Dutch champion Annemiek van Vlueten produced a masterclass to somehow win the world title in the elite women's road race in Wollongong on Saturday.
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The injured superstar caught and passed the surprised leading pack with 300 metres to go to add another title to what has already been a brilliant 2022.
Van Vlueten, who rode with a fractured elbow outsmarted her fellow riders and executed a brilliant finish to out-sprint eight leaders.
With a rainbow over the ocean the race for the world championship rainbow jersey in Wollongong came down to a fast finishing group of nine.
Though it was the tactics of the brilliant van Vlueten who outwitted her fellow riders to deliver another gold for the Dutch team - their 14th gold medal in the women's elite road race world championships.
Belgian rider Lotte Kopecky won silver, with Italian Silvia Persico finishing third.
The win in Wollongong was van Vlueten's second world title in the elite women's road race.
"I found myself in a group and then I couldn't go from the sprint and I had to wait for the right moment to attack. It was the only chance I had and then I chose to sprint right at the end and they didn't catch me," she said.
"It was hell, I couldn't get out of the chair and everything was exploding, including my legs.
"I really like to go out of the saddle normally and I found myself using a different game plan and before I broke my elbow the race would have been completely different.
"Now I am world champion. I was doubting this morning if I should wear my lucky earrings.
"I wanted to do a Yorkshire 2.0 today but it wasn't possible because of my elbow.
"I was super disappointed about my elbow in the team time trial because I knew today was a massive opportunity. It was not the best year to win the rainbow jersey last year because it was a COVID year but I will fully enjoy this one."
Meantime, New Zealand won their first world title, with Niamh Fisher-Black winning the under 23 elite road race.
Georgi Pfeiffer from reat Britain finished second ahead of Ricarda Bauernfeind from Germany.
It was a cagey start to the women's elite road race, with the 127 riders feeling each other out in the early stages of the 164.3 kilometre race.
The fact that riders rode directly into a headwind for the first 27 kilometres surely played a part in the conservative start, as did the fact that the road race was one of the longest in recent history.
A Swiss and French rider tried to make a break but the peleton quickly pulled them back in line.
For a short period even Wollongong's own Josie Talbot went to the front and led a breakaway group of three with a French and Swiss rider.
But it was the French rider Gladys Verhulst who was the first to arrive in Wollongong and make her way up the 34.2 km Mount Keira loop.
But by the time riders made their way down the Mount Keira descent, the peleton caught Verhulst.
The powerful French, Dutch, Italian and German team looked strong in the first hour of the race, as did Australia and Great Britain.
In fact Eleynor Backstedt ,perhaps inspired by the phenomenal ride of younger sister Zoe Backstedt earlier in the day, hit the front alongside Belgian rider Julie van de Velde and Caroline Anderson from Sweden.
The trio led French rider Aude Biannic by 30 odd seconds with the peleton 1.28 minutes behind after just over 60 kilometres of the race had been completed.
They maintained their lead with five laps of the Wollongong city circuit still to be rode.
But there was little urgency from the peleton to catch the trio with 84.5 km of racing to go.
The riders seemed to be playing it very conservative, with a lack of aggression from the big countries.
Almost 100 riders were still in contention at this point, much to the surprise of many cycling commentators.
Backstedt and van de Velde maintained a 56 second lead from the peleton with four circuit laps still to ride.
But the strong Italian contingent led by Elisa Balsamo and Elena Cecchini were also starting to make moves as 88 riders still remained in contention to win.
Though as the business end of the race loomed the peleton again caught the leaders, with Slovenian rider Spela Kern the solo slender leader with three laps or just 50 kilometres of racing remaining.
With just over 40 kms left riders upped the ante and tempo to drop some of the peleton .
Brodie Chapman and fellow Australian Amanda Spratt remained in the leading peleton but Grace Brown was starting to drop off.
Italian superstar Cecchini though was doing all she could to ensure an Italian would win the rainbow jersey.
But the big story with 40 kms still to ride was that Dutch superstar and pre-race favourite Annemiek van Vlueten was still in contention despite racing with a fractured elbow.
It was at this stage also that Aussie Spratt, the last from this country to medal in an elite women's world championship road race [silver 2018 and bronze 2019] to attack the peleton.
Soon after her team-mate Grace Brown made a similar attack before another Aussie Sara Roy opened up a 20 second lead with two laps to go.
But with light rain getting heavier and heavier it was becoming more and more difficult for Roy to hold off the peleton, featuring heavyweights van Vlueten and fellow Dutch rider Marianne Vos.
But the race of attrition was starting to favour the Italians, with seven of their team members just seconds behind Roy, ready to strike.
And they struck at the top of Mount Pleasant but so did German gun Liane Lippert.
With 24 kms still to race, a group of two riders and one of three started to break away from the chasing peleton.
Five of the best climbers in the world headed into the last lap 24 seconds ahead of the hard-chasing peleton led by two Aussies and Dutch greats van Vlueten, Vos and Ellen van Dijk.
Though Elisa Borghini Longo, Cecile Ludwig, Katarzyna Niewiadoma, Lippert and Ashleigh Pasio-Moolman could not hold on and with 13 kms remaining were caught, with Swiss rider Marlen Reusser heading to the front and setting the scene for a fast and furious finish.
But the five climbers came again and with 7.5kms to race, hit the front.
Though when the going got tough, it was the toughest and smartest rider van Vlueten who prevailed to win against all odds.
Full race results here.
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