Joëlle Messemer crossed the line victorious once again at La Volta Osona Femenina, adding another win to her impressive tally after finishing third in the prologue and winning stage one. Jule Märkl, third on the first stage, went one better today – making a late charge to take second place.

This third day of Volta Osona Femenina offered 81 kilometres of gentler terrain, featuring longer drags and two ascents of the category two Sant Marc climb (1.5km at 4.5%). Emily Dixon sewed up the QOM classification by winning both primes on Sant Marc, as well as on another category three climb. Meanwhile, Jule scored a crucial handful of points in the finish-line passages to secure the intermediate sprints jersey.

Not to be left out of the accolades, Awen Roberts was awarded the most combative rider jersey for her aggressive efforts to animate the race. CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto Generation also claimed the best team award for the day, earned by their combined stage times.

In the overall classification, Joëlle finished second, just nine seconds behind the prologue winner from the opening day, Laura Gomez (Massi Baix-Ter). Jule placed fifth, 20 secs back, while Awen and Emily took eighth and tenth respectively – all within 29 secs of the win. With no bonus seconds available, the only way to overturn the general classification lead was to make a decisive breakaway stick, and this formidable foursome left everything out on the roads to try and achieve that.

Stage victor Joëlle shared how the team approached the final GC battle and how the race-defining kilometres unfolded:

“The race was very good. We tried our best to also get the GC win, especially in the last 30km – we attacked almost every minute. We tried our best, but Massi [Baix-Ter] was also strong and really wanted to keep the jersey. In the end, we had four jerseys for four riders, so this was also quite good.”

Joëlle went on to reflect on the overall race day, before breaking down how the final sprint unfolded:

“Today was super hot on the roads compared to yesterday and the condition of the roads was also not that good, but I tried my best to stay calm and save energy. There weren’t much crashes so everything was more relaxed for the team today. In the final kilometre, I had Emily in front of me – she did a very, very good lead-out until 200 metres to go. The other riders then began to overtake me, but I thought to myself ‘I haven’t even started my sprint’, so I knew I could still beat them. Then, I started my sprint, and I felt super good. I’m also really happy to get one and two with Jule, but the whole team did a good job overall – Awen in the attacks and Emily also in the breaks. The others were super strong today.”

Now, hear from the three riders who shared in and contributed to the success during these three days of La Volta Osona Femenina.

Jule Märkl – Intermediate Sprints Classification Winner

“I think we did a really good job again. Today, we were in a position to defend our jerseys, and we did that really well. Emily won every QOM, and I took some more points in the intermediate sprints, so we brought it home. We also tried to go for the GC, with everyone attacking, but unfortunately, all our small breakaways got caught again. No regrets though – we tried our best and we are happy to make the best of it with first and second in the stage. For sure, I’m happy to finally stand on a podium again after a while, and it makes it even better with my best friend Joëlle. 

It was nice to race where we are one of the strongest teams because it’s just a different kind of racing. Also, this success keeps morale high for the big upcoming UCI races.”

Awen Roberts – Stage Two Combativity Award Winner

“I think during the last three days we showed what teamwork is all about, with all five riders working so well together and helping each other through racing and mishaps. I feel we really united as a team, putting into practice what we discussed and planned, and we all valued each other’s efforts. It was a great feeling to see all the hard work pay off, and this would not have been possible without the massive backup from the whole CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto team.

Taking away from this race, I feel I have developed further as a rider. I concentrated throughout the races and was fully committed from start to finish – whether attacking, chasing attacks, leading out sprints, or just being there for the other team members. It felt so good when Joëlle sprinted for the wins, Jule won the sprint competition, and Emily took the QOM. It is clear that every rider is crucial to building a successful team. It was also nice to win the combativity jersey today; it shows how well we worked as a team and supported each other throughout the race.”

Emily Dixon – Mountains Classification Winner

“It was tough in the heat and wind out there today. After the pressure of high-level UCI races over the past few weeks, it was refreshing to come into this race with nothing to lose. It allowed us to try new things and test our skills as a team together.

Taking the QOM jersey, but most importantly being able to play a role in the lead-outs for Joëlle in the final sprints, gives me much-needed confidence heading into the bigger races ahead. We’ve proven to ourselves this weekend that we are strong enough to compete against the bigger teams again. I’m really looking forward to the next few weeks of racing with the team, and I think we can take a lot of confidence from this – that we are strong as one unit and capable of big things.

COMING UP

Emily, Jule, and Awen are already well on their way north, embarking on the long nine-hour journey to Novi Ligure in Italy’s Piedmont province for the Giro dell’Appennino Donne Elite on June 24 – just two sleeps away.

An update on Maddie le Roux, who unfortunately crashed and was forced to abandon stage one: a small fracture has been discovered. No surgery is required at this stage, and her outlook for returning to the bike is promising. Although Jule wasn’t originally scheduled to race Giro dell’Appennino, she has replaced Maddie in the line-up. The team will also be joined by WorldTeam rider Maria Martins to complete the four-rider roster for the Italian one-day race.

Giro dell’Appennino Donne Elite

UCI 1.2 | Tuesday June 14  | 94.8km | 980m elevation | Start 10:00 CET – fastest finish 12:45 CET.