Reusser concedes to top climber Squiban as French star opens season with impressive Mallorca win

The women’s road season in Europe has now kicked off. After an initial start in Australia, racing continued on Mallorca with the Challenge Mallorca, a one-day race that was relatively flat until the decisive final climb — making it a day for climbers, where Reusser soon made her presence felt.

There was plenty of competition. Last year, Thalita de Jong (Human Powered Health) was the strongest in a similar race on the island, and other top names like Maeva Squiban (UAE Team ADQ) and Riejanne Markus (Lidl-Trek) were in the mix. So the women rode towards that final climb. This time there was no early breakaway — on the flat approach it had little chance of success.

Later, a group did go clear, including Dutch rider Anne van Rooijen (VolkerWessels). With four breakaway companions she opened up a gap about 35 kilometres from the finish. Soon only Marta Pavesi (Human Powered Health) and Eva Anguela (Cantabria Deporte) were able to stay with her, and their lead was about 2 minutes 30 seconds over the peloton. But that advantage quickly shrank as the race approached the final climb.

When the final climb began, the gap was down to just 35 seconds. The breakaway was caught, and UAE Team ADQ turned up the pace. With a strong group of climbers, the favourites were split apart. Squiban was there, along with teammates Silvia Persico, Karlijn Swinkels, and top favourite Reusser. Sigrid Haugset (Uno-X) and Clara Emond (St Michel) also hung on.

UAE clearly wants to be the top team in women’s racing, and in Spain they showed their intentions. But were their legs strong enough for the win? Squiban launched the first attack, putting Reusser under pressure, but the Swiss rode back on her own tempo. Squiban tried a second attack — and again Reusser responded. In the end, though, the sprint was too much for Reusser: the French climber claimed her first victory of the year.