Lorena Wiebes delivers towering sprint to win UAE Women stage 2

Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) claimed a second successive victory at the UAE Tour Women as she delivered an emphatic sprint finish on stage 2 at Hamdan Bin Mohamed Smart University.

The Dutchwoman briefly looked to have found herself hemmed in during the final kilometre, but she was deftly guided by her teammate Barbara Guarischi, and she then delivered a typically devastating sprint to claim the spoils ahead of Chiara Consonni (Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto) and Nienke Veenhoven (Visma | Lease a Bike).

Franziska Koch (FDJ United-Suez) struck out early in the sprint, opening a gap of several lengths, but she was remorselessly hunted down by Wiebes, who retains the red jersey of race leader.

It was Wiebes’ third win in as many days this season and the 120th victory of her career.

The 145km stage was animated by a break featuring Magdalene Lind (Magdalene Lind), Petra Stiasny (Human Powered Health), Sara Luccon (Top Girls Fassa Bortolo) and Sonia Rossetti (Vini Fantini - BePink). The quartet amassed a maximum lead of four minutes, but a bunch sprint was all but certain on this finale, and they were duly swept up before the finish.

The finale was marred by two crashes, with Femke Markus (SD Worx) and Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv AlUla Jayco) among the fallers with 22km to go, though they both safely rejoined the peloton. Another crash just outside the final kilometre added more than a touch of confusion to the sprint.

Wiebes’ status as stage favourite and a long stretch on a four-lane highway contributed to something of a stand-off in the final 10km, with the pace dropping and no one team willing to take up the reins.

The finale began in earnest inside the last 5km, when Uno-X Mobility took over, and there was a fierce contest for position ahead of the final kilometre. Wiebes, however, still navigated a path to the front and then delivered an imposing sprint to retain the red jersey of race leader, 14 seconds clear of Lara Gillespie (UAE Team ADQ).