Liv Racing showed itself from an amazing side on Tuesday afternoon at Le Samyn des Dames in Belgium. The team had a grip on the race and prepared Lotte Kopecky excellently for the final sprint which she completed in a spectacular way.
“It was a relatively short race with barely 92 kilometres. Lars Boom told us prior to the race: ‘We are not appointing anyone as the lead woman today.’ I really liked that, I could ride freely along the way and could attack whenever I saw the opportunity”, says Lotte Kopecky.
“We were perfectly in the race from start to finish as a team, we rode attentively at the front. In the last kilometres, Alison Jackson broke away with a group – if she had stayed away, I would have been happy as well. When it became clear that it would end in a sprint, Evy Kuijpers kept me perfectly out of the wind in the last kilometre. As a result, I was able to start the final sprint relatively fresh.”
The early victory in the season is very welcome. “Last weekend I just about missed the podium. I have to admit that was rather disappointing. This victory somewhat makes up for that”, says the proud winner.
The right moment
“We wanted to create the best possible situation with our team, which, fortunately, happened”, says sports director Lars Boom. “When Lotte rode at the front for a while and there was no pushing from the others, we had a strong team behind ready to do the work. The response was good, gaps were closed where necessary. This was the confirmation for me that the women are okay. In the end, Alison Jackson, Evy Kuijpers and Marta Jaskulska prepared Lotte excellently for the final sprint. She remained calm and waited for the right moment.”
Photo credits: Cor Vos