Sofia Gomez Villafañe solos to victory at Big Sugar Gravel and locks in overall women's title in Life Time Grand Prix

Sofia Gomez Villafañe (Specialised) sprinted away from Melisa Rollins (Virginia’s Blue Ridge-TWENTY24) within the ultimate two miles of the 104-mile Large Sugar Gravel elite girls’s contest and rode solo throughout the road for the victory in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Rollins trailed 15 seconds to take second place, whereas Cecily Decker (Scuderia-Pinarello) secured third place, one other 24 seconds again. 2022 Large Sugar champion Paige Onweller had chased the three breakaway riders within the ultimate 10 miles and settled for fourth. Lauren De Crescenzo accomplished the highest 5.

Villafañe, Onweller and Rollins entered the seventh and ultimate race of the Life Time Grand Prix off-road sequence within the prime 4, with Villafañe holding an usurmountable lead. With win, Villafañe confirmed her second general Grand Prix title, having gained three of the six races wherein she competed. 

The way it unfolded

With a separate begin 10 minutes after the elite males, 26 of 48 riders within the elite girls’s area remained collectively on the entrance by means of the primary time examine at mile marker 20. 

As soon as passing by means of the bluff’s part outdoors Pineville with one-third of the gap behind them, the entrance group had whittled right down to 13 riders. The chaser group, 2:03 again, included Lauren De Crescenzo, Jenna Rinehart, Crystal Anthony, Deanna Mayles, Whitney Allison and Maude Farrell.

Falling off the tempo was Sarah Lange, driving alone 5 minutes behind the leaders. Lange entered the occasion tied for seventh general (with Sarah Sturm) within the Grand Prix.

On the midway level and the race headed on the northern-most part in Missouri, 9 US riders remained within the entrance group – Sturm, Alexis Skarda, Melisa Rollins, Flavia Oliveira Parks, Erin Huck, Sofia Gomez Villafañe, Cecily Decker, Paige Onweller, and Stella Hobbs. 

Only one minute again with 48 miles to experience, De Crescenzo was closing down the hole in a solo effort. She had Michaela Thompson simply in entrance of her, and one other 22 seconds again had been a trio of Allison, Rinehart and Farrell hammeringin the chase.

Passing throughout the longest sustained climb of the race, a five-mile ascent within the Flag Spring Conservation Space of Missouri, De Crescenzo and Thompson made contact with the leaders, now 11 sturdy three-and-a-half hours into the race and 38 miles to go.

Huck attacked because the race re-entered Arkansas with 24 miles to go, however was quickly rejoined by seven others, the lead group together with Onweller, Rollins, Villafañe, Decker, De Crescenzo, Skarka and Hobbs. Thompson dangled 30 seconds again and different contenders had been scattered one other 15 seconds again, together with Rinehart and Sturm.

Over the following 12 miles with quite a lot of descending, the trio of Villafañe, Rollins and Decker broke free as they gained 40 seconds over Onweller. It proved to be decisive, as the remainder of the earlier lead group started to fade, trailing Onweller by 1:14 and solely 8 miles to go.

Two sharp, uphill kickers left the lead trio to determine who had the legs remaining on the end line in Bentonville. Decker was the primary to resign after which Villafañe took the ultimate dash to safe the race win and sequence victory.

Outcomes