Road racers powering up a climb

UHC’s Thomas Wins Tour de Feminin

The Maxxis-sponsored Team UnitedHealthcare dominated the Tour de Feminin last week. Leah Thomas took the overall, with teammate Katie Hall reigning as Queen of the Mountains and the entire UHC crew winning the team classification. The five-stage race was held July 5-8 in the town of Krásná Lípa in the Czech Republic.

 

Lizzie Banks and Lauretta Hanson were the first UHC members to make the podium with second and third-place finishes in Stage 1, with Banks overcoming a crash early in the race. Hall earned the QOM right from the start, taking the jersey in the opening stage.

The team swept the podium in Stage 3, the time trial. Hanson took the stage win, with Thomas and Hall in the second and third spots and Rushlee Buchanan in fourth place. Hanson also grabbed the yellow jersey, with Thomas moving into second place overall. With a second-place finish in Stage 4, held later that day, Hanson maintained her hold on the yellow jersey.

In the fifth and final stage, Thomas took the overall lead after both she and Hanson earned bonus seconds in the intermediate sprints. Thomas joined a group which opened a gap on the rest of the pack, and her teammates supported her as she took second place for the stage and the overall win.

 

“We had a really solid race as a team this week,” Team Director Rachel Hedderman said. “There were lots of firsts for many of us on the team. Lizzy Banks getting her first UCI podium and Lauretta Hanson winning her first UCI race and yellow jersey amongst many others…One of the beauties of this team is that we share successes and joys together. We are excited to keep the jersey within the team, and we continue to show our strength and willingness to support one another. As Leah was best placed on GC, we were happy to let the group go. With no organized chase from behind, the break quickly got a minute and then two, and by the finish, the gap was four minutes.”

The team next races July 17 in La Course by Le Tour de France. Maxxis congratulates Leah Thomas on her Tour de Feminin victory and thanks all of Team UnitedHealthcare for their fine performances.

?UHC Pro Cycling