Although she has been among world's best riders for two seasons, she waited until her debut on British roads to take the very first win on a WorldTour level. Katarzyna Niewiadoma (WM3 Pro Cycling) stormed to the victory in the opener of Ovo Energy Women's Tour and held on to the green race leader's jersey over next four days, celebrating the overall win on Sunday.
"I am super happy. That's the only word that can describe my feelings," Niewiadoma said to a group of journalists after the finish of the criterium-like final stage in central London.
Niewiadoma, 22, has already three stage race victories to her name: the Euskal Emakumeen Bira in 2015, and the Festival Elsy Jacobs and Giro del Trentino Alto Adige-Sudtirol in 2016. Winning the Women's Tour is arguably her most significant achievement, a maiden WorldTour victory coming after two seasons of coming close during the key races on the calendar.
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"I was waiting for a WorldTour victory for a long time. I was all the time somewhere there – second, third – but somehow always missed that victory. I'm super delighted I can grab it. After the Ardennes I was a little bit disappointed but I certainly didn't expect to take my first WorldTour victory in the UK," she said.
Women's races are often more spontaneous and unpredictable than those of their male counterparts. The British race lived up to these expectations, and what happened on the road to Kettering on stage 1 was not a part of anyone's script, certainly not WM3's or Niewiadoma's. The Polish rider attacked 47.5 kilometres before the finish and ended up winning the day by a hefty margin of 1:42.
"I did the same thing last year at Holland Ladies Tour. I attacked early and I got caught with 10 kilometres to go. This time it worked out… I don't know, maybe they underestimated me. When I first realized I'm on my own, I thought, 'oh gosh, what am I doing here alone out in this field?'" Niewiadoma said with a laugh when asked about the situation.
Pink ribbon
Battle of Chesterfield
WorldTour glory
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