A late call up to racing worked well for Tiffany Cromwell after she finished sixth in the opening stage of Lotto Thüringen Ladies Tour today in Schmölln, Germany. With 25 kilometres remaining, Tiffany bridged across to join teammate Alexis Ryan in the winning breakaway. The stage was won by Emma Norsgaard (MOV) with Tiffany in sixth in the sprint to the line.

“We were happy with the break as we had Alexis there. Movistar missed it and were chasing hard, and Norsgaard bridged across on the small climb just after one lap to go. I was in a good position so I just followed her,” explained Tiffany.

“I went to Alexis and said I will work and she should save energy for the final sprint. I haven’t prepared to be here at the tour so it was an easy decision to work. Only a handful of teams were rolling through but it was never super hard.”

“I knew there would be attacks on the final climb and I managed to be able to follow them. Our group split and unfortunately Alexis got caught in the second half so I had to focus on my position for the sprint. I had managed to get onto Norsgaard’s wheel at 1km to go where it was a steep downhill. I planned to jump early but I was swamped by some riders, and I didn’t have the power or weight to get back ahead of them again. Where we were at 300m to go was basically the order we finished in.”

“I’m disappointed I couldn’t finish it off completely for the team. That said, I didn’t expect the race I had today coming off a hard training week. Let’s see how the next days go but there are opportunities on every stage for the team,” added Tiffany.

Alexis Ryan who was in the breakaway from early in the race, was looking forward to her chances in the sprint.

“It was great to be in the mix after a month-long racing hiatus. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel after traveling from the US, but my body felt ready to fight! The breakaway had some strong riders, but I knew I had a chance to podium in the hectic final. A group with Tiff bridged on the final lap, so we were in a good position. Unfortunately, I was involved in a little fumble with some riders at the bottom of the last climb and couldn’t follow the leaders. I’m looking forward to more opportunities in the coming week!” explained Alexis.

Tomorrow’s stage sees the peloton take on two circuits around the city of Gera. The race can be followed on Twitter with #LTLT21 and delayed highlights are broadcast on GCN+ and at 18:30CEST daily on MDR Thüringen here. Tiffany is sixth in the general classification, ten seconds behind tour leader Norsgaard.

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