HTC-Highroad rider Chloe Hosking is increasingly motivated for the upcoming Tour of Qatar following her overall victory in the Rendition Homes Cup race yesterday [Monday]. The 20 year old grabbed the race lead when she sprinted to victory in Sunday’s opening leg, then took second place on the concluding leg behind Annette Edmondson.
“I can now go into my next block of training with an open mind - I have another race on Wednesday and hopefully I can have a good showing there,” she said. “Then it's a matter of staying focused on Qatar. I'm looking forward to racing with my team there and working with the girls to get more victories.”
The HTC-Highroad squad got things off to a superb start on Sunday when Matt Goss and Mark Renshaw took a one-two in the men’s Adelaide Cancer Council Classic, and Hosking won the first stage of the women’s race.
She then tried to take the concluding leg but SASI rider Edmondson inched past. Amazingly, Hosking had punctured with three laps to go, yet quickly got a replacement wheel and still managed to chase back on.
"The race was less aggressive than last night, but I think the course lent itself to that,” she said. “But, I felt really strong again today.
“Maybe I was a little overconfident and I definitely started my sprint too early. It's something I can learn from and a good lesson this far out from [the Tour of] Qatar. Races like these are good to be able to try different things like that.”
Peta Mullens (Prime) took third in the final stage. Hosking, Edmonson and Nicole Whitburn (Carnegie Caulfield CC) were top three in the general classification.
The men’s Santos Tour Down Under begins today with a 138 kilometre race from Mawson Lakes to Angaston.
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Rendition Homes Santos Cup:
Stage 2, Victoria Park circuit:
1, Annette Edmondson (SASI)
2, Chloe Hosking (HTC-Highroad)
3, Peta Mullens (Prime)
Final overall standings:
1, Chole Hosking (HTC-Highroad) 190 pts
2, Annette Edmonson (SASI Team O’Grady) 180
3, Nicole Whitburn (Carnegie Caulfield CC) 121
4, Megan Dunn (Dubbo CC) 104
5, Chaekyung Rhee (Korea) 93
6, Narae Shin (Korea) 90