Lorena Wiebes is the fastest sprinter in women’s cycling right now. Seeing the Dutch star beat the bunch in the prestigious Amstel Gold Race on Sunday did therefore not come as a surprise.
What was surprising was that Wiebes still did not end up winning the race, even after the SD Worx Protime rider thought she had it in the bag — so much so, that she started celebrating before actually crossing the finish line. That premature celebration ended up costing her.
Marianne Vos of Visma-Lease a Bike was able to close in on Wiebes within the last meters. With her Dutch compatriot looking over her right shoulder but never actually checking her left, and then slowing down in a celebratory pose, Vos put herself in a position to execute a last-second bike throw to beat Wiebes on the line.
For Vos, the win was her second in the Amstel Gold Race after 2021. Wiebes, meanwhile, lost the race in heartbreaking fashion and will have to wait at least another year before adding the classic to her already impressive palmarés.
“I made a really stupid mistake,” the 25-year-old said after the finish.
Wiebes’ wrongly-timed celebration is not a first in professional cycling. Big names such as Julian Alaphilippe and Wout Van Aert lost races in similar fashion, while others — Jasper Philipsen and Annemiek Van Vleuten come to mind — celebrated what they thought was wins despite actually coming in second.
“It happens to every cyclist at some point,” Wiebes said about her blunder. “It’s a good learning point. Normally I always sprint on. I hope not to do it again next time.”