Stage 2 of the Tour of Britain Women took the peloton over 114.3 demanding kilometers from Hartlepool to Saltburn-by-the-Sea. It was another tough day on British roads, featuring challenging terrain and aggressive racing from the very start.
After the early breakaway was reeled in, a new lead group formed at the front of the race. Both Eleonora Gasparrini and Karlijn Swinkels made the split, ensuring UAE Team ADQ was well represented in the key move of the day.
The stage was ultimately decided by a solo attack from Canada’s Mara Roldan (Team Picnic PostNL), who managed to hold off the chase and take a brilliant victory. Riejanne Markus (Lidl-Trek) finished second after a strong but unsuccessful attempt to bridge across.
Behind, the main chase group splintered in the final kilometers. Karlijn Swinkels was the only rider from the group able to stay in contention, eventually sprinting to sixth place at the finish in Saltburn. Her consistent performance sees her climb to fifth in the General Classification heading into Stage 3.
(ph. @gettysport)
