ELISA BALSAMOTwo victories!

I certainly have to update you on what happened in the last two weeks!
Sunday the 12th of May I achieved my first season’s victory at the Trofee Maarten Wynants, a 1.1 UCI race in Belgium. The circuit we had to ride in was totally flat, but with narrow streets and the race was 130km long. My teammates Marta Cavalli, Vittoria Guazzini, Silvia Persico, Silvia Pollicini e Ilaria Sanguineti were amazing and, despite the few crashes we’ve been involved in, could control the whole race putting me in the best condition for the final sprint. The last 4km we started our train and from there on nobody succeeded in passing.
This victory has been important either for me than for the Valcar Cylance, in fact it was the first season’s victory also for the team. I can certainly say it had helped us for the following hard race: our first Agmen Tour of California.

The Agmen Tour of California is the only World Tour’s race that takes place in the USA and it’s a stage race. This year the 3 stages were pretty hard: the first was a hundred kilometers long with some short climbs, the longest 5km, and a hard 1km hill 3000mt before the finish line; the second one was designed for pure climbers: 2300mt in altitude in 74km; the last stage was really hard especially in the first part (it only went up with different slope), but after the downhill there was only a final flat circuit to do three times.
The first day my teammates Alice Maria Arzuffi, Maria Giulia Confalonieri, Dalia Muccioli and Silvia Persico worked hard ‘till the last climb with the other strong teams to close the gap between the peloton and Olga Zabelinskaja. On the climb the world champion Anna van der Breggen attacked and came to the finish line alone, behind her a little group composed by 15 riders with me and Marta Cavalli, who helped me for the sprint in which I achieved the 2nd place and the best young-rider’s jersey.
During the second stage I tried to keep some energies doing all the climbs regularly.
In the final stage I managed to stay with the first group ‘till the top of the mountain and there, when I saw we were just 30 riders, I realized I could win the stage. Alice and Marta did a great job closing the breakaway so that I could make the sprint. Crossing the finish line first has been exiting, I couldn’t believe I had won my first World Tour race!

My Agmen Tour of California ended like that on the podium with all the crowd around me, I couldn’t ask for more!