The streak of positive results continues for Elisa Balsamo who conquers a prestigious podium at the first women’s edition of the Scheldeprijs in Belgium. The race was won in a sprint by Lorena Wiebes who got the better of Emma Norsgaard in the final.
The race was very hectic and made nervous by the cold and rain with many crashes that also slowed down the Valcar – Travel & Service athletes. The most important action of the day was that of Daniek Hengeveld who, about 40 km from the finish, attempted a solitary escape. The maximum advantage of the fugitive was 1 minute and 20 seconds and the work of the sprinter teams – including that of the Valcar girls – Travel & Service – allowed the group to catch up with the Hengeveld a few kilometers from the finish. At 5 km from the end, Letizia Borghesi also tried to extend, but the race was decided in the sprint with the first win of the season for Wiebes.
“I am satisfied with today’s performance” comments Davide Arzeni, sporting director of Valcar – Travel & Service “losing from athletes like Wiebes and Norsgaard can be there, the important thing is that, once again, we raced to win. The race was affected by the cold and the falls, Vittoria Guazzini was not very well and Silvia Persico, Silvia Pollicini and Chiara Consonni behaved well and worked hard not to leave Elisa alone in the final. Perhaps, on a team level, we could have done something more in the final, but we are talking about details. Once again I saw my girls equal to the best in the world, we raced to win “.
Many were the results achieved in this month of competitions by Elisa Balsamo, Chiara Consonni and Vittoria Guazzini, but Davide Arzeni also underlines the ‘invisible’ work and the spirit of sacrifice of other athletes.
“The thing that struck me most about these girls is the winning mentality they have shown in every race – says Davide – how many teams at this point of the season can say they have won two races? How many teams can say they have always raced to win? Few, very few. Then you can win or you can lose, but the girls have always run well. For sure, this is the best season in Flanders ever for Valcar – Travel & Service and there is still room for growth. Some have yet to mature physically given their young age and some can still grow mentally. In this sense, girls like Silvia Pollicini and Silvia Persico are examples: they work a lot for the team and – in particular Silvia Persico – sacrifices herself a lot for her teammates, also giving up personal placements. In the next races we will give more space to the younger ones with the ‘veteran’ Alice Maria Arzuffi who will race with them in the Ardennes. The goal will be to gain experience with the hope that in three years they will be able to reap the benefits of this work by repeating exactly the path that athletes like Elisa Balsamo and Chiara Consonni made three years ago “.
