Arlenis Sierra third in points classification in Tour de California

May 20, 2019

The best Cuban road cyclist Arlenis Sierra achieved two podiums this weekend in the fifth edition of the Tour of California and finished third in the points classification, which constituted her third participation in the prestigious cycling event, which is scorable for the Olympic ranking and was won for the second time by Dutch cyclist Anna Van Der Breggen, Olympic and world champion.

In the first stage of the very strong race, the Caribbean cyclist finished third after 96.5 kilometers that included four mountain passes and a flying finish. According to the description of the official website, Breggen, from the Boels Dolmans team, attacked with five kilometers remaining to the finish and left in second and third places, Italian Elisa Balsamo (Valcar Cylance) and our Arlenis (Astana), respectively, 18 seconds behind.

The second day was not good at all for the three-time Pan American champion and she lost 3:33 minutes with respect to the leaders after finishing in 22nd place in the stage. The shortest stretch (74 km) proved to be a trap for many cyclists due to strong winds and steep climbs, except for Breggen, who finished second to her teammate Katherine Hall on the podium, which was completed by South African Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (CCC-Liv).

Arlenis returned to stellar performances in the closing of the Tour, when in the longest route (126 km) she was only surpassed by Balsamo in a sprint in which the Cuban came from behind to the front with impressive power, good for adding 12 important points, with which she solidified her third place in the sprint classification with 21 units.

"I'm happy with the result, although one always aspires to more. It's one of the strongest competitions in America and in the world. I faced rivals of high caliber and the most important thing: they already respect me," said the Caribbean cyclist via Facebook.

Arlenis finished in 18th place in the individual general classification and led her Astana club to seventh place in the team standings, while her teammate, Colombian Blanca Liliana Moreno Canchon, won the mountain classification with 21 points.

Moreover, with this performance the athlete from Granma added 38 points to the Olympic ranking, which together with the 70 from fourth place in the continental event in Pachuca, Mexico, gave her this month of May 108 points. In the updated list from Sunday, May 19, she appeared in 15th place in the world with 889 points, with which she continues to lead Latin America.

It should be remembered that this is Arlenis's third participation in the very strong California event, with her best performance in 2017, when she finished third in the general classification, first in the points classification and among young riders, as well as achieved two partial podiums. Then, in 2018, she won the partial victory of the third stage, but finished fifth in the points classification.

Source: CubaDebate