Alice Sharpe has jumped straight off the track into the RideLondon Classique and has gotten into the mix on the road against the biggest names in the sport.
Sharpe (28) claimed a bronze medal in the Madison, with Mia Griffin, at the UCI Nations Cup in Milton, Canada, less that two weeks ago and started RideLondon yesterday as part of the IBCT UCI Continental team. Fellow Irish riders Megan Armitage and Griffin are part of the same team line-up in the World Tour three-day.
Today on stage 2 - some 141.7km from Chelmsford to Epping - the main field was whittled down by half, to just 50 riders, when the riders swept in to the finish for the bunch sprint that decided the outcome.
Fastest rider in the world this year, Lorena Wiebes (Team DSM), claimed her 6th win of the season, from 17 outings, ahead of former world road race champion Marta Bastianelli (UAE Team ADQ) and Emma Norsgaard (Movistar).
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Sharpe made the main bunch on a day when the field was scattered over 17½ minutes, with the speed and two 1km climbs on the finishing circuit took their toll. The Irish rider, who was fending for herself against the lead-out formations, took 14th place in the final dash to the line.
That result followed a very solid performance on yesterday's 136.5km opener into Maldon, where the uphill finish split to pieces what remained of the main field. Wiebes claimed victory from world road race champion Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo), with Norsgaard 3rd and Tour of Flanders and Strade Bianche winner Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx) in 4th.
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The first seven riders finished on the same time, with the climb to the line then causing small gaps all through the field. Sharpe lost just nine seconds to the winner, a really strong performance.
Armitage was 91st on the opening stage, at 3:37, while Griffin was 93rd at 3:48. On today's stage 2, Armitage was 68th, at 2:00, while Griffin placed 91st at 6:14.
In the overall, with just tomorrow's stage 3 remaining - an 85.3km pan flat circuit race in London - Wiebes leads by 18 seconds from Balsamo, with Norsgaard 3rd at 19 seconds. Sharpe is in 16th place at 36 seconds.
