A British cyclist from Ineos wins his first Ardennes Classic, Vos pip After an early mistake in celebration, Lorena Wiebes is on the line.
On Sunday, Tom Pidcock won the Amstel Gold Race for men, while Marianne Vos won the women’s division with a frantic dash to the finish line—but only after Lorena Wiebes prematurely celebrated.
This time, Pidcock proved to be the strongest in the closing meters, holding off Marc Hirschi and Tiesj Benoot to clinch victory in the Dutch town of Valkenburg. Pidcock finished second in the event in 2021 after losing to winner Wout Van Aert in a sprint.
That implies that the rider from Ineos expands his already remarkable resume by adding a first Ardennes classic. Following Nicole Cooke’s victory in the women’s race in 2003, he is the second British person to win the event and the first man to do so.
The women’s race in 2024 was delayed significantly due to an accident involving a police motorcycle rider who was overseeing the event. It seemed like Wiebes had done enough when the leaders raced over the last few meters following the restart, but she sat up to celebrate just shy of the finish line, allowing her Dutch colleague Vos to jab her bike forward and steal the victory.
Wiebes remarked, “I made an extremely dumb error. “I’m extremely let down. I’ll now attempt to exact retribution down the road. I’ll have trouble sleeping for a few nights.