"This was a great one, because it was really a team effort" - Annemiek van Vleuten praises her teammates after third stage win at Giro Donne

Annemiek van Vleuten continues her winning streak in the Giro d'Italia Donne. Today she already booked her third stage victory in the Italian Grand Tour.

¨"This was a great one, because it was really a team effort," she said in a flash interview afterwards. "Maybe that wasn't the case on the first day," said Van Vleuten, who won the first fully ridden stage after a long solo. "But today the team rode perfectly to defend the jersey. Everyone did their job. It is very nice to finish it off."

"It was a very good situation in the final. I had Gaia Realini in front of me instead of in my wheel. They had to work for the stage. That was ideal for us."

This ideal situation was not foreseen by Van Vleuten. "You can't plan that, but we had planned to have some teammates up front. That way we could give Paula Patiño and Liane Lippert a chance. When everything was together for the final climb, it was up to me. That was planned, because yesterday I saw this beautiful finish. I'm glad we explored the stage yesterday as it allowed me to enjoy the scenic views. Today that was not possible, because I was suffering a lot," said the world champion with a smile.