The leading group eventually established itself, composed of Mara Abbott (USA), Emma Johansson (Sweden), Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy), Moolman-Pasio, Evelyn Stevens (USA), Anna van der Breggen (Netherlands) and Annemiek van Vleuten (Netherlands).
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Great Britain’s Lizzie Armitstead chased down the leaders to finish fifth but found the gruelling slopes of the Vista Chinesa took their toll and had too much deficit to make up.
Had the race leader not taken a dramatic spill with under 11 kilometers to go, it’s likely that a different Dutch woman, Annemiek van Vleuten, would have topped the podium.
On the crash, she said: “Sometimes in cycling the ones that look really bad aren’t as bad so I just hope that she’s all right”. I came up short on the climb.
I can not feel sorry for myself.
“Obviously I’ve lost quite a lot of sleep and its been a hard time, but its not an excuse”.
Shocked and shaken by the intensity of the crash, many went to Twitter to post their support for the Olympian.
There was early drama for the British riders as Armitstead received a puncture to her tyre within the first 10km and was forced to stop for a bike change. I realised I was at the front of the team, so I had to chase.
Officials said the 33-year-old Dutch rider was in stable condition.
The attacking intent was present on the two loops of the 24.7km Grumari Circuit and the peloton was strung out, but the elastic did not break.
All of Australia’s entries in the Olympic event are professional teammates of Van Vleute at Orica-AIS. “It was foolish of her, and I’m sure she agrees, to get to the three strikes point but she was cleared of one of them and that’s Ukad have decided and what Cas have decided and those are the rules”, she said.
The race came down to the final climb and descent of Vista Chinesa.
Check in with the Inquisitr daily for more updates and news regarding the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Lizzie Armitstead’s dream of adding Olympic gold to world championship success failed to materialise in a thrilling women’s road race in Rio.
“I saw her lying there, it didn’t look good at all”, Van der Breggen said, according to BBC.
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Van der Breggen reeled in American Mara Abbott in a thrilling finale on Copacabana beach to claim gold.
