Despite adopting a bold tactical approach, the German riders narrowly missed out on a medal in the road race at the European Cycling Championships in Slovenia. Just as she did a week ago at the World Championships, the Dutch defending champion Demi Vollering took gold. Silver went to her compatriot Puck Pieterse, whilst bronze went to Marlen Reusser from Switzerland.
Antonia Niedermaier finished fifth after 130 kilometres, making her the highest-placed German. Shortly before the finish, the Polish rider Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney crashed in front of Niedermaier, thereby depriving the German of her chance of a medal.
Dutch team dominates
Right up until 38 kilometres from the finish, Margot Vanpachtenbeke from Belgium and Carina Schrempf from Austria were still in with a chance of winning the title. But the Dutch team really turned up the heat in the final stretch, catching up with the pair and causing problems for many of their rivals by stepping up the pace. The field gradually thinned out and, from a German perspective, only Niedermaier was initially able to keep up.
On the descent, Franziska Koch closed the gap and, with an attack, left the favourites right behind her. However, she too was unable to pull decisively clear of her rival. The same was true of Liane Lippert, who also gave it a go. On the final climb, Vollering then pulled decisively clear.
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