Vuelta a Andalucia Women: Sierra secures overall title on final day

Jelena Erić led race leader and teammate Arlenis Sierra across the line as Movistar went one-two on the third and final day of Vuelta Ciclista Andalucia Ruta del Sol Women. 

Sierra held the leader’s jersey for all three days to secure the title of the inaugural UCI 2.1 stage race. Mavi García (UAE Team ADQ) was second overall, while Ricarda Bauernfeind (Canyon-SRAM Generation) finished third on the stage and in the GC standings.

The longest of the three stages, Thursday’s ‘route of the sun’ traversed the 139 kilometres with the first half of the race relatively flat and ramping up to the back-to-back categorised climbs - category 2 Puerto de la Cruz and then category 1 Puerto Hacho de Gaucin. 

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Across the Gaucin, 7.4km at a gradient of more than seven per cent, the GC contenders were still together, Garcia using bonus seconds to have a tie at the top with Sierra, Bauernfeind just 15 seconds back and both Paula Patiño (Movistar) and Nadine Michaela Gill (Sopela Women's Team) another two seconds off the pace.

A reduced group of nine riders stayed together in the final 10km - Sierra, García, Erić, Bauernfiend, Gill, Patiño, Sara Martín (Movistar), Erica Magnaldi (UAE Team ADQ) and Becky Storrie (CAMS-Basso) to set up the bunch sprint, and Movistar one-two punch.

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