luxembourgish champion Christine Majerus pipped Kirchmann on the line at the mid-point of the race. It was a Boels-Dolmans on one-two on sprint three with Dideriksen first across the line ahead of Majerus. Kirchmann came third, but the total through the series of sprints gave her enough points to win the Continental Tyre Sprint Competition.

The high pace and the disruption in tempo due to intermediate sprints did damage at the back of the peloton with a number of riders losing contact, but the front of the peloton was largely a controlled affair with Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (Cervelo-Bigla) the most frequent figure on the front in the second half of the race.

Lauren Stephens (Team TIBCO-SVB) led the peloton over the penultimate passage of the start/finish line on The Mall, up Constitution Hill and past Buckingham Palace before Canyon-SRAM took over with Alexis Ryan, Trixi Worrack and Brennauer. The trio was lining things up for Hannah Barnes, who won a Giro Rosa stage earlier this month, but the Briton was unable to make her way onto her team's train.

Lepistö gained several spots with a bold move through the inside of the final corner that came 500 metres from the finish line. Majerus surged forward beyond the corner with Dideriksen on her wheel but was blocked by Worrack pulling off for Brennauer, who opened the sprint.

Lepistö closed quickly on the left to take the lead into the final hundred metres. Rivera closed even faster on the right, surging past moments before the line to take the win.

"I knew I was in the right place, and I just had to time my sprint correctly," said Rivera. "It's a very long sprint. You see it for awhile. It's a little deceptive, but I went at the right time apparently – and pulled it off."

Along with UCI Women's WorldTour points and another accolade to add her rapidly growing palmares, Rivera earned women's cycling largest prize purse. The race awards the winner €25,000 – an amount that is more than a large portion of the field's salary and equal to the prize awarded to the winner of the men's race on Sunday.

"I'm really excited to be here, really excited that the race understands that we race just as hard, just as crazy as the men," said Rivera. "It's special to me that they respect that. To win here, it's also my first time racing here, it's pretty special."

Full Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Coryn Rivera (USA) Team Sunweb Women1:29:03
2Lotta Lepistö (Fin) Cervelo Bigla Pro Cycling TeamRow 1 - Cell 2
3Lisa Brennauer (Ger) Canyon SRAM RacingRow 2 - Cell 2
4Marianne Vos (Ned) WM3 Pro CyclingRow 3 - Cell 2
5Kirsten Wild (Ned) Cylance Pro CyclingRow 4 - Cell 2
6Jolien D'Hoore (Bel) Wiggle High5Row 5 - Cell 2
7Amalie Dideriksen (Den) Boels Dolmans CyclingteamRow 6 - Cell 2
8Roxane Fournier (Fra) FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine FuturoscopeRow 7 - Cell 2
9Barbara Guarischi (Ita) Canyon SRAM RacingRow 8 - Cell 2
10Giorgia Bronzini (Ita) Wiggle High5Row 9 - Cell 2
11Chloe Hosking (Aus) Alé CipolliniRow 10 - Cell 2
12Gracie Elvin (Aus) Orica Scott WomenRow 11 - Cell 2
13Mia Radotic (Cro) BTC City LjubljanaRow 12 - Cell 2
14Leah Kirchmann (Can) Team Sunweb WomenRow 13 - Cell 2
15Christina Siggaard (Den) Team Veloconcept WomenRow 14 - Cell 2
16Sarah Roy (Aus) Orica Scott WomenRow 15 - Cell 2
17Hannah Barnes (GBr) Canyon SRAM RacingRow 16 - Cell 2
18Jeanne Korevaar (Ned) WM3 Pro CyclingRow 17 - Cell 2
19Ellen Van Dijk (Ned) Team Sunweb WomenRow 18 - Cell 2
20Christine Majerus (Lux) Boels Dolmans CyclingteamRow 19 - Cell 2
21Lucinda Brand (Ned) Team Sunweb WomenRow 20 - Cell 2
22Eugenia Bujak (Pol) BTC City LjubljanaRow 21 - Cell 2
23Ingrid Drexel (Mex) Team Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank0:00:07
24Eugénie Duval (Fra) FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine FuturoscopeRow 23 - Cell 2
25Elise Delzenne (Fra) Lotto Soudal LadiesRow 24 - Cell 2
26Eleanor Dickinson (GBr) Great Britain National TeamRow 25 - Cell 2
27Anna Trevisi (Ita) Alé CipolliniRow 26 - Cell 2
28Ilaria Sanguineti (Ita) BePink CogeasRow 27 - Cell 2
29Annalisa Cucinotta (Ita) Lensworld-KuotaRow 28 - Cell 2
30Emilia Fahlin (Swe) Wiggle High5Row 29 - Cell 2
31Moniek Tenniglo (Ned) WM3 Pro CyclingRow 30 - Cell 2
32Alexandra Manly (Aus) Orica Scott WomenRow 31 - Cell 2
33Alice Barnes (GBr) Drops Cycling TeamRow 32 - Cell 2
34Sara Penton (Swe) Team Veloconcept WomenRow 33 - Cell 2
35Emilie Moberg (Nor) Hitec ProductsRow 34 - Cell 2
36Danielle King (GBr) Cylance Pro CyclingRow 35 - Cell 2
37Julie Leth (Den) Wiggle High5Row 36 - Cell 2
38Ursa Pintar (Slo) BTC City LjubljanaRow 37 - Cell 2
39Trixi Worrack (Ger) Canyon SRAM RacingRow 38 - Cell 2
40Elinor Barker (GBr) Great Britain National TeamRow 39 - Cell 2
41Polona Batagelj (Slo) BTC City LjubljanaRow 40 - Cell 2
42Kendall Ryan (USA) Team Tibco-Silicon Valley BankRow 41 - Cell 2
43Georgia Williams (NZl) Orica Scott WomenRow 42 - Cell 2
44Amy Pieters (Ned) Boels Dolmans CyclingteamRow 43 - Cell 2
45Katarzyna Pawlowska (Pol) Boels Dolmans CyclingteamRow 44 - Cell 2
46Alice Maria Arzuffi (Ita) Lensworld-KuotaRow 45 - Cell 2
47Heather Fischer (USA) Team Tibco-Silicon Valley BankRow 46 - Cell 2
48Riejanne Markus (Ned) WM3 Pro CyclingRow 47 - Cell 2
49Rachele Barbieri (Ita) Cylance Pro CyclingRow 48 - Cell 2
50Annette Edmondson (Aus) Wiggle High5Row 49 - Cell 2
51Elizabeth Holden (GBr) Drops Cycling TeamRow 50 - Cell 2
52Christina Perchtold (Aut) Cervelo Bigla Pro Cycling TeamRow 51 - Cell 2
53Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (RSA) Cervelo Bigla Pro Cycling TeamRow 52 - Cell 2
54Manon Lloyd (GBr) Great Britain National TeamRow 53 - Cell 2
55Nikki Brammeier (GBr) Boels Dolmans CyclingteamRow 54 - Cell 2
56Abby-Mae Parkinson (GBr) Drops Cycling TeamRow 55 - Cell 2
57Simona Frapporti (Ita) Hitec ProductsRow 56 - Cell 2
58Mieke Kröger (Ger) Canyon SRAM RacingRow 57 - Cell 2
59Roxane Knetemann (Ned) FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine FuturoscopeRow 58 - Cell 2
60Lauren Stephens (USA) Team Tibco-Silicon Valley BankRow 59 - Cell 2
61Lauren Kitchen (Aus) WM3 Pro CyclingRow 60 - Cell 2
62Rotem Gafinovitz (Isr) WM3 Pro CyclingRow 61 - Cell 2
63Aude Biannic (Fra) FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine FuturoscopeRow 62 - Cell 2
64Trine Schmidt (Den) Lotto Soudal LadiesRow 63 - Cell 2
65Thea Thorsen (Nor) Hitec ProductsRow 64 - Cell 2
66Gabriella Shaw (GBr) Team WNT Pro Cycling0:00:21
67Gabrielle Pilote-Fortin (Can) Cervelo Bigla Pro Cycling TeamRow 66 - Cell 2
68Lydia Boylan (Irl) Team WNT Pro CyclingRow 67 - Cell 2
69Nicole Hanselmann (Swi) Cervelo Bigla Pro Cycling TeamRow 68 - Cell 2
70Annasley Park (GBr) Drops Cycling TeamRow 69 - Cell 2
71Lucy Shaw (GBr) Drops Cycling TeamRow 70 - Cell 2
72Hayley Jones (GBr) Team WNT Pro CyclingRow 71 - Cell 2
73Malgorzata Jasinska (Pol) Cylance Pro CyclingRow 72 - Cell 2
74Coralie Demay (Fra) FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine Futuroscope0:00:27
75Sheyla Gutiérrez (Spa) Cylance Pro CyclingRow 74 - Cell 2
76Julia Soek (Ned) Team Sunweb WomenRow 75 - Cell 2
77Winanda Spoor (Ned) Lensworld-Kuota0:00:42
78Molly Weaver (GBr) Team Sunweb WomenRow 77 - Cell 2
79Claire Rose (GBr) Great Britain National Team0:00:48
80Katie Archibald (GBr) Team WNT Pro CyclingRow 79 - Cell 2
81Alexis Ryan (USA) Canyon SRAM RacingRow 80 - Cell 2
82Marta Bastianelli (Ita) Alé CipolliniRow 81 - Cell 2
83Eileen Roe (GBr) Team WNT Pro Cycling0:00:50
84Marta Tagliaferro (Ita) Cylance Pro Cycling0:01:03
85Tatiana Guderzo (Ita) Lensworld-Kuota0:01:16
86Sara Mustonen (Swe) Team Veloconcept Women0:01:19
87Nina Kessler (Ned) Hitec Products0:02:14
88Romy Kasper (Ger) Alé CipolliniRow 87 - Cell 2
89Soraya Paladin (Ita) Alé CipolliniRow 88 - Cell 2
90Nicolle Bruderer (Gua) Team Tibco-Silicon Valley BankRow 89 - Cell 2
91Maria Vittoria Sperotto (Ita) BePink CogeasRow 90 - Cell 2
92Elizabeth Jane Harris (GBr) Great Britain National TeamRow 91 - Cell 2
93Greta Richioud (Fra) FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine FuturoscopeRow 92 - Cell 2
94Abigail Van Twisk (GBr) Drops Cycling TeamRow 93 - Cell 2
95Jessica Allen (Aus) Orica Scott WomenRow 94 - Cell 2
96Puck Moonen (Ned) Lotto Soudal LadiesRow 95 - Cell 2
97Martina Alzini (Ita) Alé CipolliniRow 96 - Cell 2
98Grace Garner (GBr) Wiggle High5Row 97 - Cell 2
99Rebecca Carter (GBr) Team WNT Pro CyclingRow 98 - Cell 2
100Megan Barker (GBr) Great Britain National TeamRow 99 - Cell 2
101Fenna Vanhoutte (Bel) Lotto Soudal LadiesRow 100 - Cell 2
102Chantal Hoffmann (Lux) Lotto Soudal LadiesRow 101 - Cell 2
103Alison Jackson (Can) BePink CogeasRow 102 - Cell 2
104Katia Ragusa (Ita) BePink CogeasRow 103 - Cell 2
105Francesca Pattaro (Ita) BePink CogeasRow 104 - Cell 2
106Urska Zigart (Slo) BTC City LjubljanaRow 105 - Cell 2
107Maria Giulia Confalonieri (Ita) Lensworld-KuotaRow 106 - Cell 2
108Kim De Baat (Bel) Lensworld-KuotaRow 107 - Cell 2
109Natalie Kerwin (NZl) Team Veloconcept WomenRow 108 - Cell 2
110Brianna Walle (USA) Team Tibco-Silicon Valley BankRow 109 - Cell 2
111Isabelle Beckers (Bel) Lotto Soudal LadiesRow 110 - Cell 2
112Susanne Andersen (Nor) Hitec ProductsRow 111 - Cell 2
113Tone Hatteland Lima (Nor) Hitec ProductsRow 112 - Cell 2
114Tereza Medvedova (Svk) BePink CogeasRow 113 - Cell 2
DNFClaudia Koster (Ned) Team Veloconcept WomenRow 114 - Cell 2

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