Off and running: new Trek-Segafredo women’s team gets maiden win on debut
Canada's Alison Jackson fourth in Tour Down Under Stage 1
Brand new women’s squad Trek-Segafredo won at its debut in Stage 1 of the 2.1-rated Santos Women’s Down Under in Birdwood, South Australia on Thursday. Italian Letizia Paternoster triumphed out a bunch sprint, with Canada’s Alison Jackson (Team TIBCO-SVB) fourth and Rally’s Sara Bergen eleventh.
That feeling when you win Ziptrak Stage 1 of the 2019 Santos Women's #TourDownUnder! ?♀️??
? @letypaternoster (TRS)
? @Sar_Roy (MTS)
? Arlenis Sierra (ASA) pic.twitter.com/Rxewz5uDxQ— Santos Tour Down Under ??♀️ (@tourdownunder) January 10, 2019
Trek’s day didn’t start off well, as one of its major signings, Finn Lotta Lepistö, could not start due to illness.
The riders had 112.9-km to tackle on the first of four stages.
A few QOMs and intermediate sprints, but this stage is really about the final dash to the line in Birdwood.
Hosking, Lepisto, Roy, Sierra, Barbieri, Bergen, Wiasak, Ankudinoff, Macdonald and Whitehouse to be in the mix for the win. My tip Wiasak #tourdownunder #WTDU #TDU pic.twitter.com/iVYIWoqH6n
— Australian Cycling Insider (@AusCycInsider) January 9, 2019
The field stayed together during the day, with action at the intermediate sprints and QOM points.
Full gas to the top of the QOM @holdencycling @CipolliniTeam @AstanaTeam @tourdownunder #wtdu pic.twitter.com/PVSfmirlPq
— Kirsty Baxter (@kirstybaxter79) January 10, 2019
Paternoster was well protected and got the lead out she wanted, powering ahead of Australian Sarah Roy of Mitchelton-Scott and Arlenis Sierra (Cuba) of Canadian Marie-Soleil Blais’s Astana squad.
Stage 2 ends on the 10 percent grades of Mengler Hill in the heat and it will be a tough ask of Paternoster to keep her ochre jersey with 82-riders within 10-seconds.
Santos Women’s Tour Down Under Stage 1
1) Letizia Paternoster (Italy/Trek-Segafredo) 3:10:28
2) Sarah Roy (Australia/Mitchelton-Scott) s.t.
3) Arlenis Sierra (Cuba/Astana) s.t.
4) Alison Jackson (Canada/Team TIBCO-SVB) s.t.
11) Sara Bergen (Canada/Rally) s.t.
26) Marie-Soleil Blais (Canada/Astana) s.t.
74) Gillian Ellsay (Canada/Rally) s.t.
