Cycling-Vollering wins women's Vuelta for second straight year
(Reuters) -Dutch cyclist Demi Vollering was crowned La Vuelta Femenina champion for a second successive year as the FDJ-Suez rider claimed victory in style with a powerful display in the final stage on Saturday.
In a foggy and rain-soaked climb to Alto de Cotobello, Vollering surged away from the chasing pack in the final kilometre and crossed the finish line ahead of Swiss Marlen Reusser and fellow Dutchwoman Anna van der Breggen.
After seven stages, Vollering ended the competition one minute and one second ahead of Reusser in the overall standings, with Van der Breggen a further 15 seconds behind in third place.
"It's really cool to win this race for the second time in a row. I also wanted this stage victory in Cotobello," Vollering said.
"I decided to wait for as long as possible to launch my attack. It was hard to wait, but I'm happy that I won the way I did. I'm always looking forward to proving my talent, and I'm already thinking of the next races."
Vollering, who also won the Tour de France Femmes title in 2023, moved from SD Worx to FDJ-Suez this year.
"I'm really proud of what we achieved here with the team. It was nice to see us succeed like we did," the 28-year-old said.
"It's a bit scary to come into a Grand Tour with a new team, because you don't know how it will go. In this stage race, we found each other well on the bike and proved we can work really well together."
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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