Dreams of Olympic gold shattered for Marianne Vos, who won silver for the Netherlands: "It's like a game, but mostly it just gives you sore legs"

Silver. That was the result for Marianne Vos on Sunday in Paris. The Dutch cyclist had a strong chance for the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics... Until American Kristen Faulkner disrupted that dream with a perfectly timed attack.

Vos was the only Dutch woman present in a strong leading group of about ten riders, with only Lotte Kopecky managing to bridge the gap from the peloton. At one point, Vos broke away with Hungarian Blanka Kata Vas, but together they couldn't prevent Kopecky and Faulkner from catching up, and in Faulkner's case, breaking away.

"When they caught up and Faulkner went for it, I didn't have the legs to respond," Vos gave her honest first analysis to NOS. "You have to gamble a little, but I just didn't have the legs. Did I look at Kopecky? I think neither of us had much left at that moment. You look at each other, and after that moment, Faulkner is such a strong rider that you can't give her any space."

Vos: "I didn't have much left"

Ultimately, the 2012 Olympic champion got the silver medal. "In the last few hundred meters, it was clear that we were no longer racing for the win. You don't really have a choice at that point. You quickly realize the gap won't be closed, but you don't know how big the gap to the back is. There were still a car and a few motorcycles, so it seemed there was still some difference. Kopecky was the first out of the last corner, and then it was a matter of sprinting as fast as possible. It was close," explained Vos.

Vos wanted to convey to the audience back home that she couldn't have done better. "I was in a good situation with Vas ahead, but I didn't have much left. She really rode a good race. I felt the other two getting closer."

And now, what prevails? "Mixed feelings," said Vos. "It's a medal, but we were going for gold for the Netherlands, and that didn't happen. I did what I could. You look back on it later, but now I need to let this sink in. I'm completely exhausted, and when you finish like that, you've given everything."

"There are always moments you could have done differently, but if you're exhausted, that's it. We'll evaluate how the race went and what we did afterwards," continued the Dutch cyclist, who concluded with a one-liner. "In such a strong lead group, it's like a game, but mostly it just gives you sore legs."