FIRST PROFESSIONAL WIN FOR ERJA BIANCHI

Still in her first few months as an elite rider racing beyond her home nation, Italy’s Erja Bianchi claimed her maiden professional victory with a thundering sprint on stage four of Gracia Orlová in the Czech Republic.

After playing a support role across the opening two climbing-focused stages – where Emily Dixon secured back-to-back wins – fast-finishing Erja was the team’s focal point heading into the race’s first sprint opportunity.

Disappointed with her performance in the hillier stages, Erja put aside any self-doubt and repaid her team’s faith with a milestone victory that she was ecstatic to secure.

“I’m super happy, really. I was struggling a lot these past two days, so this win is really satisfying. It’s what I needed to get my energy back so I can be who I want to be for the team and also for myself. I’m so, so happy.”

The bubbly and vibrant 18-year-old – aptly nicknamed ‘Energia’ – was full of praise for her five teammates, who worked tirelessly in her service throughout the six-lap, 97km race. As in the previous bunch stages, the Generation squad again demonstrated unity and race maturity well beyond their years.

“They’re an incredible team, they did everything needed,” Erja exclaimed. “They worked so hard, closing every attack and delivering a fantastic lead-out. Without them, I couldn’t have done what I did. I’m so grateful.”

“In the sprint, we had a really good train. Awen [Roberts] started and stayed on the front for a long time, then Jule [Märkl] worked, followed by Joëlle [Messemer] to guide me into the sprint. It was truly an amazing job.”

This stage four success came just hours after the stage three time trial – a demanding double-race day that tested both physical and mental resilience.

Against the clock on a 13km flat, straight course, Emily performed superbly, finishing sixth, only six seconds off victory and averaging just shy of a rapid 46kph. Crucially, she retained her general classification lead despite pre-stage nerves and questions around how she would stack up against more experienced time-triallists. In the afternoon circuit race, she once again kept her GC rivals at bay, now holding an eight-second advantage over Liechti (NXT) and 23 seconds over Moerman (BEL).

Sunday’s final stage has dual objectives – another stage win and the general classification with Emily. The 104km circuit race features significantly more climbing per lap than today’s, setting up a tough final hurdle for Team Generation. It is certainly not a foregone conclusion, but based on the strength, cohesion, and race intelligence shown so far in Czechia, the team has every chance of achieving both targets.

HOW TO FOLLOW

Stage 5 | Sun, May 03 | Orlová – Orlová | 104.1km | 1072m elevation | start: 10:00 – 12:40 CET.

Gracia Orlová is not broadcast live, but real-time tracking and results will be available on the event’s website. The race can also be followed via #GraciaOrlova, as well as through the CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto social channels.