Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta 2020 – Stage 2 [FULL STAGE – Individual Time Trial]

November 7, 2020

Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta 2020 – Stage 2 ITT – Boadilla del Monte – Boadilla del Monte : 9,3 km

Madrid Challenge by La Vuelta has moved from it’s traditional September spot on the Women’s WorldTour calendar and will now take place from November 6-8 and will include three stages. The UCI announced the revised-late season calendar in May as a result of COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, and although there have been some cancellations since then, the Women’s WorldTour has retained 15 of the original 22 events. It will now include four stage races and 11 one-day races. In its three first editions (2015, 2016 and 2017), the Madrid Challenge by La Vuelta, consisted of one circuit race stage through Madrid’s city centre. In 2018 and 2019, the race added a new time trial stage that took place in the locality of Boadilla del Monte. The 2020 edition will be the first time the event hosts three consecutive stages.

Lisa Brennauer (Ceratizit-WNT) has won stage 2 of the Madrid Challenge by La Vuelta, repeating last year’s success in the time trial and putting herself into the overall lead ahead of the final stage.

Brennauer was fastest over the 9.3km course in Boadilla del Monte, stopping the clock after 12:40 seconds and beating Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) by just one second. Ellen van Dijk (Trek-Segafredo) was third, four seconds behind Brennauer.

Stage 1 winner Lorena Wiebes (Team Sunweb) performed very well, but her time of 13:08 meant that she had to relinquish the overall lead.

“It was very difficult. There was a strong wind, often a headwind, so you also had to push in the downhills, and it also started to rain a little bit,” Brennauer said after the race. “The roads were wet, and I had to go safe out of the corners and probably lost some seconds here and there. But I went fast where I could, and I am so happy with this victory. I didn’t know it was that close, so I’m happy I pushed all the way to the line.”

Looking ahead to the final stage, 17 laps of a circuit in Madrid with bonus seconds on offer at seven intermediate sprints and the finish, Brennauer continued: “Of course I want to win, and now I have the opportunity. My team and I will work on a good strategy for tomorrow. I know the race well, and we have defended the jersey last year, so I will try my best to take some seconds tomorrow, and then we have to see. There is some pressure, but not in a bad way.”

How it unfolded

The individual time trial was held on a technical course with several roundabouts, two U-turns, and two short climbs, using the same route as in 2019.

The first benchmark was set by Janneke Ensing (Mitchelton-Scott) who finished in 13:35 minutes. Only a few minutes later, Vita Heine (Hitec Products-Birk Sport) improved this by 24 seconds, closely followed by her teammate Mieke Kröger who set another best time of 13:01 minutes.

Kröger remained at the top of the leaderboard for 40 minutes and was first beaten by Leah Kirchmann (Team Sunweb) who stopped the clock at 12:54 minutes. Ten minutes later, Longo Borghini turned heads with a very strong ride over the technical course, taking the lead with 12:41 minutes.

On a course that did not play to their strengths, time trial specialists like Annemiek van Vleuten (Mitchelton-Scott) and Van Dijk failed to beat Longo Borghini’s time, and only Brennauer was left as a challenger for the stage victory.

Brennauer is the defending champion after her 2019 victory, mainly due to her time trial skills, and she lived up to her role as favourite, beating Longo Borghini by one second on the finish line.

Overnight leader Wiebes also did a strong time trial, finishing just outside the top-10 in 13:08 minutes. The young Dutch sprinter is now fifth in GC, 18 seconds behind Brennauer. Longo Borghini is second at 10 seconds, with Van Dijk and Van Vleuten at 13 and 17 seconds respectively.

Results :
1 Lisa Brennauer (Ger) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:12:40
2 Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) Trek-Segafredo Women 0:00:01
3 Ellen Van Dijk (Ned) Trek-Segafredo Women 0:00:04
4 Annemiek Van Vleuten (Ned) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:08
5 Leah Kirchmann (Can) Team Sunweb Women 0:00:14
6 Sarah Roy (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:18
7 Mieke Kröger (Ger) Hitec Products-Birk Sport 0:00:21
8 Alice Barnes (GBr) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:00:25
9 Maaike Boogaard (Ned) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:00:26
10 Hannah Ludwig (Ger) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:00:28
11 Lorena Wiebes (Ned) Team Sunweb Women
12 Vita Heine (Nor) Hitec Products-Birk Sport 0:00:31
13 Marta Cavalli (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:00:33
14 Georgia Williams (NZl) Mitchelton-Scott Women
15 Liane Lippert (Ger) Team Sunweb Women 0:00:35
16 Jessica Roberts (GBr) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:37
17 Eugenia Bujak (Slo) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:00:38
18 Alexis Ryan (USA) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:00:43
19 Audrey Cordon Ragot (Fra) Trek-Segafredo Women 0:00:44
20 Vittoria Guazzini (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:00:50
21 Katrine Aalerud (Nor) Movistar Team Women 0:00:51
22 Janneke Ensing (Ned) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:55
23 Christina Schweinberger (Aut) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport
24 Jelena Eric (Srb) Movistar Team Women 0:00:56
25 Julia Soek (Ned) Team Sunweb Women
26 Julie Leth (Den) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:00:59
27 Elisa Balsamo (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:00
28 Silvia Valsecchi (Ita) Bepink 0:01:01
29 Wilma Olausson (Swe) Team Sunweb Women 0:01:02
30 Rotem Gafinovitz (Isr) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:01:03
31 Camilla Alessio (Ita) Bepink 0:01:06
32 Maria Giulia Confalonieri (Ita) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:08
33 Eri Yonamine (Jpn) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana
34 Christa Riffel (Ger) Canyon-Sram Racing
35 Ilaria Sanguineti (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:11
36 Gloria Rodriguez Sanchez (Spa) Movistar Team Women 0:01:17
37 Chiara Consonni (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:19
38 Barbara Guarischi (Ita) Movistar Team Women 0:01:21
39 Silvia Zanardi (Ita) Bepink 0:01:24
40 Simona Frapporti (Ita) Bepink
41 Ella Harris (NZl) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:01:28
42 Urska Pintar (Slo) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:01:29
43 Laura Asencio (Fra) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:33
44 Claire Steels (GBr) Sopela Women’s Team 0:01:35
45 Lara Vieceli (Ita) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:37
46 Letizia Paternoster (Ita) Trek-Segafredo Women
47 Mireia Trias Jordan (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:01:39
48 Alessia Vigilia (Ita) Cronos-Casa Dorada
49 Jessica Allen (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:01:40
50 Malgorzata Jasinska (Pol) Cronos-Casa Dorada 0:01:42
51 Anna Trevisi (Ita) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana
52 Marta Bastianelli (Ita) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:01:45
53 Sara Martin Martin (Spa) Sopela Women’s Team 0:01:47
54 Giorgia Catarzi (Ita) Bepink
55 Barbara Malcotti (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:48
56 Nicole Hanselmann (Swi) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport 0:01:49
57 Alicia Gonzalez Blanco (Spa) Movistar Team Women 0:01:50
58 Sarah Rijkes (Aut) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:51
59 Mireia Benito Pellicer (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:01:52
60 Elizabeth Holden (GBr) Bizkaia-Durango 0:01:54
61 Sandra Alonso Dominguez (Spa) Cronos-Casa Dorada
62 Rachel Neylan (Aus) Cronos-Casa Dorada 0:01:57
63 Belen Lopez Morales (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:02:00
64 Susana Perez Conejero (Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte
65 Gabrielle Pilote-Fortin (Can) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:02:04
66 Paula Diaz Lopez (Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte 0:02:06
67 Patricia Ortega Ruiz (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:02:07
68 Marieke de Groot (Ned) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport 0:02:15
69 Alba Teruel Ribes (Spa) Movistar Team Women 0:02:17
70 Emilie Fortin (Can) Bizkaia-Durango 0:02:22
71 Lucy Van der Haar (GBr) Hitec Products-Birk Sport 0:02:24
72 Ariana Gilabert Vilaplana (Spa) Bizkaia-Durango 0:02:30
73 Lydia Iglesias Bares (Spa) Cronos-Casa Dorada 0:02:31
74 Laura Tenorio ((Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte 0:02:37
75 Martina Moreno (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:02:42
76 Vania Canvelli (Ita) Bepink 0:02:44
77 Carolina Esteban Fernandez (Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte 0:02:52
78 Minke Bakker (Ned) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport 0:02:53
79 Emma Ortiz Bonilla (Spa) Sopela Women’s Team 0:03:28

General Classification after Stage 2 :
1 Lisa Brennauer (Ger) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 2:12:51
2 Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) Trek-Segafredo Women 0:00:10
3 Ellen Van Dijk (Ned) Trek-Segafredo Women 0:00:13
4 Annemiek Van Vleuten (Ned) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:17
5 Lorena Wiebes (Ned) Team Sunweb Women 0:00:18
6 Leah Kirchmann (Can) Team Sunweb Women 0:00:23
7 Sarah Roy (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:27
8 Mieke Kröger (Ger) Hitec Products-Birk Sport 0:00:30
9 Alice Barnes (GBr) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:00:33
10 Maaike Boogaard (Ned) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:00:35
11 Hannah Ludwig (Ger) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:00:37
12 Vita Heine (Nor) Hitec Products-Birk Sport 0:00:40
13 Marta Cavalli (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:00:42
14 Georgia Williams (NZl) Mitchelton-Scott Women
15 Liane Lippert (Ger) Team Sunweb Women 0:00:44
16 Jessica Roberts (GBr) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:00:46
17 Eugenia Bujak (Slo) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:00:47
18 Alexis Ryan (USA) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:00:52
19 Audrey Cordon Ragot (Fra) Trek-Segafredo Women 0:00:53
20 Elisa Balsamo (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:00:55
21 Vittoria Guazzini (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:00:59
22 Katrine Aalerud (Nor) Movistar Team Women 0:01:00
23 Jelena Eric (Srb) Movistar Team Women 0:01:01
24 Janneke Ensing (Ned) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:01:04
25 Christina Schweinberger (Aut) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport
26 Julia Soek (Ned) Team Sunweb Women 0:01:05
27 Julie Leth (Den) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:08
28 Silvia Valsecchi (Ita) Bepink 0:01:10
29 Wilma Olausson (Swe) Team Sunweb Women 0:01:11
30 Rotem Gafinovitz (Isr) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:01:12
31 Camilla Alessio (Ita) Bepink 0:01:15
32 Maria Giulia Confalonieri (Ita) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:17
33 Eri Yonamine (Jpn) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana
34 Christa Riffel (Ger) Canyon-Sram Racing
35 Ilaria Sanguineti (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:20
36 Gloria Rodriguez Sanchez (Spa) Movistar Team Women 0:01:26
37 Chiara Consonni (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:28
38 Barbara Guarischi (Ita) Movistar Team Women 0:01:30
39 Silvia Zanardi (Ita) Bepink 0:01:33
40 Simona Frapporti (Ita) Bepink
41 Ella Harris (NZl) Canyon-Sram Racing 0:01:37
42 Urska Pintar (Slo) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:01:38
43 Laura Asencio (Fra) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:42
44 Lara Vieceli (Ita) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:01:46
45 Letizia Paternoster (Ita) Trek-Segafredo Women
46 Mireia Trias Jordan (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:01:48
47 Alessia Vigilia (Ita) Cronos-Casa Dorada
48 Jessica Allen (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott Women 0:01:49
49 Malgorzata Jasinska (Pol) Cronos-Casa Dorada 0:01:51
50 Marta Bastianelli (Ita) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:01:54
51 Sara Martin Martin (Spa) Sopela Women’s Team 0:01:56
52 Giorgia Catarzi (Ita) Bepink
53 Barbara Malcotti (Ita) Valcar-Travel & Service 0:01:57
54 Nicole Hanselmann (Swi) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport 0:01:58
55 Alicia Gonzalez Blanco (Spa) Movistar Team Women 0:01:59
56 Sarah Rijkes (Aut) Ceratizit-WNT Pro 0:02:00
57 Elizabeth Holden (GBr) Bizkaia-Durango 0:02:03
58 Sandra Alonso Dominguez (Spa) Cronos-Casa Dorada
59 Rachel Neylan (Aus) Cronos-Casa Dorada 0:02:06
60 Belen Lopez Morales (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:02:09
61 Susana Perez Conejero (Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte
62 Marieke de Groot (Ned) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport 0:02:24
63 Alba Teruel Ribes (Spa) Movistar Team Women 0:02:26
64 Emilie Fortin (Can) Bizkaia-Durango 0:02:31
65 Lucy Van der Haar (GBr) Hitec Products-Birk Sport 0:02:33
66 Minke Bakker (Ned) Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport 0:03:02
67 Paula Diaz Lopez (Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte 0:05:46
68 Claire Steels (GBr) Sopela Women’s Team 0:07:35
69 Anna Trevisi (Ita) Ale’ BTC Ljubljana 0:07:44
70 Mireia Benito Pellicer (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:07:54
71 Gabrielle Pilote-Fortin (Can) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:08:06
72 Lydia Iglesias Bares (Spa) Cronos-Casa Dorada 0:08:33
73 Vania Canvelli (Ita) Bepink 0:08:46
74 Carolina Esteban Fernandez (Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte 0:08:52
75 Emma Ortiz Bonilla (Spa) Sopela Women’s Team 0:09:54
76 Patricia Ortega Ruiz (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:11:25
77 Ariana Gilabert Vilaplana (Spa) Bizkaia-Durango 0:11:48
78 Martina Moreno (Spa) Massi Tactic Women Team 0:12:00
79 Laura Tenorio ((Spa) Rio Miera-Cantabria Deporte 0:12:03