Charlotte Kool of Team dsm-firmenich PostNL emerged victorious in the second stage of the 2024 Baloise Ladies Tour, securing her first win of the season in a gripping mass sprint finish. The race, which commenced and concluded in Zulte, spanned 127 kilometres and featured two ascents of Nokereberg before flattening out for a dramatic sprint finale.
A relatively calm day through the Belgian countryside saw a few breakaway groups come and go, but the peloton remained in control. Team dsm-firmenich PostNL grouped up well throughout the afternoon, helping to set the pace in the bunch while conserving energy and keeping each other safe. As the final five kilometres approached, the breakaway was caught, and those in the orange stripes moved up well on the left side of the road. Beginning to up the pace as the flamme rouge approached, the team stretched the bunch out and ensured Kool was out of any danger or mishaps. With the last lead-out lighting things up, Kool kicked on the pedals, putting her head down and powering to a fantastic win.
Kool demonstrated her sprinting power by outpacing Daria Pikulik and Sara Fiorin. Reflecting on her win, Kool remarked, “Today I think everything finally fell into place for us. We showed once again that we have an amazingly strong team and lead out. I’m just really happy and this is a well-deserved win for the whole team.”
Despite her eighth-place finish, Lorena Wiebes, who had previously won the prologue and the first stage, retained her overall lead. However, her position in the race was marred by a late incident. Wiebes recounted the moment on social media, explaining, “We were in the run-up to the sprint and I was following my lead-out Christine Majerus when I got a heavy push from the left. Luckily there was space on the right, or I would have crashed at high speed. My chain was off and I was clicked out. So that was it for riding a sprint today.”
Wiebes continued, “There is too little respect in this peloton. When I was younger, I had more respect for the top sprinters,” she said. She also highlighted the importance of rider behaviour, stating, “We can talk about safety measures by the race organisers all that we want, but it all starts with the riders. The organisers of Baloise Ladies Tour are doing a good job. This is a very nice race, but due to the behaviour of the riders, you have so many crashes. I just hope by speaking up, something changes because this is dangerous for every rider.”
Daria Pikulik, who secured second place, was pleased with her team’s performance despite missing out on the win. “We are closer to victory so it’s good we can always try and do our best,” Pikulik said. “We missed a little bit of the position in the final kilometre so I had to sprint early but we can still be happy about how we did today compared to yesterday’s bad luck.”
The race continues with a 94-kilometre stage around Zwevegem, followed by an evening 11-kilometre time trial.
2024 Baloise Ladies Tour Stage 2
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Main photo credit: Cor Vos