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Arab News
11-02-2025
- Sport
- Arab News
‘A Dream Come True': Elisa Longo Borghini and UAE Team ADQ make history at the women's tour
'A dream come true.' For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport Those were the words of an elated Melissa Moncada, head of team at UAE Team ADQ, after her squad made history on Sunday by securing the overall win at their home race. The UAE Tour Women, part of the Women's WorldTour — the highest tier of women's cycling — has been a key target for the team since the race's first edition in 2023. Along with team classification, Italian star Elisa Longo Borghini claimed the prestigious general classification red jersey for UAE Team ADQ, with teammate Silvia Persico securing second in the GC. Karlijn Swinkels placed fifth overall, while Lara Gillespie claimed the black jersey in the Intermediate Sprints Classification — a remarkable achievement on her Women's WorldTour debut after being called up from the UAE squad's development team. Teammates Elynor Backstedt and sprinter Sofie van Rooijen, who bounced back from a crash on stage one, provided crucial support throughout the four days of racing. Longo Borghini's decisive attack on Jebel Hafeet on Stage 3 proved to be the turning point. With Persico setting a relentless pace, Longo Borghini launched a perfectly timed attack 3 km from the finish line, securing a dominant victory and virtually sealing the overall title. Following Longo Borghini was Persico in second place. The team's overall triumph was sealed on the final Stage 4 on Sunday, despite Lorena Wiebes of SD Worx-Protime dominating the sprint finishes, winning three of the four stages. A pivotal moment Speaking to Arab News at the end of the tour about the crucial moment in the race, Moncada praised the entire team's effort, particularly the dynamic between Longo Borghini and Persico on Stage 3. 'Persico really is an athlete that can defend and fight for the victory of the leader,' said Moncada. 'Even though she brought Elisa to the amazing position that she was in, she fought to the end and arrived in second position. It's like they almost crossed the line together, so it was amazing.' For Persico, who has known Longo Borghini for years but had never raced alongside her until now, the partnership felt instinctive. 'It really seemed that we were always racing together. We just understand each other really well,' said Persico. 'I just started to work at the bottom of the climb and I was just pacing a bit hard. I wanted to drop as many girls as possible. And then when Elisa attacked, in my mind I was 'okay, job finished, I can rest.' But then I saw that I was feeling pretty good — a bit tired, yes, of course. And I said, 'okay, I'll try to do my best for the achievement, so maybe second place.' And yeah, I didn't give up and, in the end, I finished second.' Reflections on a team victory At the team presentations at the Fatima bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy on Sunday morning, ahead of the final day of racing, Longo Borghini — who won the race's inaugural edition in 2023 and counts the 2024 Giro d'Italia Women and Tour of Flanders among her many victories — reflected on her Stage 3 win. 'The race was very spectacular,' she said, acknowledging the crucial role her team played. 'Everyone was really committed to trying to win the stage and take the overall, and then you saw how the team was racing — it was pretty incredible.' Following the conclusion of the race, with UAE Team ADQ securing first and second in the GC, the sprinter classification, and the team classification, Longo Borghini emphasized the unity that led to their dominant performance. 'It feels quite amazing,' she said. 'From the very beginning of the season, the team pointed out that they wanted us to perform well here in the UAE. And of course, we came here for GC, but in the end, we are walking away with first and second on GC, the sprinter classification, and the team classification. And the one I'm the most proud of is the team classification because it shows how strong we were throughout these four days. And it's really been a team victory.' Longo Borghini, in the first year of a three-year contract with UAE Team ADQ, has firmly established herself as a cornerstone of the team's ambitions and according to both management and riders, the team is unified and riding as one. 'You can see the unity there. It's not forced,' said Cherie Pridham, UAE Team ADQ's head of sport. 'It's been actually one of my best weeks on a cycling team. To do that with these girls has been amazing. To have a leader like Elisa Longo Borghini with us, she just raises the bar and raises everybody's expectations — and ours as well, the staff — it's incredible.' The rise of women's cycling This UAE Tour Women was not only a historic moment for UAE Team ADQ but also for women's professional cycling. With crosswind conditions setting the scene, the UAE Tour Women set a record for the fastest-ever average speed in a Women's WorldTour race on Day 2, with an average speed of 48.407 km/h over the 111 km Al-Mirfa Sprint Stage. The leading group of five riders — including Longo Borghini, Lorena Wiebes, Lara Gillespie, Karlijn Swinkels, and Human Powered Health's Lily Williams — broke away early and held off the peloton. Pridham, a trailblazer as the first woman to hold a sport director role on a men's WorldTour team — a role she held prior to joining UAE Team ADQ — emphasized to Arab News at the conclusion of the race the significance of the race and the team's victory, highlighting the rapid evolution and growing professionalism of women's cycling, and in particular, UAE Team ADQ. 'I mean, we knew we were capable of it, and the work that we've all done in the background — the management continuously growing the team — it's just incredible,' she said. 'I'm lost for words. And I'm delighted for Melissa and the team, the management, and everyone that's put so much work and belief into this. The way the girls rode yesterday is just astounding. 'It's history. It really is,' she added. 'To see the sport grow — from where I was 25 years ago to how quickly it has evolved in just the last three years — it's unbelievable. And the way we operate at UAE Team ADQ is on par, I would say sometimes even better, than our men's team. I put myself on the line saying this, but women's cycling is definitely on the up, and it's incredible to be part of the growth.' The race's growing stature has not gone unnoticed by other teams. Oskar Scarsbrook, director of communications at Human Powered Health — a US-based team that elevated its women's squad to WorldTour status before its men's team — praised the event's prominence on the racing calendar. 'It's only been going on for three years, but it already feels like a statement piece on the WorldTour calendar. It's like, 'yeah, of course you're going to UAE in February for the UAE Tour.' It already feels like it has pride of place at the start of the year purely because of how good the racing has been.' One key factor contributing to the race's growing prestige is its comprehensive TV coverage, showcasing the intensity of competition from start to finish. 'TV coverage is the biggest thing with that,' he added. 'We've been lucky here because we've had it from kilometer one, which is massive. The crosswind stage on day two? The racing was quite literally from kilometer zero. In previous years, you would have joined with 40 minutes to go, and it would be like, 'okay, right, this is what happened.' And you'd have missed all the exciting stuff that set up what came later.' With the thrilling racing of the UAE Tour Women concluded, and the season just beginning, Longo Borghini and UAE Team ADQ have set the bar high. 'I'm very proud of every single teammate who made this possible,' she said. 'And I hope this is just the beginning.' Dawn Barnable is the founder and host of 'The Mettleset Podcast,' a platform dedicated to women in sport from across the region
The National
07-02-2025
- Sport
- The National
Lorena Wiebes makes it two from two after second stage of UAE Tour Women
Lorena Wiebes produced another sensational sprint to the finishing line to complete back-to-back victories in the UAE Tour Women on Friday. The SD Worx-Protime's Dutch rider punched her right hand in the air as she sprinted clear of a bunch of five rivals to complete her second stage win and retain the leader's jersey after the 111-kilometre trip from Al Dhafra Fort to Al Mirfa. Lily Williams (Human Powered Health) took second spot ahead of the UAE Team ADQ trio of Lara Gillispie, Elisa Longo Borghini and Karlijn Swinkels, who came home in that order. Wiebes, Gillespie, Williams, Longo Borghini and Swinkels were the five riders who battled through crosswinds to spend all day out in front, forming an echelon within the first few kilometres of the stage and holding off the peloton. 'I didn't expect to win from a group of only five riders that went so early, especially because I was last to come across and the peloton has been close to us for such a long time,' Wiebes said. 'We got a one minute lead in the headwind part, and we kept going. I was lucky to have three UAE riders in the group. They kept riding for the GC for Elisa [Longo Borghini]. 'It made it easier for me to sprint to victory. But you're never 100 per cent sure to win a sprint. Having won here two years ago, I knew which position I had to be in after the last curve. 'It felt like a very fast race all day, so I knew it was hard for the chasers. Now I hope to also win the last stage. It's something I'm yet to achieve in the UAE Tour.' It was a challenging second day of racing along the fast, flat desert roads, with an average speed of 48.4km per hour. 'I felt it was really fast. That's the thing that I knew from the chasing group behind, that it was hard to chase us back, as they could not go much faster than we did,' Wiebes said. Saturday's penultimate 152km Stage 3 from Al Ain Qasr Al Muwaiji to the summit of Jebel Hafeet is the longest and decisive sector which UAE Team ADQ will be using to set up Longo Borghini for the overall lead. The 2023 winner of the UAE Tour when racing for Lidi-Trek before her switch to UAE Team ADQ is well placed with her team backing her to the hilt. 'For sure it was the plan to go full gas from the start. We were prepared for the crosswinds, but it wasn't the plan to be only five riders in the lead,' Swinkels said of Stage 2. 'We had a tough day, but we had a plan to give time to Elisa [Longo Borghini] and she's happy to start tomorrow's stage with an advantage of one and a half minutes. 'She's strong in the mountains but she's also very strong in the crosswinds. I guess she'll have a bit less stress tomorrow. 'We were never really sure to stay away but we thought we could when the difference was two minutes. If we managed to keep the pace high, it would be hard for them to close the gap. 'In the last part, we gave all the energy we had left so the gap would be as big as possible. I think we did a really good job as a team. I don't think the Black Jersey (leader of the intermediate sprint) is a goal for us. I only went for it to favour Elisa with the bonus seconds. 'The Black Jersey is the warmest one so it's not what Elisa wanted to wear up to Jebel Hafeet. But we hope that after tomorrow, she'll wear the Red Jersey.' 1. L. Wiebes (Team SD Worx-Protime) - 2hr 17min 35sec 2. L. Williams (Human Powered Health) +0secs 3. L. Gillespie (UAE Team ADQ) +0 4. E. Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) +0 5. K. Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ) +6 1. L. Wiebes (Team SD Worx-Protime) - 6hr 14min 52sec 2. L. Gillespie (UAE Team ADQ) +13sec 3. L. Williams (Human Powered Health) +14 4. E. Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) +16 5. K. Swinkels (UAE Team ADQ) +21
