Cyclingflash
Karlijn Swinkels wins after thrilling Trofeo Binissalem-Andratx

Karlijn Swinkels wins after thrilling Trofeo Binissalem-Andratx

Dutch success at the Trofeo Binissalem-Andratx for women. Karlijn Swinkels crossed the line as the winner in the challenging Spanish one-day race. The UAE Team ADQ rider defeated Liane Lippert and Mie Bjørndal Ottestad after an exciting finale.

While the men will race later this week on Mallorca, the women were already in action on the popular holiday island. After the Trofeo Marratxi-Felanitx (won by Maeva Squiban) and the Trofeo Llucmajor (Cat Ferguson), Monday was the day for the Trofeo Binissalem-Andratx.

Top riders like Squiban, Liane Lippert, Niamh Fisher-Black, and Riejanne Markus were preparing for a tough day in the saddle, as the route featured two climbs not to be underestimated en route: Coll den Claret (10.9 km at 3.3%) and Coll de sa Gramola (3.2 km at 5.1%), leading to the demanding final climb (2.3 km at 8.7%) in Andratx.

Race shortened due to (too) strong winds
The very strong gusty wind could also play a significant role, but the organizers had to delay the start by an hour and shorten the race by thirty kilometers to ensure the riders’ safety. After a relatively calm opening phase—with not much happening—the race exploded in the hill zone.

Several top riders saw their chance to shake things up, eventually forming an elite group of eight riders. From the front sat Cat Ferguson, the winner of the Trofeo Llucmajor, along with her Movistar teammate Liane Lippert, Mie Bjørndal Ottestad, Anna Henderson, Debora Silvestri, Eleonora Camilla Gasparrini, and the Dutch stars Karlijn Swinkels and Thalita de Jong.

Elite group stays out of reach
This strong breakaway quickly built a one-minute lead over a heavily reduced peloton, which was now all hands on deck. But no matter what teams like Lidl-Trek and St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 tried in pursuit, the gap to the eight leaders kept growing. Entering the last five kilometers, the advantage was nearly a minute and a half.

The chasers had to give up on any chance of victory, while the leaders prepared for an intense and above all tough finale on the slopes of the final climb, which is over two kilometers long. On the steepest sections, everyone was waiting for the first real acceleration, but surprisingly it never came. The riders initially hesitated, but Gasparrini eventually couldn’t hold back any longer.

The Italian launched the first attack, but was soon passed by Ottestad, Lippert, and Swinkels—the three best climbers in the lead group. They managed to break away in the final kilometer and were set to contest the win. Lippert made an attempt to drop her two rivals, but ultimately the race came down to a sprint.

Victory for the Netherlands
In that sprint, the exceptionally strong Swinkels was clearly unmatched. The Dutch rider unleashed her fast legs, created a gap, and convincingly beat Lippert and Ottestad. The 27-year-old Swinkels notched her eighth professional win. She succeeds her compatriot De Jong on the roll of honor; De Jong finished fourth this time.

Watch here the final kilometer and winning sprint of Swinkels: