On Tuesday, Zoe Bäckstedt won the time trial in the Simac Ladies Tour, marking her first victory in the WorldTour for the only 20-year-old British rider. Afterward, Magnus Bäckstedt's daughter was obviously delighted with that victory. She defeated a row of top riders, from Lotte Kopecky to Riejanne Markus and Lieke Nooijen to Ellen van Dijk. Afterward, however, she was relaxed. She had ... just raced well! In the
flash interview with
Eurosport, the 20-year-old winner spoke about the short thirteen minutes she spent on the bike. "Well, I had a lot of fun on the bike, and it was also enough for the stage win. I'm pleased. I have no idea what the secret recipe was today. Well, maybe my dad then (Magnus, ed.). He was in the back of the car. While I pushed to my limits, he encouraged me."
Read more below the photo.
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"He said, 'Come on, you can do it, push! Keep your head down. Keep your focus on the bike in front of you,' which helped a lot and could give me extra support. Besides, it was a track for me. The mix between the turns and the longer, straighter sections made the variation perfect. It was also quite technical that way, and otherwise, just go full throttle."
Bäckstedt did not seem fully aware of the status of the Simac Ladies Tour. "My first win in the WorldTour? I didn't even know that," laughed the day's winner. "Then it's even more beautiful. It's a nice build-up to the cross-winter. I'm also happy to beat the rest here; I hope for many nice rides in the wind. I love racing in the Netherlands, and I will enjoy that, especially the wind."