February 15, 2024
Setmana Ciclista Valenciana 2024 WE 🇪🇸 – Stage 1 – Tavernes De La Valldigna – Gandia : 113 km
The Setmana Ciclista Valenciana is an annual professional road bicycle race for women in Spain.
Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) sprinted to the win on her first race day of the 2024 season, beating Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease A Bike) and Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Cannondale) to the line on the opening stage of the Setmana Ciclista Volta Femenina de la Comunitat Valenciana.
The sprint was set up late on in the 113km stage between Tavernes de la Valldigna and Gandia, with Victoire Berteau (Cofidis) caught inside the final kilometre after going solo over the last climb of the day, 17km out.
Balsamo went long in the dash for the line, with Vos, who was racing for the first time since iliac artery surgery last August, coming up fast. However, the Dutchwoman – along with new EF signing Rüegg – couldn’t make up the ground to the Italian.
As a result, Balsamo now leads the GC by four seconds heading into the second of four stages, with Rüegg lying six seconds down.
Anneke Dijkstra (VolkerWessels) lies in fourth at seven seconds after making it into the second of the day’s two breakaways. She went clear along with Berteau with 60km to go after Marjolein van’t Geloof (Hess Cycling) and Laura Molenaar (VolkerWessels) were brought back early by the peloton.
Results :
 sprinted to the win on her first race day of the 2024 season, beating Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease A Bike) and Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Cannondale) to the line on the opening stage of the Setmana Ciclista Volta Femenina de la Comunitat Valenciana.
The sprint was set up late on in the 113km stage between Tavernes de la Valldigna and Gandia, with Victoire Berteau (Cofidis) caught inside the final kilometre after going solo over the last climb of the day, 17km out.
Balsamo went long in the dash for the line, with Vos, who was racing for the first time since iliac artery surgery last August, coming up fast. However, the Dutchwoman – along with new EF signing Rüegg – couldn't make up the ground to the Italian.
As a result, Balsamo now leads the GC by four seconds heading into the second of four stages, with Rüegg lying six seconds down.
Anneke Dijkstra (VolkerWessels) lies in fourth at seven seconds after making it into the second of the day's two breakaways. She went clear along with Berteau with 60km to go after Marjolein van't Geloof (Hess Cycling) and Laura Molenaar (VolkerWessels) were brought back early by the peloton.
<strong>Results : </strong>
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