Lara Gillespie goes so close to victory at Nokere Koerse | Video

Lara Gillespie of Ireland and Team UAE Team ADQ has been in great form on the road for her trade team so far this season (Photo by Rhode Van Elsen-Getty Images)

Lara Gillespie has gone very close to victory at the Nokere Koerse Belgian semi classic today, with the Irish UAE Team ADQ rider coming through like a steam train at the finish.

However, she had perhaps left herself too much to do, after falling back a little into the front of the bunch just before the sprint started. Though she made ground rapidly, Gillespie just ran out of road to overhaul all of those ahead of her.

Victory went to Marta Lach (Team SD Worx-Protime), in a sprint from a reduced bunch, with a photo finish to decide between Linda Zanetti (Uno-X Mobility) and Gillespie for 2nd and 3rd.

In the end, Lach won it by a clear margin, after a sprint on a gradual incline all the way to the finish. Zanetti was 2nd and Ireland's Gillespie in 3rd at the end of 132km of racing in the 1.Pro-ranked event.

That was Gillespie's fourth podium finish of the season to date as she was 3rd on a stage of UAE Tour (WT), 2nd at Fenix Omloop van het Hageland (1.1) and 3rd at Le Samyn des Dames (1.1).

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Today's performance was also good news for Gillespie in confirming her crash at Ixina GP Oetingen p/b Lotto (1.Pro) last week, when she was forced to abandon, has not derailed her early season efforts.

More to come.

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