Great Britain's Lizzie Armitstead (Garmin-Cervélo) took the opening stage of the Tour of Chongming Island in a sprint against Ina-Yoko Teutenberg (HTC Highroad) and Annemiek Van Vleuten (Nederland Bloeit). On a rainy day, the short 73-kilometer race ended in a bunch sprint, with Teutenberg taking over the general classification lead thanks to the time bonuses.
Her margin is a single second over Armitstead. "It's a close lead," said Teutenberg. "One second can be taken away instantly with the time bonuses along the way. It will be hard to defend but we'll give it everything." Teutenberg has experience with taking the overall in this event, having done so in 2010.
Her team manager was very satisfied with his rider. "Ina was very clever during the stage, picking up bonus sprint seconds as insurance for what might happen in the bunch sprint," said HTC-Highroad's Ronny Lauke. "Her tactic paid off perfectly. Now we'll try and defend the lead as best as we can."
Teutenberg won both intermediate sprints and along with the second spot on the final sprint took over the points classification.
The race continues for two more days, with Friday being an 118km circuit race in Chenggaio Town. If Teutenberg wins the stage race, it may be a sign for better things to come. Last year, she also won the Chongming Island World Cup after the stage race. This year, the World Cup race follows on Sunday, May 15th.