Norsgaard, back to the stick: 2nd in De Panne and new leader of the U23 WorldTour

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ONLY THE POWERFUL FINAL ATTACK OF GRACE BROWN (BEX) MANAGES TO BEAT THE DANISH MOVISTAR TEAM, AGAIN THE STRONGEST OF THE SPRINTERS IN A CLASSIC FLAMENCO WINDY.

The qualifiers for the 2021 season that Emma Norsgaard is offering at 21 years old are over. The Danish Movistar Team champion has once again left behind many of the best sprinters and women of the WorldTour classics, and only a successful move by the Australian Brown (BEX) has separated her from glory in the Classic Bruges – De Panne,raced this Thursday along the Flemish coast.

Biannic and Norsgaard, in the final selection. (c) Photo Gomez Sport

Norsgaard took centre stage on De Moeren’s windy and unprotected straight, within the laps of the final circuit, to break a peloton that was left with only 13 members in the lead, among them Emma and a great Aude Biannic. From this group, the aforementioned Brown jumped, less than twenty kilometres away from the finish, which the work of Aude and other teams with double representation could not beat.

Norsgaard, 2nd in goal. (c) Photo Gomez Sport

Norsgaard was the winner in the chasing sprint and took the first WWT podium of 2021 for the telephone lines, which also led her to top the UCI WorldTour U23 classification. She and her companions will again seek the elusive triumph on Sunday at Ghent-Wevelgem, the fourth round of the contest.

Celebrating on the podium. (c) Photo Gomez Sport

STATEMENTS / Emma Norsgaard:

“At the beginning the truth is that it was not a very hard race, until the circuit we were calm, but once in the final laps, it has not stopped for a moment. I like this type of race with wind and wear, and the more tired you get, the better for my conditions. Although it was a completely flat route, it was a beautiful day, I enjoyed it.

Smile, head up for the next one. (c) Photo Gomez Sport

When Brown jumped there was a certain rhythm behind and I thought we could catch it, but when we lost sight of it in a corner … I already realised that it would not be possible. Many teams have worked hard at the end, Aude has also helped me a lot, but Brown has shown to be very strong and I congratulate her. Victory does not come and hopefully that victory that we seek so much will happen soon. Then I can say that this is really my great season. We will continue fighting”.

Cover image (c): Photo Gomez Sport

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