In the final stage of the first edition of the Garden Route Giro, the KMC general classification leader showed her dominance one last time. Trouwborst used her climbing ability to take the lead early in the final stage. She then rode convincingly to her fifth victory in six days in South Africa.
The race started for her on Monday with a surprising victory in the sprint against Lisa Bone in Riversdale. She also battled Bone for the win a day later, but this time Bone was too fast for her in the sprint in Calitzdorp. Vera Looser was the third woman on both days, and it soon became clear that the overall victory would be contested between Trouwborst, Bone, and Looser.
The following two days required a lot of climbing, with the Swartberg Pass acting as the decisive factor twice. Trouwborst won both the stage to Prins Albert and the stage to De Rust convincingly and held a firm lead ahead of Bone and Looser. On the way to Knysna, she had once again built up a comfortable lead, but she suffered a puncture on a descent and the repair cost her a lot of time. She had just enough left to win this stage as well.
“After that, in the final stage, it was a matter of keeping everything intact on the way to the finish in Wilderness. Fortunately, I was able to ride away quickly in this stage too and didn’t have to take any risks. I had hoped to compete for the podium here, but winning is of course wonderful. Now just a few more days to enjoy South Africa and get some rest, and then European gravel and mountain bike races are on the schedule again,” said Trouwborst.
photo: @oakpics