Cycling Road World Championships 2015: Friday Results, Times, Updated Schedule
Kevin Ledanois and Chloe Dygert took the gold medals in the men's under-23 and junior women's races of the 2015 Cycling Road World Championships on Friday, both of them making the difference on the cobbled ascent of Libby Hill.
Dygert was part of an early break and dropped her fellow riders before finishing solo, while Ledanois took full advantage of some fantastic work from his French team-mates, timing a late jump to perfection.
Here's a look at the results from Friday, as well as the upcoming schedule:
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| 1 | Chloe Dygert (United States of America) | 1:42:16 |
| 2 | Emma White (United States of America) | 0:01:23 |
| 3 | Agnieszka Skalniak (Poland) | 0:01:28 |
| 4 | Yumi Kajihara (Japan) | 0:01:41 |
| 5 | Susanne Andersen (Norway) | Same Time |
| 6 | Elisa Balsamo (Italy) | Same Time |
| 7 | Grace Garner (Great Britain) | Same Time |
| 8 | Yara Kastelijn (Netherlands) | Same Time |
| 9 | Jessica Pratt (Australia) | Same Time |
| 10 | Ida Jansson (Sweden) | Same Time |
| Sept. 26 | Junior Men |
| Elite Women | |
| Sept. 27 | Elite Men |
Libby Hill was always going to play a big part in the road races, and the French team took full advantage of the steep, cobbled climb and its proximity to the finish line, pushing the pace before launching Ledanois, who held on until the finish line.
The UCI's official Twitter account shared this footage of the peloton navigating the climb, and even at low speeds, you could see the riders struggling:
The course in Richmond, Virginia, looks tailor-made for the bigger, more powerful riders, and the sprinters will have a good chance during Sunday's elite men's race. But as the French riders showed on Friday, a late jump will do the trick as well, provide the peloton gets worn out before the final lap.
A small break spent most of the day at the front of the race, with the peloton giving chase and never allowing the lead to grow too much. During the final lap, the pace suddenly spiked, and by the time the riders approached Libby Hill, most teams had been decimated.
Ledanois was well protected and had enough left in the tank to jump with one kilometer left to go, and the counter-attacks behind him came too late. Giant-Alpecin pro rider Koen de Kort was impressed:
In the junior women's road race, Dygert predictably took the gold, winning her second rainbow jersey of the week after dominating the time trials.
The 18-year-old escaped with three fellow riders before dropping her companions on one of the hill sections. Despite the group of three working hard behind her, Dygert managed to keep her lead large enough so she could take her time navigating the final corners.
Global Cycling Network's Neal Rogers was impressed:
Emma White finished second, giving the fans in Richmond even more reasons to cheer, while Poland's Agnieszka Skalniak completed the podium.
As Cycling News reported, Dygert explained why she didn't celebrate when crossing the finish line:
"When I was working with the group of four we were taking pulls and I felt pretty strong. I wasn’t really tired. I knew I had the legs and when I did go off that really wasn’t the plan, but I just kind of looked back and had a little gap. So I thought, "OK, let’s just keep going."
I didn’t want to crash. I don't know, I just don’t think there should be anything more than celebrating with your team. I was just honoured to be on the USA team and do it for the USA.
"
Formerly a cyclocross star, Dygert looks ready to make the full-time transition to road cycling, where her raw power and excellent position on the bike make her a strong candidate to be excellent against the clock and in long breaks. Women's cycling has been dominated by all-rounders in the past few years, but the young American may be about to buck that trend.
The 2015 World Championships will continue with the junior men's and elite women's races on Saturday, before the elite men take to the course on Sunday.
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