2011 silver medallist steps up to blow away the field in her final year in the category
Elinor Barker continued Great Britain’s outstanding summer of sport with a dominant victory in the Junior Women’s World time trial championships. The 2011 silver medallist from Cardif, south Wales, followed in the footsteps of compatriot Nicole Cooke - who also took the junior time trial title at 18 - by completing the rolling 15.6km course in a time of 22 minutes, 26 seconds - in an average speed of 41.714kph - to beat the next best rider by more than half a minute.
For more than an hour the best time was held by Denmark’s Cecille Ludwig who, setting off as just seventh rider to start, posted a time of 23’02”. Nobody could get within thirty seconds of Ludwig’s time, until seventh from last to start Demi de Jong of the Netherlands posted 23’29” to go into provisional silver medal position.
Finally however, penultimate rider Barker posted 22’26”, to push the Danish rider out of the hot seat, and the local rider down to bronze as she went almost 36 seconds quicker than Ludwig’s time.
“I’ve worked all year for this,” said Barker afterwards. “Watched my diet, trained hard. So I’m absolutely ecstatic. I didn’t know how the competition would be so I was really worried. There’s so many strong riders here.
“I kind of surprised myself in Copenhagen,” the new champion said of her silver medal a year before. “Flat courses don’t suit me. But here it was a different course, yeah.
“There was some pressure, but not because of Bradley [Wiggins] and Chris [Froome] though.”
The junior women’s time trial was to be the only event in the World championship programme not to climb the famous Cauberg on the approach to the finish. It was to climb the 900 metre long Bukel in the first five kilometres however, with barely any flat in the kilometres that followed.
Mexican Erika Varela was the first rider to start, but her time of 24’48” was beaten by each of the riders that followed. Sixth rider Georgia Baker of Australia was the first below 24 minutes, as she stopped the clock in 23’54”, but this time was smashed by Ludwig, who was next to finish, as the Dane went 52 seconds faster.
There were strong rides from riders such as Nicky Zijlaard of the Netherlands - the niece of Michael Zijlaard and Leontien van Moorsel - and Australian Emily Roper, but nobody could get within 30 seconds of Ludwig’s time until Demi de Jong of the Netherlands - younger sister of Rabobank rider Thalita de Jong - finished with 23’29”, but this was still 27 seconds adrift.
Eva Mottet of France - the daughter of former Tour de France contender Charly Mottet - also managed to come within 40 seconds of the Danish rider but - having posted 6’56” at the 4.5km checkpoint, and 15’07” at the 10.2km check - Barker finally pushed Ludwig into second place.
With last rider to start, the Netherlands’ Corine van de Zijden, finishing in 23’49” the podium was confirmed, with Barker the only rider in the field to go below 23 minutes.
World road race championships, Limburg, the Netherlands:
Junior womens' time trial:
1, Elinor Barker (Great Britain) 15.6 kilometres in 22 mins 26.29
2, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Denmark) at 35.87
3, Demi De Jong (Netherlands) at 1 min 3.13
4, Emily Roper (Australia) at 1 min 8.18
5, Ramona Forchini (Switzerland) at 1 min 10.42
6, Eva Mottet (France) at 1 min 11.59
7, Christina Siggaard (Denmark) at 1 min 13.26
8, Corinna Lechner (Germany) at 1 min 13.35
9, Nicky Zijlaard (Netherlands) at 1 min 14.84
10, Lourdes Oyarbide Jimenez (Spain) at 1 min 15.26
11, Lotte Kopecky (Belgium) at 1 min 19.07
12, Corine Van Der Zijden (Netherlands) at 1 min 22.74
13, Stella Riverditi (Italy) at 1 min 23.16
14, Alicja Ratajczak (Poland) at 1 min 26.56
15, Anastasiia Iakovenko (Russian Federation) at 1 min 26.80
16, Dana Lodewyks (Belgium) at 1 min 27.46
17, Georgia Baker (Australia) at 1 min 28.47
18, Addyson Albershardt (United States of America) at 1 min 29.23
19, Allison Rice (Australia) at 1 min 32.00
20, Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Poland) at 1 min 32.71
21, Grace Alexander (United States of America) at 1 min 36.64
22, Gulnaz Badykova (Russian Federation) at 1 min 38.99
23, Hanna Helamb (Sweden) at 1 min 39.13
24, Anna Knauer (Germany) at 1 min 39.49
25, Milda Jankauskaite (Lithuania) at 1 min 41.15
26, Simona Bortolotti (Italy) at 1 min 43.73
27, Alexandra Nessmar (Sweden) at 1 min 47.07
28, Yao Pang (Hong Kong, China) at 1 min 55.35
29, Manon Bourdiaux (France) at 1 min 56.35
30, Zavinta Titenyte (Lithuania) at 1 min 57.71
31, Heidi Dalton (South Africa) at 2 mins 7.04
32, Sheyla Gutierrez Ruiz (Spain) at 2 mins 8.26
33, Claudia Buitrago Calderon (Colombia) at 2 mins 13.16
34, Katsiaryna Piatrouskaya (Belarus) at 2 mins 21.25
35, Erika Varela Huerta (Mexico) at 2 mins 22.63
36, Antonela Ferencic (Croatia) at 2 mins 34.07
37, Allyson Gillard (Canada) at 3 mins 6.37
38, Aliaksandra Kazlova (Belarus) at 3 mins 22.49
39, Olga Shekel (Ukraine) at 3 mins 36.91
40, Saskia Kowalchuk (Canada) at 4 mins 47.56