Liv Racing Xstra was again in the front during the third spring classic of this season. In Le Samyn Rachele Barbieri just missed the top-10.
The peloton stayed together for a long time during this year`s edition of Le Samyn. After the first three cobbled sectors at Vert Pignon, La Roquette and the Chemin de Wiheries the peloton was still complete. On the Côte des Nonettes and Rue Belle Vue some riders had to let go the peloton, but it lasted till the final 40 kilometres before the real action started. Small groups attacked, but despite a nice lead all came back together in the final 10 kilometres. A new attack of a duo with 6 kilometres to go put the pressure on the chase group again.
Liv Racing Xstra was well presented in the chase group with Amber van der Hulst, Silke Smulders, Valerie Demey and Rachele Barbieri. For a moment it seemed the two escapees would make it till the finish, but in the final 100 metres the chase group caught them. In the sprint Emma Norsgaard took the win, Barbieri just finished outside the top-10 as number 13.
“We worked well together as team and did some hard work in the chase. Unfortunately my legs weren`t as good as I expected in the finale. I lost some positions in the sprint preparation and missed out on the top-10. I feel a little disappointed about that, because the team worked really hard for me. On the other side it feels great to fight for the victory again after such a long period. I hope in the near future I will have some new opportunities with this great team”, Barbieri told after the race.