Lorena Wiebes has arrived in Paris and will compete in her first Olympic Video games because the chief of the Dutch workforce within the ladies’s street race on August 4.
Wiebes is taken into account the quickest sprinter in ladies’s street biking, however she has additionally remodeled herself into a strong climber in recent times. This has made her a favorite to win the gold medal, however she says she is heading into this weekend relaxed about her prospects.
“I’m actually trying ahead to it. I don’t actually really feel the strain but, however that may come within the coming days. Perhaps when now we have had the final workforce conferences, or when the boys have ridden their street race. Then you may style the Olympic Video games much more,” Wiebes mentioned in an interview with Wielerflits.
Wiebes mentioned that rising up, she participated in gymnastics, and so she has watched Olympic gymnasts resembling Simone Biles on TV throughout more moderen summer time Olympic Video games. Now that she is on the Video games herself, she mentioned she is taking a good greater curiosity in different sports activities.
“I’ve at all times adopted the Olympic Video games, however I used to be probably not concerned in them. Now that I’ve been chosen for the summer time Video games myself, I’ve began to delve a bit deeper into it. Then you definately begin to take a look at extra sports activities. Previously, I used to be primarily inquisitive about gymnastics. I nonetheless take a look at it with admiration. That’s as a result of I did acrobatic gymnastics myself as a toddler. I simply suppose it’s lovely to look at. The explosiveness that these ladies have is wonderful. Particularly now with Simone Biles, I can actually get pleasure from it,” she mentioned.
She mentioned that she had been eyeing the Paris Olympic Video games since 2020, however that she realised she may very well be a medal contender when the ladies’s street race route was introduced final yr.
The ladies’s street race is 158 kilometres lengthy with 1,700 metres of climbing and 9 named ascents, utilizing the identical run-out and ending circuits as the boys’s race and just one loop outdoors town centre, via the Vallée de Chevreuse.
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The peloton will then end on two laps of 18.4km, together with the Côte de la butte Montmartre earlier than the flat end alongside the Seine previous the Quai d’Orsay and ending on the Pont d’Iéna.
“When the course was offered final autumn, it instantly appealed to me. I like a finale with laps via town,” she mentioned.
“I instantly had the sensation in regards to the climb at Montmartre that it is a place the place the race could be determined. It’s a pretty quick climb. Really, all of the climbs within the loop usually are not very tough.
“I ought to usually have the ability to deal with them. After the reconnaissance of the course, I did achieve confidence in it, and from then on, I labored much more in direction of this race.”
Wiebes will spearhead a Dutch workforce which additionally contains Tour de France winner Demi Vollering, who might additionally win a medal in Paris, former multi-time world champion and Olympic champion Marianne Vos, and three-time time trial world champion Ellen van Dijk.
Nationwide coach Loes Gunnewijk confirmed the choice to nominate Wiebes because the workforce chief. If the race comes right down to a lowered group dash, and the Dutch workforce are all current on the entrance, Wiebes could have the perfect lead-out within the subject, and a transparent probability on the gold medal.
“It’s now commonplace follow that the nationwide coach presents us with our position and that we are able to take into consideration whether or not or not we wish it. In fact, I did not want any time to consider it,” Wiebes advised Wielerflits.
“In the identical phone dialog, I indicated that I used to be up for it. In fact, it grew to become extra of a precedence from that second on. Though I do attempt to work in direction of it as usually as potential.”
Wiebes mentioned that she is used to dealing with workforce management pressures in flat to hilly WorldTour racing with SD Worx-Protime, the place she typically shares that position with Belgium’s Lotte Kopecky, whereas her Dutch compatriot Vollering leads the workforce in most of the difficult one-days and mountainous stage races.
In reality, Wiebes and Kopecky, the reigning street race World Champion, are sometimes a tough-to-beat duo as commerce teammates and have claimed many 1-2 victories all through the final two seasons, which means they know one another’s strengths and weaknesses very properly. In Paris, they are going to be racing in opposition to each other and will probably be fascinating to see how they compete amongst their respective nationwide groups.
Wiebes has named the Italian workforce with former World Champion Elisa Balsamo and Giro d’Italia winner Elisa Longo Borghini and favourites, too.
“My purpose is to hold on to it so long as potential. I see Lotte as one of many major rivals in that, particularly as a result of the course is considerably paying homage to the road circuit of the World Championship in Glasgow, with twists and turns, the place she received the world title final yr,” Wiebes mentioned.
“The Italian block can also be very sturdy. The competitors is sort of massive anyway. Every part simply has to fall into place on Sunday. I’ll have the right preparation now, however so much can nonetheless go incorrect.”
If something does go incorrect, Wiebes mentioned the Dutch workforce comes ready with multiple card to play with Vollering, Vos, and Van Dijk, and any certainly one of them might win a medal.
“You may’t simply have a plan A. Now we have to have a number of plans. For me, it needs to be an ideal race that ends in a dash. However alongside the best way, something can go incorrect. A lot can occur,” she mentioned.
“That is why it is nice that now we have a number of ladies with Demi and Marianne who can end the match. We will play a number of trump playing cards, and now we have just one major purpose: Successful gold with the Netherlands.”
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