Van der Breggen and SD Worx reflect on a Vuelta Femenina to be proud of

Next to a much-discussed stage at the Giro d'Italia, we must make room for a remarkable final day at the Vuelta Femenina. Anna van der Breggen went into stage 7 wearing the red leader's jersey, but SD Worx-Protime's leader was unable to defend it.

On the mythical Alto de l'Angliru, Paula Blasi (UAE Team ADQ) rode to second place on the stage — and with it, took the overall victory in the Vuelta Femenina. The Amstel Gold Race winner relegated Van der Breggen to second in the final standings. SD Worx-Protime rounded out their Spanish week with a podium finish, three stage victories and the green points jersey for Lotte Kopecky.

In a press release, the Dutch team acknowledged that disappointment was the dominant feeling, "over the missed overall victory for Anna." "I gave it everything I had, but it just wasn't quite enough — and right now, that really stings. I fought for everything I was worth, but in the end I fell just short," Van der Breggen said.

The experienced Dutch campaigner closed in on Blasi on the steepest ramps, but the gap was ultimately too great. "Yet pride takes over when I look at the whole team. With three stage wins and the green jersey, we rode a fantastic Vuelta. Since my comeback, I had hoped it would be possible to fight for overall victory in a Grand Tour again — and it's wonderful to already be this close to the very top."

"This gives me confidence," is her conclusion. That is also the message sports director Danny Stam believes Van der Breggen should take away from this race. "Of course we had hoped to bring home the overall classification too, but the Angliru doesn't lie," the Dutchman said, though he did acknowledge "a somewhat mixed feeling."

"We should look back above all with immense pride at how the team raced this week. The disappointment is still dominant right now — and that's part of elite sport. But we need to move past it quickly and look at what we achieved as a team. We came here with the goal of taking a stage win and seeing whether a podium in the GC was possible. We achieved that and more."