There was no gold at the end of the rainbow for Lizzie Deignan (Great Britain) in Doha at the World Championships, and one senses that any lingering disappointment at surrendering her crown will be offset by a degree of relief at bringing the curtain down on a tumultuous season as world champion.
From the outset of this World Championships road race, Deignan (nee Armitstead) knew that her prospects of a repeat victory were slim on a course always likely to produce a bunch finish, but the Briton still put up a robust defence of her title, ultimately placing fourth in the mass sprint as Amalie Dideriksen (Denmark) claimed a surprise win.
Pre-race favourite Kirsten Wild's Dutch squad, as expected, dictated the terms of engagement on the finishing lap, with a line of orange jerseys massing on the front in the final seven kilometres. Armitstead managed to nudge her way into their number ahead of the flamme rouge, and it was her nous as much as her speed that carried her to fourth place in the sprint.
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"Towards the back end of the race, it was just about positioning and that's something that with a bit of experience, I think I'm good at. But towards the finish straight, I just was legless. I just didn't have that extra to kick," Deignan said in the mixed zone afterwards. "If I'd prepared for this, I may have done some sprint training and put myself in a position to win but we have a deserved champion and I'm actually really pleased with fourth."
Deignan's 2016 campaign had, of course, been built around the Rio Olympics, where she placed fifth in the road race, though the performance was completely overshadowed by her troubled approach to the Games. After recording three whereabouts violations in the space of a year, Deignan only avoided a lengthy ban thanks to an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, news which only broke on the day before she travelled to Brazil.
"It has [been a long year] and I'm pleased we were able to finish it, going out fighting so to speak," Deignan said. "I'm very much looking forward to a break."
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