Josie Talbot provided a thrilling finale to the three-day Tour of Chongming Island. The 26-year-old Australian was the strongest rider in a breakaway group that formed in the final kilometres of the third stage.
Everyone had expected a bunch sprint, but during the stage, it quickly became clear that many teams were not willing to settle for that.
The riders of Liv AlUla Jayco were also part of several breakaway attempts, but none of them were approved by the peloton.
With less than 30 kilometres to go, the Australian squad tried to surprise the competition with a clever acceleration when a breakaway group with Ruby Roseman-Gannon was caught. General classification leader Van Rooijen was a little too far back, so Caroline Andersson and Quinty Ton, among others, increased the pace. This briefly caused a split in the peloton.
When a new bunch sprint seemed to be in the making, a breakaway group formed in the final kilometres. This time, the group stayed out of the peloton’s reach. Talbot started the sprint early, reacting to a move from another rider, and spectacularly claimed her first WorldTour victory.
It is the second win of the race for the Liv AlUla Jayco squad after Georgia Baker won the opening stage. The combined success means that the team also rode away with the team classification victory.
Josie Talbot
“It is difficult to express how pleased I am with this victory. It means a lot to me! To be honest, I did not expect us to hold on until the finish line. I was very nervous and thought the peloton would pass us, but that didn’t happen. Together with Quinty Ton, I really wanted to finish the job and give the team a second stage victory. It’s great that we succeeded. As a team, we had a fantastic week in the Tour of Chongming Island.”
Jessica Allen (Sports Director)
“The plan for today was to gain seconds during the stage and win the overall classification with Georgia Baker. The girls did a great job throughout the race. In the final three kilometres, there was a breakaway and we had Josie Talbot and Quinty Ton in it. The breakaway managed to stay away and Josie and Quinty played the game very well. I am super happy for Josie, she has achieved the biggest victory of her career. She has worked hard for the team all year and deserves a win. As a team, we are of course also very satisfied, because we are leaving with two stage victories and the team classification. These successes show what you can achieve with strong motivation. Now all eyes are on the Tour of Guangxi.”
Tour of Chongming Island stage 3 results
1. Josie Talbot (Team Liv AlUla Jayco)2:34:19
2. Riejanne Markus st
3. Anne Knijnenberg st
Photos: Sprint Cycling
