Riders from New Zealand might have been outnumbered by the Australians, Dutch, British and French at the women’s and men’s events at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race but when it came to podium spots no other nation could even come close.
Ally Wollaston (FDJ-SUEZ), Aaron Gate (XDS Astana) and Laurence Pithie (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) snaffled half the top three spots across the women’s and men’s WorldTour races. What’s more Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek), Corbin Strong (Israel-Premier Tech) and Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) all finished within the top 10, a clear indicator of the fierce form so many are carrying into the Cycling New Zealand Elite Road National Championships from February 6-8.
The road races are always an unpredictable affair, between variations in early season form, at times some challenging weather and disparate team numbers.
The same rings true for men’s defending champion Gate, who was quick to point out the “stiff competition” after talking to media following the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, where he took second by winning the small group sprint behind solo winner Mauro Schmid (Jayco-AlUla).
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