"I really pushed my limits," expressed Zoe Bäckstedt as she reflected on her performance in the UAE Tour, despite relinquishing the white jersey designated for the top Under 23 rider on the final day of the competition.
Bäckstedt, representing Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto, had proudly worn the white jersey since an impressive third-place finish in the opening stage of the UAE Tour Women, which took place in Madinat Zayed last Thursday. She managed to follow that up with an 11th place finish in stage 2. However, during the climactic concluding test of the race, she ultimately lost her standing to Eleonora Ciabocco from Picnic-PostNL as the steep climbs proved challenging.
Her ascent up Jebel Hafeet was nothing short of remarkable, as she managed to stay with the leading group of climbers longer than many other sprinters, even outpacing some of the dedicated climbers along the way. Yet, her primary objective was to protect her lead in the young rider classification, leaving her with a tinge of disappointment by the end of the day.
"I was eager to see how well I could perform and whether I could maintain my position in the white jersey," Bäckstedt shared in a post-stage discussion with teammates Kasia Niewiadoma and Neve Bradbury. "In the end, I couldn't hold onto it because there was this exceptionally talented under-23 rider who excels at climbing, which wasn't quite what I had anticipated. Nonetheless, tackling a challenging 10km climb in 30ºC weather is not something I usually excel in. I generally perform better in stages like the first one rather than today’s, but overall, I consider it a positive experience for me."
Reflecting on the difficulty of the climb, Bäckstedt described it as "brutal." She elaborated, "It starts off deceptively easy, but then it’s all-out effort right into the climb, making it incredibly tough. There were attempts to break away, yet today’s conditions didn’t allow for that due to the lack of wind."
Despite the ups and downs of the individual race, it was still a successful week for Canyon-SRAM as a team. They secured the team classification, with both Niewiadoma, Bäckstedt, and Bradbury finishing within the top 30 of the overall standings.
