Chloé Dygert claimed another podium for CANYON//SRAM Racing on today’s second stage at Vuelta a Burgos. On an echelon-filled day, there were just twelve riders that came to the line for the uphill sprint finish in Lermar, Spain. With her second place, Dygert moves to second on the general classification, four seconds behind leader Lorena Wiebes (SDW).

Earlier, Dygert’s teammate Soraya Paladin extended her lead in the QOM jersey, collecting maximum points at both opportunities on the 119km stage. Paladin also seized three bonus seconds in the intermediate sprint, leaving her fifth overall. Dygert, Paladin and Agnieska Skalniak-Sójka rode strongly in the leading group all day. The first split created a front group of around 45 riders, though it quickly reduced as more riders dropped in each crosswind section that followed. The finish into Lermar was on a narrow and steep cobblestoned climb, creating a fight for position from the twelve remaining riders to have the best line on the cobblestones.

“My main focus was to stay in the front group,” said Paladin. “It was hard from the beginning. When I was still there at the QOMs and intermediate sprint, I decided to invest some energy. In a stage race, every second counts. Today was a kind of throwback to UAE Women when the race exploded even before kilometre zero. I was ready mentally to suffer a lot. It was really helpful to have Maggy (Bäckstedt) on the radio today.”

“The final kilometre was hard, and I was trying to go as fast as possible to finish the suffering! Chloé is our best rider for this type of final, and she was really close to getting the win,” stated Paladin.

About the echelons today, Dygert explained, “I always like to joke around and say I’m from Indiana, so I know how to ride in the wind! Still, I was learning something new today. Riders are panicking and fighting so hard to stay on, and it gets chaotic when gaps open. I got caught behind a few splits today, but that’s because of positioning on my part.”

In the sprint, Wiebes was first across the line but was later relegated by the commissaries for her move against Dygert in the final 200 metres, pushing the CANYON//SRAM Racing rider off line. Dygert, who had crossed the line third, was then officially second, and Demi Vollering (SDW), who crossed the line second, was handed the stage win.

“The sprint is still a learning process for me. It’s always easy to look back and say I could have done this or that differently. When Wiebes made contact, my finger hit my shifter twice and bogged me down, so it was hard to get going again.”

Dygert added, “I’m so happy to be a part of this team. We all work well together; it’s just a matter of time before everything clicks and we can pull off a win. Very happy with Soraya; she made it look easy to get those QOM points!”

HOW TO WATCH

Vuelta a Burgos can be followed on Twitter with #VueltaBurgos. The stages are broadcast daily from 14:30CEST on TDP, CYLTV, TV3, GCN, Eurosport, Burgos 8, Claro TV, FloBikes, RTVC, and Zello app.

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