"I trust her completely, and you can see that" - Lorena Wiebes & Lotte Kopecky continue to prove Classics dream team for SD Worx at Gent Wevelgem
Cycling
Team SD Worx - Protime made it yet another success in early 2025 at Gent Wevelgem, as Lorena Wiebes powered to a landmark 100th professional victory in a bunch sprint, following another monumental leadout by world champion Lotte Kopecky.
"It looked so easy. On the climbs and in the sprint. 'I felt good," a beaming Wiebes laughed in her post-race interview afterwards, in quotes collected by Sporza. "We were riding on the Kemmel Road, but the cooperation wasn’t great. The group caught up. Lotte Kopecky was able to do her thing, but as expected, no one wanted to cooperate."
Despite the lack of help from rival teams, it was as mentioned, Wiebes again who prevailed for Team SD Worx - Protime in the final bunch sprint. In that finale, the boost of having the world champion doing a leadout again came up strong for the all-conquering Dutch sprinter. "The other teammates did an amazing job, and then Lotte came through, holding on for an incredibly long time. I thought, 'I’ll just start.' It’s really beautiful. Lotte was important again, this time almost for a full kilometre. I trust her completely, and you can see that. She knows how to do this," Wiebes concluded, finally casting an eye towards the Tour of Flanders. "I want to stay in as long as possible and support the team. Do I hope for more? No, that expectation isn’t there yet. And Lotte is also incredibly strong herself."
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LORENA WIEBES WINS GENT-WEVELGEM 2025! 👏👏👏#GWwomen | #GW25 pic.twitter.com/jbKDx7W9CA
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) March 30, 2025
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- Not only the public, just about every analyst and commentator had been piling it on. Under the circumstances I’d even say he’s showing real character. Not sure likeable Tadej would manage as well during a longer rough patch.Mistermaumau03-04-2025
- Took a while but we finally have a more nuanced analysis.Mistermaumau03-04-2025
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- Good, hopefully Jonas goes also so we get a nice duelvappaxbipmv03-04-2025
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KerisVroom03-04-2025 - If he's very lucky maybe he can podium a Tour one season, I certainly don't believe he can win it, evervappaxbipmv03-04-2025