Bredewold celebrates 'perfect plan' after stage win, and gives update on Van der Breggen after crash

After a few difficult days, SD Worx-Protime have found their rhythm at the Vuelta Femenina. Lotte Kopecky had already won stage four, and a day later she gifted the victory to Mischa Bredewold. Bredewold claimed her first stage win at the Tour of Spain — but the team's celebrations were tempered by a crash involving their GC leader Anna van der Breggen.

Bredewold herself is certainly in high spirits. Last year she was pipped to the line by Marianne Vos in a very similar finish. "I said beforehand that this finish looked a lot like the one where I finished second last year," the winner laughs in the flash interview. "We had a comfortable position with the red jersey today, and I'm so grateful that I was allowed to voice my ambitions within the team. We're here with Lotte, of course, so you have to do some problem-solving."

And so they sprinted with a plan — Kopecky as the backup option. "You don't want to throw away the red jersey either — that would be foolish. We came up with a perfect plan to make it work. I got some freedom in the sprint with Lotte on my wheel; she would have come over the top if needed. But that wasn't necessary, and I'm so happy that I've finally been able to take that first win."

It is a fresh boost for SD Worx-Protime, whose work for Kopecky in the first three stages went unrewarded. Today, it all clicked. "The girls were incredible. There was a headwind all day, but they were so strong. We knew how it would be today — chapeau to my teammates."

It had been a fairly sleepy stage, but the finale was jolted awake by a big crash. In the final two kilometres, a rider from Liv AlUla Jayco eased back through the bunch, was clipped and went down — triggering a significant chain reaction, with Van der Breggen the most prominent name among those caught up in it. And that with the first mountain stage arriving the very next day.

"It was scary, because it was a hectic finale. We had wide roads all day, and then in the last five kilometres it just went crazy," Bredewold says — before offering a reassuring update on her team leader. "I'm glad Anna is okay — I just saw her and she didn't look too bad. I hope the others are okay too. It made everything very chaotic, and then suddenly there was no real lead-out left."

If the Dutch climber has truly escaped without serious injury, Bredewold knows the team have a real contender for the overall. "We're genuinely ready to go with Anna, who is in superb form. I don't know for certain, but I hope the crash won't affect her too much. We're ready to fight." Friday brings the mountain stage to Les Praeres, before the Vuelta closes on Saturday atop the legendary Alto del Angliru.