Bredewold overpowers Vos in rain-soaked Plouay sprint

Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx-Protime) won the Classic Lorient Agglomération for the third successive year, beating Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) in a dramatic, rain-soaked sprint in Plouay.

Bredewold had spent a portion of the afternoon chasing back on after a crash, but the Dutchwoman showed considerable resilience to fight her way back on and then produce a towering sprint to claim the win.

Vos, who was also chasing a record-equalling third win in Plouay, struck out early in the sprint after her Visma squad had bent the race to her will in the finale. It initially looked as though Vos had enough to win, but Bredewold’s late effort carried her past her compatriot to the win. 

Eline Jansen (VolkerWessels) took third ahead of Eleonora Gasparrini (UAE Team ADQ) and Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly).

“I think it’s lucky for me to crash here,” Bredewold said. “I crashed her two years ago and I still won. I know how to do this finish well. Marianne was in front of me for quite some time but I know I’m good in long sprints so I had to keep going.”

The race was animated by an early 23-rider escape, which built a maximum lead of three minutes. The move broke up as the day drew on, leaving Lucinda Brand (Lidl-Trek), Sabrina Stultiens (VolkerWessels) and Josie Nelson (Picnic-PostNL) off the front in the final 70km.

That trio still had a lead of a minute over the peloton as they approached the finishing circuit, but as the intensity ratcheted upwards behind, it was clear that they would not hold off the chasers.

Nelson was distanced on the first lap, while Brand and Stultiens fought on, maintaining a buffer of 50 seconds as they entered the final 20km.

The race ignited with 16km to go when Femke de Vries (Visma | Lease a Bike) attacked on the penultimate ascent of the Côte du Lezot, and her effort prompted a frantic reaction that saw the peloton whittled down to 30 or so riders. That injection of pace in turn doomed the escapees, with the gap rapidly shrinking to 20 seconds. 

De Vries attacked again soon afterwards, this time bringing Eleonora Gasparrini (UAE Team ADQ) and Franziska Koch (Picnic-PostNL) with her, and this trio established a solid working rapport as they closed in on the leaders.

With 10km to go, Brand dropped Stultiens and pressed on alone, with De Vries, Gasparrini and Koch bridging up soon afterwards.

On the final time up the Côte du Lezot, Liane Lippert (Movistar) accelerated, bringing Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma | Lease a Bike) with her, and they made it across to the leaders to form a five-woman front group with 3km remaining.

Vos, Bredewold and the reduced peloton were never far behind, however, and the race came back together in the closing kilometres, with De Vries working to tee up the sprint for Vos.