:00:19. > :00:26.Armitstead gets a silver for Great Britain.
:00:26. > :00:31.Here he comes, it Wigmore Hall. -- Wiggins is the Olympic champion.
:00:31. > :00:37.Chris Froome crosses the line as the winner of the 2013 Tour De France.
:00:37. > :00:46.I hardly need to tell you where I am, the world famous Ponteveccio in
:00:46. > :00:50.Florence and one of the defining images of the London Olympics was
:00:50. > :00:57.Britain's first woman which came courtesy of Lizzie Armitstead. The
:00:57. > :01:07.ball -- battle is rejoined today, this time for the world title.
:01:07. > :01:13.COMMENTATOR: They aren't crawling along. They're getting stuck into
:01:13. > :01:18.it. What a fall that was. The pressure is not going to let off
:01:18. > :01:23.now. It's Lizzie Armitstead, the Yorkshire lass, immediately all over
:01:23. > :01:28.her like a rash is Marianne Vos. The rain is battering down. The
:01:28. > :01:29.cacophony of applause ringing out for Lizzie Armitstead, who looks as
:01:29. > :01:32.cacophony of applause ringing out though she is trying to ride away
:01:33. > :01:38.from the of rest. Vos is having a go. The race is exploding into
:01:38. > :01:42.action now. Can Armitstead spring a surprise as the rain begins to pour
:01:42. > :01:47.down. They're on the red carpet of Tarmac here of the mall. We're
:01:47. > :01:53.inside 200 metres to go. Vos is leading. Can Armitstead challenge?
:01:53. > :01:57.Vos is at the front. They grit their teeth, both riders look into the
:01:57. > :01:59.line. Where will the Gold Medal go? Vos takes gold and Armitstead gets
:01:59. > :02:08.silver. Yes, great images from London there.
:02:08. > :02:12.Some great weekend racing in store here from Florence with the men's
:02:12. > :02:17.race tomorrow and Froome from and today -- Chris Froome and today
:02:17. > :02:23.Lance Armstrong and Marianne Vos. You ride for Australia and our own
:02:23. > :02:28.Kris Boardman is here. Let's sett up road racing in cycling. It's almost
:02:28. > :02:31.the most interesting to understand, particularly team work. It's
:02:31. > :02:34.impossible to win a race these days without a strong team behind you.
:02:35. > :02:38.You need to be protected by the wind and stay on the wheel. It makes a
:02:38. > :02:43.huge difference in cycling if you have team-mates around you or if you
:02:43. > :02:47.do it all alone. Chris, you've done a lot of work with British cycling
:02:47. > :02:52.and looked at the figures, what savings are being made, let's say
:02:52. > :02:56.littlesy is in the middle -- Lizzie is in the middle compared to being
:02:56. > :03:01.at the front. They're going flat out on the front trying to break away.
:03:01. > :03:09.Then 30 places back into the peloton and you can see people free
:03:09. > :03:15.wheeling. That's why you need team-mates who go and do all that
:03:15. > :03:21.chasing, keeping it together until you're ready to make the move. If do
:03:21. > :03:24.you a lot early on, you won't have it at the end of the race. It's a
:03:24. > :03:31.complicated thing. The breakaway is a funny thing, because the peleton
:03:31. > :03:36.let's the break away and then there's a conversation and they say
:03:36. > :03:41.that's enough. It's very technical, cycling, it's not at this point that
:03:41. > :03:44.the lead riders are the lead riders for the race. They will lead at a
:03:44. > :03:48.the lead riders are the lead riders certain point in the race but not
:03:48. > :03:49.the key riders. Some of the riders may say I'm not going to
:03:49. > :03:52.the key riders. Some of the riders because my leader is back there and
:03:52. > :03:56.she has the ability to win. Buff I can't beat -- but I can't beat these
:03:56. > :04:00.riders so I'm not going to do anything so I'm going to hope it
:04:00. > :04:05.will come back. Hopefully the race will become clear. The race is
:04:05. > :04:07.ongoing. These guys are commentating along sit Simon Brotherton.
:04:07. > :04:16.Yesterday a new UCI presidentuals along sit Simon Brotherton.
:04:16. > :04:30.elected -- president was elected, Lucy Cooke -- Brian Cookson.
:04:30. > :04:34.Congratulations. What were the emotions like yesterday when the
:04:34. > :04:37.vote came through? It was an emotional moment. It represents a
:04:37. > :04:41.cull maination of the things that we've worked for, not just in the
:04:41. > :04:45.last few weeks, but back to the, well, when I first started cycling
:04:45. > :04:48.and became more involved in administering the sport. It's the
:04:48. > :04:52.highest possible position to achieve in the sport. It's a great honour.
:04:52. > :04:55.I'm delighted that the, my colleagues from around the world
:04:55. > :04:59.decided that theyn't wanted me to -- that they wanted many eto lead the
:04:59. > :05:01.union. It came to a vote because the process seemed to go on and on and
:05:01. > :05:06.union. It came to a vote because the on. Yeah it was pretty horrendous,
:05:06. > :05:11.as anyone who was following it will recall. We must have been going
:05:11. > :05:14.around and around in circles, legal arguments, for several hours. In the
:05:14. > :05:19.end I said, look, enough is enough. I think we've all had enough. Let's
:05:20. > :05:24.just Gove to a straight -- let's go to a straight vote. Mr McQuaid was
:05:24. > :05:30.happy with that. We went it a vote. We took the vote and I won 24-18.
:05:30. > :05:34.I'm obviously very happy about that. You can enjoy the World
:05:34. > :05:39.Championships, but come Monday, I suspect, there's a burningoning
:05:39. > :05:41.in-tray waiting for you? Yeah, there's work to be done. But I'm
:05:41. > :05:44.in-tray waiting for you? Yeah, sure I have a lot of support from
:05:44. > :05:47.around the world, from the different organisations involved in cycling
:05:47. > :05:51.and outside the world of cycling, in the world of sport. I'm sure we can
:05:51. > :05:54.make a fresh start. Though I've got a lot of work at the head of that
:05:54. > :05:58.arrangement, there's lots of people out there who will help me as well.
:05:58. > :06:06.You've made some progress this morning? Yeah, we've made some
:06:06. > :06:13.progress appointing three enough vice-presidents. Also the first
:06:13. > :06:24.woman of the vice-president as well. There is a very important reason for
:06:24. > :06:31.appointing that viceries because women's cycling very much part of
:06:31. > :06:34.your plan. We can really put a big boost behind women's cycling and get
:06:34. > :06:37.more women involved in the administration, the sport, look at
:06:37. > :06:41.what women want to see to develop the sport. I'm confident that we can
:06:41. > :06:48.take women's cycling forward strongly now. Your priorities? Well,
:06:48. > :06:57.the main priority is getting the anti-owe doping -- anti-doping
:06:57. > :07:01.issues dealt with. It's about also, putting in place a commission to
:07:01. > :07:04.look at the problems of the past and investigate the allegations.
:07:04. > :07:08.Actually to start to learn the lessons from the past. Until we've
:07:08. > :07:12.learned those lessons we won't be able to move forward. We are making
:07:12. > :07:15.progress, we are getting those things under way. Those things are
:07:15. > :07:21.at the top of the in-tray. Best of luck. Thank you.
:07:21. > :07:26.It was an acrimonious campaign against the incumbent Pat McQuaid.
:07:26. > :07:29.It almost descended into farce yesterday. Then Brian stepped in and
:07:30. > :07:33.showed Great Leadership and hopefully, it marks an end with
:07:33. > :07:37.perhaps what's gone in the past and a fresh start? Yeah, at one point
:07:37. > :07:40.they seemed to be voting on whether it was possible for them to have a
:07:40. > :07:44.vote. It was getting quite ridiculous. Everything was
:07:44. > :07:49.frustrated but didn't know how to get out of it. Then Brian said,
:07:49. > :07:52.let's' have a vote. Pat McQuaid agreed and off they went. That's
:07:52. > :07:56.exactly what the sport needs right now, leadership. I've known Brian
:07:56. > :07:59.for 30 years since he organised the tour of Lancashire. He's passionate
:07:59. > :08:03.about the sport. He's honest as the day is long and he's the perfect
:08:03. > :08:11.person to be in charge right now. Two things heavals focussing on --
:08:11. > :08:16.he's focusen -- focussing on, women, obviously, but also the drugs issue.
:08:16. > :08:20.How tough is the task? Because of the revelations that have come out,
:08:20. > :08:27.everything is thinking drug cycling, but it's a better shape than it's
:08:27. > :08:31.been for a long time. We've have biological passports, lots of
:08:31. > :08:43.things. We need belief that the system is applying the rules evenly.
:08:43. > :08:46.You talk about truth and reconciliation commission, he talked
:08:46. > :08:52.about Lance Armstrong giving evidence there, who tweeted,
:08:52. > :08:56."Hallelujah" when Brian Cookson was elected. Do you think the sport will
:08:56. > :09:03.say, we've seen enough of our dirty washing in the public, let's move
:09:03. > :09:07.on? I think we now have someone to trust to take it forward. Pat
:09:07. > :09:11.McQuaid, when something goes wrong on your watch, and you're the CEO,
:09:11. > :09:16.they resign and everybody moves forward. That's what has had to
:09:16. > :09:22.happen on this occasion. Briefian is the perfect -- Brian is the perfect
:09:22. > :09:30.person to deal with this. You manage the to the Honda team. And somebody
:09:30. > :09:39.you know well has come in, Steven Godden -- Tracy Godrick, how well is
:09:39. > :09:42.she placed in the role? She's very determined to achieve things in
:09:42. > :09:45.women's cycling. She's been involved as an athlete and now in the
:09:45. > :09:49.management side of things for a long time. Ive think it shows a -- time.
:09:49. > :09:53.I think it shows a lot about Brian that he says we kneed a woman in the
:09:53. > :09:57.vice-president position and to lead the commission. You can see the
:09:57. > :10:01.women just behind me are starting their second lap of what is a
:10:01. > :10:14.challenging circuit and we have a guide to the course.
:10:14. > :10:21.Although the races started some kilometre from here, it only really
:10:21. > :10:25.gets going when they get to the finishing circuit here in Florence.
:10:25. > :10:31.There are really tough climbs on this 16-and-a-half kilometre
:10:31. > :10:36.circuit. Tho the riders will have to tackle this four-and-a-half
:10:36. > :10:42.kilometre climb, five times, it is the toughest descent on the circuit,
:10:43. > :10:47.but I don't think it's where the battle will be fought. As they reach
:10:47. > :10:48.the summit, if the riders aren't already stretched out into a thin
:10:48. > :10:52.line, they certainly will be as they already stretched out into a thin
:10:52. > :10:57.get here, through the houses onto the narrow, twisting descent.
:10:57. > :10:59.Because it starts immediately, if a breakaway goes, there's no
:10:59. > :11:05.possibility of forming a chasing group. Also, if the forecasted
:11:05. > :11:10.showers do arrive, that will make the fast descent interesting. Having
:11:10. > :11:15.swooped down the five kilometre descent and not having had a chance
:11:15. > :11:21.to regroup, the riders hang a right and arrive here. Now it might be
:11:21. > :11:27.just 600 metres in length, but at 16% maximum gradient and being just
:11:27. > :11:30.5. 5 kilometres from the finish, it proves an excellent opportunity for
:11:30. > :11:34.a late attack. I think there's just one more chance around the corner.
:11:34. > :11:38.Before they arrive here, there are one or two tiny pimples, absolutely
:11:38. > :11:43.nothing compared to some of the terrain that they tackle today, but
:11:43. > :11:47.their location in the final few minutes of the race could make them
:11:47. > :11:52.absolutely pivotal. As we've seen, there's lots of different scenarios
:11:52. > :11:55.that could play out with this course not favouring any one type of rider.
:11:55. > :11:59.that could play out with this course We can be certain of three things:
:11:59. > :12:03.The punchy classics riders will want to keep their powder dry until the
:12:03. > :12:06.last second. Whilst the climbers are going to need to make life difficult
:12:06. > :12:10.for them from the moment they get on the circuit, which means combined,
:12:10. > :12:18.we are going to get an action-packed and very open day of racing.
:12:18. > :12:22.Chris went round the course in a car. We have ridden the course.
:12:23. > :12:28.Whattuals your impression -- what was your impressions of it? It was
:12:28. > :12:32.-- it is very, very hard. We've heard a lot that it's one of the
:12:32. > :12:35.hardest World Championships in many years. I hear that every year. Until
:12:35. > :12:38.I road the course, I didn't realise that it really is a very tough
:12:38. > :12:45.circuit. Well, that's the course. Let's hear from the British team led
:12:45. > :12:49.by littlesy Armitstead. --iesy Armitstead.
:12:50. > :12:56.Good to see you again, how does it feel to be back at the World
:12:56. > :12:57.Championships? It's nice. It's a competition where you feel proud and
:12:57. > :13:02.Championships? It's nice. It's a you feel the pressure and Sts
:13:02. > :13:09.exciting. -- it's exciting. Cycling, you do so many races in the season,
:13:10. > :13:14.and it's nice to come to a race where you really feel something. How
:13:14. > :13:19.often do you think back to the Olympics? What are your strongest
:13:19. > :13:21.memories? When I'm having low points I think back and when I start to
:13:21. > :13:25.think - do I belong in the top level I think back and when I start to
:13:25. > :13:28.of women's cycling? I think back to that day. I definitely did that day,
:13:28. > :13:33.there shouldn't be anything stopping me. But it can be difficult. So,
:13:33. > :13:40.yeah I use it as a reference point. ( I messed up a little bit in the
:13:40. > :13:43.last 500 metres. Ive think I should have -- I think I should have tried
:13:43. > :13:47.to go before she was in the sprint. She was faster on the day and I was
:13:47. > :13:52.happy with silver. How do you describe Vos as an athlete? I think
:13:52. > :13:57.for me, Marianne Vos is a natural rival because she's the best in the
:13:57. > :14:01.world. In every race she is one of the favourites. She's the girl who
:14:01. > :14:04.took gold from me in my home country as well. Of course, there's going to
:14:04. > :14:07.be a natural rivalry. I think it will be an interesting championships
:14:07. > :14:11.this year. I think the Italians will give her a run for her money. Can
:14:11. > :14:17.you benefit from that? I hope so. It's going to be an interesting
:14:18. > :14:22.worlds for me. It's a course that is very hard and a lot of climbing,
:14:22. > :14:27.which I can benefit on tough courses, whether I can benefit on
:14:27. > :14:32.such a course with such climbs, I'm not sure. I will take that as an
:14:32. > :14:35.opportunity and relish it. And again, be grateful for the work that
:14:35. > :14:39.the girls will do for me. Whether I'll be able to top it off with a
:14:39. > :14:43.medal, I'm not sure. What do you see as your main role? Littlesy has a --
:14:43. > :14:47.Lizzie halls a good -- halls a good as your main role? Littlesy has a --
:14:47. > :14:51.chance of getting her role. It will as your main role? Littlesy has a --
:14:51. > :14:55.be possible to get her to the front when needed. Chasing down early
:14:55. > :15:00.breaks. When it comes to the laps, it's hard and I think it will tear
:15:00. > :15:08.apart quite quickly. It will just be trying to survive as much as I can.
:15:08. > :15:11.Double world champion, How does that feel? Really good. It's a lot
:15:11. > :15:16.different to the past two years. A lot longer race, but I'm really
:15:16. > :15:20.looking forward to it. A little bit more at stake for you in the road
:15:20. > :15:27.race? Yes, Saturday will be my final race as a cyclist. It's a big one
:15:27. > :15:30.for me. It's my fifth time riding the World Championships. I know how
:15:30. > :15:35.it works and I know if what I have to do. I want to end on a positive
:15:35. > :15:39.note. It's a decision I'm happy with and I want to continue to finish off
:15:39. > :15:48.in a professional way. To be calling time on what has been a really good,
:15:48. > :15:52.professional career, why? I guess that's something that everyone has
:15:52. > :15:58.said, oh, you're so young, you're only 23, but my decision is based on
:15:58. > :16:04.so many aspects. For me, at the moment, I couldn't see myself as
:16:04. > :16:07.anything more than a domestique. I have loved working with my
:16:08. > :16:12.team-mates. But the salary is not massive. There isn't a massive
:16:12. > :16:16.future. It's always a gamble whether you will have a job next year. I
:16:16. > :16:21.thought that it's a hard job to do to be uncertain of what your future
:16:21. > :16:26.always is. Ive thought I could -- I thought I would work somewhere else
:16:26. > :16:29.and have a bit more stability. Lizzie Armitstead leading the
:16:29. > :16:34.British team here. But perhaps not as full of confidence as we might
:16:34. > :16:38.have anticipated? No disrespect to Lizzie, she's had a fairly quiet
:16:38. > :16:41.year this year. It's hard to get over something like the Olympic
:16:41. > :16:48.Games she had, which was fantastic. I think she only has one win so far
:16:48. > :16:52.this year. It's not the ideal Serb kit. -- circuit. If anybody gives
:16:52. > :16:57.her an opportunity, she will take it. In terms of the British team,
:16:57. > :17:03.not the strongest of supports there. No, it's not the strongest British
:17:03. > :17:06.team on the start with the absence of some of the stronger riders.
:17:06. > :17:10.Lizzie is quite good condition and training yesterday she was really
:17:10. > :17:15.strong. She's fit and healthy. So I wouldn't under estimate her. She has
:17:15. > :17:18.an outside cha chance -- chance of a medal. It will be hard without a
:17:18. > :17:24.supporting team. Everybody is talking Vos, who has won five
:17:24. > :17:28.silverles and two golds. Cuff see beyond her? She's the clear
:17:28. > :17:32.favourite. Then Emma Johansson of Sweden is the world number one and a
:17:32. > :17:36.classy bike rider. Chef could take her opportunity. Then again, the
:17:36. > :17:39.Dutch team is strong and the Italian team is full of name and strong
:17:39. > :17:46.climbers. They will be a team to beat. Get yourselves to the
:17:46. > :17:52.commentary box. If you've got any questions for Rochelle or Chris or
:17:52. > :17:57.Simon, it's #BBC cycling or@BBC Sport is the handle. During the last
:17:57. > :18:02.three-and-a-half laps, they will answer those questions. Now we hand
:18:02. > :18:05.over to Simon Brotherton for the rest of this race.
:18:05. > :18:12.Thank you Jonathan. They're on the second climb of the ascent at the
:18:12. > :18:17.moment. For the second time it's the second climb of the ascent at the
:18:17. > :18:23.USA on the front. The United States put virtually all their riders on
:18:23. > :18:27.the front of the peleton. They set a high tempo and it did damage. It
:18:27. > :18:34.whittled the field down. Going through the finishing line, we had
:18:34. > :18:39.Polspoel from Belgium in the lead by 16 seconds. 44 riders in a group
:18:39. > :18:43.were behind her, among them all the leading riders and contenders,
:18:43. > :18:49.including Lizzie Armitstead of Great Britain, the defending champion,
:18:49. > :18:54.Marianne Vos, of the Netherlands and Giorgia Bronzini. News on the other
:18:54. > :18:57.British riders in the field today, Colclough, of whom you were hearing,
:18:57. > :19:04.saying this was her last race at the age of just 23, well, about five
:19:04. > :19:12.minutes ago she was two minutes 13 seconds down. Nikki Harris was
:19:12. > :19:17.alongside her. And loosy Garner, last year's world junior champion
:19:17. > :19:20.has gone through the finishing line, six minutes 47 down having been
:19:20. > :19:28.dropped early on the climb. There is Armitstead on the right side of the
:19:28. > :19:33.picture. In her white crash helmet. Chef has the Great British Jersey on
:19:33. > :19:40.a most live white coloured Jersey. But USA on the front again, on the
:19:40. > :19:42.climb, with McGrath, Italy also getting involved as well.
:19:42. > :19:49.climb, with McGrath, Italy also It was a grey, heavy, overcraft
:19:49. > :19:54.morning. Thankfully, the sun, that's -- has burnt the cloud away to leave
:19:54. > :20:20.us with a lovely, still, beautifully warm afternoon.
:20:20. > :20:27.Now the real bills of this finishing -- real business of this finishing
:20:27. > :20:34.circuit. The finishing line just a stone throw from the football
:20:34. > :20:37.stadium. The race very much on now. I'm amailsed -- amazed that the
:20:37. > :20:46.American team spent so much energy on lap one there.
:20:47. > :20:53.. All the favourites are still there. I was really surprised to see
:20:53. > :20:56.how strong they road in the first part of the race the USA. They
:20:56. > :21:00.really wanted to make a point come intoing those circuits -- coming
:21:00. > :21:06.into the circuits. They're down to two riders at the front now.
:21:06. > :21:11.Obviously Abbott is the clear favourite. A really good climber.
:21:11. > :21:15.They're giving 100% to Abbott today. She could be a real factor,
:21:15. > :21:20.Rochelle, because it's not just about Marianne Vos, this one and
:21:20. > :21:21.Armitstead, perhaps this is not the ideal circuit for her. Maybe she can
:21:21. > :21:25.hang in there and come up with a ideal circuit for her. Maybe she can
:21:25. > :21:28.good ride on a very good day for her, you never know. Riders like
:21:28. > :21:33.Abbott have a real chance on a circuit like this. Yeah Mara Abbott
:21:33. > :21:37.would be a favourite. She's such a good climber. She's so comfortable
:21:37. > :21:41.with the other riders are expending energy to get over the climb. Lizzie
:21:41. > :21:45.Armitstead is an outside chance for a medal. I think she's in great
:21:45. > :21:49.form. I was training with her yesterday. She looked very powerful.
:21:49. > :21:54.She's just relaxed, taking a bit of pressure off herself, given she
:21:54. > :22:02.hasn't got a very strong team. She's an outside chance for a medal today.
:22:02. > :22:05.Now starts a technical descent, like a ribbon of spaghetti through the
:22:05. > :22:10.trees. Certainly it's a very fast descent on a beautiful surface.
:22:10. > :22:16.Because it comes immediately after the climb, there is no moment at the
:22:16. > :22:25.top for regrouping. It could be quite decisive in the race, monther
:22:25. > :22:39.so than -- more so than in the race I think. I think there are four
:22:40. > :22:48.Americaniersies there. -- Americaniersies
:22:48. > :22:56.Stephens was the first of the American riders to go over the top
:22:56. > :23:07.there. McGrath is still there. Dvorak is there and the leading
:23:07. > :23:14.rider is Guderzo. Van Vleuten is on the front. We saw
:23:14. > :23:18.yesterday that races can be would be on -- won on the descent. They will
:23:18. > :23:23.try to stretch everybody out. There's good bike handling required
:23:23. > :23:27.to come down here. Just to say that every metre of this
:23:27. > :23:30.circuit, every metre of the whole race route, actually, has been
:23:30. > :23:34.relaid in preparation for these championships. Itles cost the
:23:34. > :23:38.Italians -- it's cost the Italians millions of euros to make these
:23:38. > :23:44.preparations. The road surfaces are Sebbing tack already and --
:23:44. > :23:51.spectacular, and they're silky smooth.
:23:51. > :23:57.To have the race wheels in and be on a fast circuit, it's just a buzzing
:23:57. > :24:01.atmosphere for the women today. There was a lot of talk coming into
:24:01. > :24:06.these championships that this was the hardest course for many a long
:24:06. > :24:13.year and that it was one for the climbers, maybe one for the
:24:13. > :24:17.punchers, those classics riders. I don't know what you feel, it but it
:24:17. > :24:22.strikes me that more riders have been involved or have been in with a
:24:22. > :24:26.shout with a lap to go than we might have expected in the races we've
:24:26. > :24:30.seen, the under 23 men, the junior races so far. That's definitely the
:24:30. > :24:34.case. I road the course and thought it was one of the hardest courses
:24:34. > :24:38.I've seen in the past ten years. Then we saw the under 23 men's races
:24:38. > :24:41.and junior races that there were more people at the finish than
:24:41. > :24:44.expected. That gave hope to sprinters in the race. The unique
:24:44. > :24:50.thing about this championship is that pure climberlies think they can
:24:50. > :24:57.win and -- climbers who think they can win and also the stayers who
:24:57. > :25:01.think they can win. Brand has spotted that. That puts Marianne Vos
:25:01. > :25:05.in the driving seat. She doesn't have to do any chasing. A team-mate
:25:05. > :25:08.is up the road. It is developing quickly. It looked like one of
:25:08. > :25:48.theive Italian riders as Interesting that they chose to
:25:48. > :25:53.attack on the decent not on the climb. Very swiftly nullified.
:25:53. > :25:56.They'll be heading in the direction of the second climb on the circuit.
:25:56. > :25:59.This is a really interesting one. This is where the men's junior race
:25:59. > :26:05.was won and lost earlier this morning. It's like a 600-metre long
:26:05. > :26:09.wall. Only 25 or so riders there. It might be our camera angle. It's been
:26:09. > :26:15.whittled down further. All four of the remaining Dutch riders right at
:26:15. > :26:23.the front having a chat. There's Giorgia Bronzini, the two-time world
:26:23. > :26:25.champion and Charlie Mulgrew -- Ashleigh Moolman from South Africa.
:26:25. > :26:29.We're left with the big names already. There's a lot of racing to
:26:29. > :26:33.come here in the women's road race World Championships. At the back,
:26:33. > :26:35.riders are just coming back. The climbs are very hard. They're only a
:26:35. > :26:39.few minutes long. The gaps aren't climbs are very hard. They're only a
:26:39. > :26:42.that big. You can't coming back all day. You get one or two chances, but
:26:42. > :26:51.if you've been dropped at this stage, the writing is probably on
:26:51. > :27:03.the wall. Now we have an attack on the far side of the road. It's from
:27:03. > :27:07.the Swiss. Scandolar from Italy as well. It's amazing how the Italian
:27:07. > :27:10.team pull together. Such a strong World Championship team. They have
:27:10. > :27:12.so much pride in riding for each other when they come to the World
:27:12. > :27:14.Championships. They've had other when they come to the World
:27:14. > :27:22.phenomenal success over the past year. They have such a strong team.
:27:22. > :27:26.It Bronzini, a two-time winner, Guderzo, former world champion,
:27:26. > :27:30.Longo Borghini, who won a bronze medal last year. Such strength in
:27:30. > :27:34.depth. Getting them all to pull in the same direction and fight for one
:27:34. > :27:40.rider in particular, that must be no mean feat. Here we are on the second
:27:40. > :27:42.climb. Lizzie Armitstead up towards the front. It may not look like too
:27:43. > :27:46.climb. Lizzie Armitstead up towards much and perhaps the television
:27:46. > :27:50.angle doesn't give it full justice. Trust me, after a few times round
:27:50. > :27:54.this you real live feel this in the if legs. It's a maximum gradient of
:27:55. > :27:58.16%. On the previous lap they were down to 11 kilometres an hour. That
:27:59. > :28:03.gives you an indication of how tough it is. It's not long, but it's in a
:28:03. > :28:11.strategically important position at 3. 5 kilometres to the finish. You
:28:11. > :28:16.have that climb earlier on of four kilometres and you descend. You
:28:16. > :28:20.don't have much recovery. Then it sneaks up on you and it's already
:28:20. > :28:34.there. The sting is in the legs from the first climb.
:28:34. > :28:41.It's amazing how much damage it's doing. A lot of those riders have
:28:41. > :28:45.had a big fight down the descent just to get back in touch and then
:28:45. > :28:50.they turn a sharp right and they're onto this climb. So 600 metres, it
:28:50. > :28:57.can be an awful long way if you're already on the limit. That's the
:28:57. > :29:10.Australian rider, Carley Taylor, she's a future talent. She's a
:29:10. > :29:16.really good climber. Gillow has been the big hope. She's hit a Plateau,
:29:16. > :29:20.and it will be interesting to see if she can lift her game over the next
:29:20. > :29:25.couple of years. Armitstead is right in the action. She's riding well.
:29:25. > :29:29.You were saying that you saw her yesterday in training and she looked
:29:29. > :29:33.in good shape, better than she has perhaps at other parts of the year.
:29:33. > :29:36.Yeah, she's very fit at the moment. She did a couple of efforts
:29:36. > :29:39.yesterday and she looked extremely strong. She's been quietly spoken
:29:39. > :29:43.about this year's World Championship. I think that she's
:29:43. > :29:45.capable of more than she's leading on. She is healthy and fit. She's in
:29:45. > :29:49.form. Chef hasn't done much this form. Chef hasn't done muchthis
:29:49. > :29:57.this season. -- she hasn't done much this season.
:29:57. > :30:00.I was in Glasgow to watch the national championships and she was
:30:00. > :30:04.switched on for that race, powerful and strong. A similar course. This
:30:04. > :30:10.one is a little more difficult but with the same punchy climb. Sheaves
:30:10. > :30:15.capable if she -- she's capable if she hangs in there.
:30:15. > :30:19.She has got form as well in the World Championships, seventh in the
:30:19. > :30:23.worlds in 2011. I think she has another top-ten finish in a previous
:30:23. > :30:27.year. Always tactically smart and we've seen in the opening stages,
:30:27. > :30:32.she's good at positioning herself. She's pretty much isolated. Yes, she
:30:32. > :30:36.is. Once the favourites, up said she's been quietly spoken of, all
:30:36. > :30:39.the favourites start to watch each other and it might present an
:30:39. > :30:43.opportunity to just attack. They'll watch each other for a few seconds
:30:43. > :30:55.and she could turn that to her advantage.
:30:55. > :31:03.In the junior men's race you, one of them broke away, there were two
:31:03. > :31:05.already in the lead, not by much, but found an extra burst of speed.
:31:05. > :31:44.He shot away. He won the Gold Medal. Still a lot of people in with a
:31:44. > :31:49.shout here in this road race. Despite the fact that Marianne Vos a
:31:49. > :31:55.clear favourite. The champion last year. Second five years running
:31:55. > :32:02.before that, twice a world champion. What an incredible rider. Just over
:32:02. > :32:04.50 clockers to to go. -- kilometres to go.to go. Ive she will like the
:32:04. > :32:08.way this race is panning out. She to go.to go. Ive she will like the
:32:08. > :32:12.would prefer more team support. Buff it's hard. She's got more room to
:32:12. > :32:17.manoeuvre. She has no responsibility to do riding on the front. She can
:32:17. > :32:25.watch and see how it develops. She's in a good position now. They come
:32:25. > :32:28.round with three kilometres to go. America still clueing -- choosing to
:32:28. > :32:34.set the pace here. I'm not sure how this is helping them. Probably just
:32:34. > :32:36.keeping the group whittled down. Italy quite prominent towards the
:32:36. > :32:42.keeping the group whittled down. front now. This is the last little
:32:42. > :32:47.incline in the entire race. Guderzo hits the front and is very quickly
:32:47. > :32:52.closed down. It does seem, until now, that the Americans are the only
:32:52. > :32:57.team that have that clear objective of making the race really hard from
:32:57. > :33:02.the start. They've been constantly attacking from the front. They have
:33:02. > :33:06.confidence in their lead rider, Mara Abbott and also Stephens is in
:33:06. > :33:12.there. One or two questions coming in from viewers. Perhaps one for you
:33:12. > :33:16.Rochelle. Can we envisage a full women's pro circuit like the men's
:33:16. > :33:20.in the next five years? Yeah, it's one of my dreams to see, now that
:33:20. > :33:24.Brian Cookson is in the position as president, it's likely we will see
:33:24. > :33:34.more of the very prestigious women's races on the. R. -- races on the
:33:34. > :33:36.calendar. We have a huge desire to have a women's Tour De France. Let's
:33:36. > :33:39.not forget next year there's a have a women's Tour De France. Let's
:33:39. > :33:44.women's tour of Britain. This is hay huge step forward for women's
:33:44. > :33:49.cycling. One or two riders there, at the back end of the field. At the
:33:49. > :33:57.front of the race, little discussion there going on between Guarnier and
:33:57. > :34:01.Stephens of the United States. We were talking about the position
:34:01. > :34:06.of women's cycling. Instanting appointing a commission to look at
:34:06. > :34:10.promoting and developing women's cycling, in his first few hours in
:34:10. > :34:14.the post and what you could do. There's several things that kneeled
:34:14. > :34:18.to be addressed -- needs to be addressed. We need strength in
:34:18. > :34:22.depth, which we see only at the biggest races, so it doesn't
:34:22. > :34:25.instantly whittle down to a group of two or three. To do that, there
:34:25. > :34:30.needs to be incentive to get into the sport. It needs to be televised
:34:30. > :34:35.and given the publicity. And the events that already exist, buff they
:34:35. > :34:38.need to be -- but they need to be publicised. That's right. We could
:34:38. > :34:42.see a significant change in women's cycling. During the election, Brian
:34:42. > :34:46.Cookson was saying it was one of hills top priorities to support --
:34:46. > :34:50.his top priorities to support women's cycling. To see he has
:34:50. > :34:58.appointed a woman as the vice president in the UCIuals a huge --
:34:58. > :35:03.UCI was a huge step. His statements about developing women's cycling may
:35:03. > :35:08.come to fruf wig. He's -- fruition. If you thought it was hard getting
:35:08. > :35:13.electioned -- elected, wait until he sees the tray on Monday morning.
:35:13. > :35:20.He's got stuck in straight away. Little discussion again between two
:35:20. > :35:24.of theive tallians -- of the Italians. Probably only about 30
:35:24. > :35:27.riders left at the moment in contention, if that. Everybody you
:35:27. > :35:31.see starting to take the opportunity on this rare, flattish road to grab
:35:31. > :35:36.something to eat. So, so important to stay on top of eat figure and
:35:36. > :35:41.drinking in this race, because with so much action and so many climbs,
:35:41. > :35:42.it's ease why toy forget that and -- easy to forget that and you pay a
:35:43. > :35:58.price. Quite a lot of discussion going on
:35:58. > :36:01.between the American team deciding what they want to do. They came into
:36:01. > :36:04.the circuit and they've done all the damage. They're largely responsible
:36:04. > :36:08.for the group being the size it is now. It seems to me they're talking
:36:09. > :36:14.about changing tactics now. Should they continue with this since all
:36:14. > :36:21.the favourites are still there? Or do they keep driving? The chatter is
:36:21. > :36:25.all among the United States' riders and the Italian team at the moment.
:36:25. > :36:30.The Dutch are happy to sit there and loiter. I think the Italians and
:36:30. > :36:35.Dutch have had many opportunities in the past to rived together. Buff
:36:35. > :36:41.this -- to ride together. But this USA team has young riders. In most
:36:41. > :36:44.teams the nations appoint one person captain on the road that makes all
:36:44. > :36:49.the decisions. But there needs to be a lot of discussions between the
:36:49. > :36:54.riders. Then the lead rider will make the final decision on how to
:36:54. > :37:00.race the next couple of laps. Three laps to go of this 16. 5
:37:00. > :37:04.kilometre circuit. A question, "Do the men and women do the same
:37:04. > :37:10.course? The answer is yes, they do. The short answer: Yes. This is the
:37:10. > :37:14.course that will be used by the men tomorrow. But they do ten laps of
:37:14. > :37:16.this finishing circuit rather than five. That really is going to be a
:37:16. > :37:35.tough day out, isn't it? The climb will start in the not too
:37:35. > :37:40.distant future here. Just a few roads on the edge of the city.
:37:40. > :37:44.There's Armitstead, number 50. Number 18 is worth keeping an eye on
:37:44. > :37:47.too, Emma Johansson, the current world number one. Sheaves been a
:37:47. > :37:53.medallist in the World Championship race before. In terms of numbers
:37:53. > :38:04.she's had a big team with her today. But Johansson, I don't think Farlin
:38:04. > :38:08.is there. No, she's isolated there. She is one of the favourites today.
:38:08. > :38:13.She was the first rider in six years to take number one from Marianne
:38:13. > :38:17.Vos. I think she has a point to prop today and really note investigated.
:38:17. > :38:22.She is known to pull off results riding by herself without strong
:38:22. > :38:27.team support. Vos is outrageous live talented. Is -- outrageously
:38:27. > :38:32.talented. This year Marianne Vos hasn't raced as often as in the
:38:32. > :38:37.past. Sheaves put more folk -- she's put more focus into the mountain
:38:37. > :38:42.bikes. She's still one of the best bike riders in the road in road
:38:42. > :38:47.sierkling and -- cycling and is the favourite today. If you're not
:38:47. > :38:50.familiar with Marianne Vos, she is the world champion, the Olympic
:38:50. > :38:55.champion, she's won the World Cup this year. She won five of the eight
:38:55. > :39:01.races. She's won classics. She's won an Olympic title on the track on the
:39:01. > :39:07.points race. She rides mountain bike. Extraordinary athlete in terms
:39:07. > :39:11.of any sport. Shall we try to find something she hasn't done. She's
:39:11. > :39:16.done just about anything and everything. She's probably the most
:39:16. > :39:19.successful cycling across the board of men and women.
:39:19. > :39:22.successful cycling across the board You can see the riders choosing to
:39:22. > :39:26.pick up a bottle. If they wanted to, it's a risky strategy, but being as
:39:26. > :39:32.the laps are less than half an hour, they could choose to ride with a
:39:32. > :39:36.single bottle and pick one up each lap. But if you drop a bottle, you
:39:36. > :39:40.have no Plan B at all. The Americans, one of the few advantages
:39:40. > :39:44.of sitting on the front here all day is you get to go through that feed
:39:44. > :39:48.zone at your own speed. You're almost guaranteed to make sure you
:39:48. > :39:53.get a bottle. If you're on the left side, you have to miss it. You won't
:39:53. > :39:57.get anything again for half an hour. They will manage to get a bottle.
:39:57. > :40:02.One of the most dangerous points in the race, the chance of collision or
:40:02. > :40:07.running over a stray bottle quite high. Dvorak of the USA leading on
:40:07. > :40:12.the lower slopes of the climb. Third time of five up this climb. Let's
:40:12. > :40:21.see if it starts to whittle the field down a bit more on this third
:40:21. > :40:26.lap. Are she was struggling on the previous climb. That might have been
:40:26. > :40:34.because she put in a big tint on the front. Two Australians are near the
:40:34. > :40:38.front, Taylor and Gillow. It will be interesting to see if she gives
:40:38. > :40:42.everything she has left now on this lap and then she won't be worried
:40:42. > :40:55.about getting dropped. She need to get the last bit out of her for her
:40:55. > :41:06.team-mates. Gillow looked like she was riding through treacle. What did
:41:06. > :41:09.you say before? She dagged out of the back, a bit of Australian slang.
:41:09. > :41:23.We learned something. The orange Jersey, the Dutch rider
:41:23. > :41:27.is Ellen Van Dijk. Two gold medals in her back pocket this week with
:41:27. > :41:32.the team time trial last Sunday, when they ride with their sponsored
:41:32. > :41:37.teams. The only World Championship event where they do that, slightly
:41:37. > :41:41.confusingly. Then she won the women's individual time trial on
:41:41. > :41:45.Tuesday afternoon. The great way to start the last race being a double
:41:45. > :41:53.Gold Medallist. You have nothing to lose at all. Amazing. We've seen the
:41:53. > :41:59.remains of the peloton come through. With Harris and Colclough there.
:41:59. > :42:04.Their day will be done. Unless they're on the World Championships,
:42:04. > :42:09.they will be pulled out. They're probably six minutes behind, at
:42:09. > :42:14.least already. It will be interesting to know what the
:42:14. > :42:17.feelings are of Colclough, being her lot race -- last race. She won a
:42:17. > :42:22.World Championship days ago, now she's wondering should she continue?
:42:22. > :42:26.Pull out and call it a day? This will be an emotional day for her.
:42:26. > :42:30.Possibly not the waif she would have wanted to finish, with the pace set
:42:30. > :42:34.by the American team on the first lap of the circuit, dictated to a
:42:34. > :42:40.lot of the peloton that they weren't going to see nymph this circuit at
:42:40. > :42:45.the -- see any more of the circuit on the front end. Once again the USA
:42:45. > :42:49.setting the pace on the climb. This is a familiar feature. Will it have
:42:49. > :42:54.the effect they desire. One of the thicks I'm -- things I'm
:42:54. > :43:01.going to ask Brian Cookson if he can deliver in his presidency, numbers
:43:01. > :43:07.on helmets. In the days now that everybody is wearing often identical
:43:07. > :43:12.kit, almost always sun glasses, it would be so helpful to the fans at
:43:12. > :43:16.home, and not least us, if they had a small number on the front of the
:43:16. > :43:21.helmet. There was a certain similarity with so many riders
:43:21. > :43:24.wearing similar sun glasses and crash helmets. It could be an
:43:24. > :43:28.interesting concept to give a number to a rider for the whole season.
:43:28. > :43:32.That number is that rider. That happens in BMX. Yes, you keep your
:43:32. > :43:37.number for the full year. We'll have to call Brian Cookson
:43:37. > :43:41.later. We have have so much. We've done so much work for him while
:43:41. > :43:44.we've been here. here. Ive imagine how many people are giving him
:43:44. > :43:49.advice now on things he can do in his position. Probably hills head is
:43:49. > :43:53.about to -- his head is about to explode. I'm sure he's driving on
:43:53. > :43:58.that responsibility, making a list of priorities. Fortunately for us,
:43:58. > :44:01.women's cycling is high on the list. We're excited about seeing what
:44:01. > :44:05.happens over the next four years. His life has changed rather
:44:05. > :44:10.dramatically today as the president of the UCI. One or two issues to
:44:10. > :44:23.deal with. These Americans are taking control
:44:23. > :44:33.of the race. Abbott is the person they're riding for in particular.
:44:33. > :44:42.This group seems to be stuck around the same number now. Everyone seems
:44:42. > :44:50.to be pretty much capable of staying in there. We're not seeing any big
:44:50. > :44:55.attrition now. We're left with the elite riders in the field. I suppose
:44:56. > :44:59.half of them just wondering when Marianne Vos will decide to make a
:44:59. > :45:03.move. We saw last year that a move went
:45:03. > :45:08.away that she wasn't in. They let that go. There was another Dutch
:45:08. > :45:12.rider in that break. Marianne Vos waited for her moment to go across.
:45:12. > :45:16.There were prediction that's would happen here. The Americans have kept
:45:16. > :45:20.the pace so high that's not been possible. Van der Breggen Honourable
:45:20. > :45:22.Friended up with fifth place last year. It was good to see Marianne
:45:22. > :45:27.Friended up with fifth place last Vos claim the world title for the
:45:27. > :45:31.second time, in front of a home crowd. I the scream of delight as
:45:31. > :45:36.she crossed the line was different to the cry of agony, that I'll never
:45:37. > :45:39.forget, when she finished second for the fifth year running, she was
:45:39. > :45:42.banging her handle bars with frustration. Another rider in the
:45:42. > :46:08.peloton if experiencing those same frustration. Another rider in the
:46:08. > :46:29.his top priorities to support frustration. Another rider in the
:46:29. > :46:34.How difficult will it have been to pick herself up ahead of the road
:46:34. > :46:54.race after something like that? She had really targeted that individual
:46:54. > :46:59.time trial. A little attack here. Nelson McCausland. It's splitting
:46:59. > :47:10.the group actually. Their riders cannot follow the wheels here.
:47:10. > :47:19.Emma Johansson is there as well from Sweden. Vos catching up.
:47:19. > :47:28.They were expecting this lap to be a steady tempo. It was a very strong
:47:28. > :47:31.attack. Carley responds to it here, the Australian in second place,
:47:31. > :47:35.closing the gap. Sheaves on a good day today, she's climbing -- she's
:47:35. > :47:48.on a good day today, climbing extremely well.
:47:48. > :47:53.Gaps still behind on the climb. Of course, straight into that descent.
:47:53. > :47:58.If there's somebody who wants to take it on, then this -- they could
:47:58. > :48:06.make a small gap stick. She's done damage to her own team as well.
:48:06. > :48:27.The Italians have Bronzini in the bunch who is known to be a sprinter.
:48:27. > :48:32.It's Caus -- Cauz piling it on. Maybe she's been given a mandate to
:48:32. > :48:37.make the climb hard. Vos is still there, fifth or sixth. Not doing a
:48:37. > :48:40.lot of damage now. Everybody is ready for the attacks. I suspect
:48:40. > :48:58.slightly weaker now as well. Italy in the blue jerzies with the
:48:58. > :49:03.white shoulders, can you see most of their team in the first dozen
:49:03. > :49:09.riders. It will be interesting to know if the command from Giorgia
:49:09. > :49:14.Bronzini was - I'm feeling good, make it hard or I'm not feeling
:49:14. > :49:18.good, make your own way. way. Ive might be the former.
:49:18. > :49:24.We're looking at Valentina Scandolar.
:49:24. > :49:33.She's decided that they want to keep the pace high.
:49:33. > :49:38.She's pushing hard before the crest, nipping through the square.
:49:38. > :49:42.Scandolar and team-mates finished outside the medal last week, fifth,
:49:42. > :49:46.on the opening day of these championships.
:49:46. > :49:52.Another attack from Italy. Again, it is the same rider.
:49:52. > :49:57.There's a lot of passion in there, but now everybody is not being taken
:49:57. > :50:02.There's a lot of passion in there, by surprise, it's not doing an awful
:50:02. > :50:06.lot of damage, is it? As I say that, everybody decides to let her go.
:50:06. > :50:09.That's possibly because they've experienced that this is a powerful
:50:10. > :50:15.attack, but not sustainable. So they've let it go. They believe that
:50:15. > :50:18.it will possibly come back. The two of them, because they are
:50:18. > :50:22.approaching the summit, if they can crest the summit together, again,
:50:22. > :50:25.great for Marianne Vos, because she doesn't have to do any chasing.
:50:25. > :50:29.That's two of the strongest nations there.
:50:29. > :50:32.Lizzie Armitstead to the right of your screen there. She looks very
:50:32. > :50:36.comfortable. She does. She's sticking with the leading
:50:36. > :50:40.contenders. That's the Australian Taylor,
:50:40. > :50:47.closing that gap. She's sacrificing her race and riding 100% for her
:50:47. > :50:53.team-mate Tiffany Cromwell. She had a nice win earlier in the season.
:50:53. > :50:57.Then for the rest of the season she's been assisting Johansson in
:50:57. > :51:01.her team. She's a lead rider for Australia, it
:51:01. > :51:06.hasn't happened that many times this year, that she's been the lead
:51:06. > :51:11.rider. Sheaves neatly tucked in behind Taylor -- she's neatly tucked
:51:11. > :51:15.in behind Taylor. The technical descent starts beyond that left
:51:16. > :51:19.turn. Brand leading over the top. We saw on the previous lap there were
:51:19. > :51:23.attempts to it escape on the descent itself. They were affect e effective
:51:23. > :51:30.at making small gaps. That might pb a pattern for the remaining laps of
:51:30. > :51:31.this race. Brand, the national road champion of the Netherlands, leading
:51:31. > :51:53.the way. I don't think they'll be having fun
:51:53. > :51:58.at this point, the pain in the legs after the climb. But it was a fun
:51:58. > :52:02.descent, when I did it. A lot of gaps developing. We have one rider
:52:02. > :52:07.off the front. Is that Brand of the Netherlands? Chef was the rider who
:52:07. > :52:13.led it over the -- she was the rider who led it over the summit. Yes, it
:52:13. > :52:19.is. She's driving on now. Lucinda Brand from the Netherlands,
:52:19. > :52:22.really piling it on. It's deceptive, these speeds. The gap in time is
:52:22. > :52:27.quite small. It looks like a big gap, buff it's probably only two
:52:27. > :52:32.seconds at the moment. She's got daylight. It's shaking it up behind.
:52:32. > :52:37.She's had a strong season. She has had great results. She's a Dutch
:52:37. > :52:40.national champion. She rides on the same professional team as Marianne
:52:40. > :52:46.Vos. She deaf nitly have experience riding with each other. She's a huge
:52:46. > :52:50.talent having won the national championship this year.
:52:50. > :52:54.This is Tiffany Cromwell from Australia.
:52:54. > :52:59.As Chris said before, she's a good Australia.
:52:59. > :53:03.tactical rider. She will be enjoying that and putting the pressure on the
:53:03. > :53:07.riders who are more nervous. Tiffany Cromwell closing right up on Lucinda
:53:07. > :53:10.Brand. It's costing them a lot of effort on
:53:10. > :53:13.the descent, that's the only thing. They go straight into the short
:53:13. > :53:22.600-metre climb in a few moments. If they can get over that, suddenly,
:53:22. > :53:29.it gets very dangerous. Are they going to cooperate? It certainly
:53:29. > :53:35.looks like it. I'm sure she will be eager to put the pressure on. Look
:53:35. > :53:41.at the gap! Taylor did a great job closing those gaps and Tiffany chose
:53:41. > :53:47.her moment. She's gone on the attack. That's a dangerous attack to
:53:47. > :53:50.have them in front. This is aye very, very exciting development here
:53:50. > :53:56.in this women's road race. It's about five seconds at the moment.
:53:56. > :54:05.Ratto of Italy is chasing. It's their responsibility to do all
:54:05. > :54:16.the work now. Knew knew of Poe land as well.
:54:16. > :54:38.-- knew It would be easy for this short gap
:54:38. > :54:43.to be jumped across. If they can survive the climb, this would be
:54:43. > :54:46.very dangerous. The motorbikes are giving us fantastic coverage of
:54:46. > :54:51.race. But they are starting to interfere. The riders can draft
:54:51. > :54:54.behind these motorbikes and it makes a significant difference. When the
:54:54. > :54:58.gaps are just five and six seconds, you can see now, the shot we're
:54:58. > :55:02.getting from the motorbike is helping the chase. I think they've
:55:02. > :55:08.covered more or less 100 kilometres now. About 40 to go. The next time
:55:08. > :55:12.check in the not too distant future. We are getting down towards the
:55:12. > :55:16.business end of the race here. Extra fluid is taken on board by some of
:55:16. > :55:19.the leading riders. They're not chasing, which is interesting to
:55:19. > :55:24.see. That's a dangerous move on a circuit like this. They've decided
:55:24. > :55:26.to not chase. I would have thought Italy would commit themselves to the
:55:26. > :55:29.task here. It's their responsibility. They can't take
:55:29. > :55:34.risks like this. We've got a shot, well, I thought that was number one
:55:34. > :55:40.for a moment there. That Van Vleuten. Uals off the back? I think
:55:40. > :55:47.she's just -- was she off the back? I think she's just rove joining the
:55:47. > :55:52.group. Tiffany Cromwell is extremely switched on. Itch was speaking with
:55:52. > :55:58.her father a few -- I was speaking with her father a few days ago. Shes
:55:58. > :56:01.turned down a shopping trip. The first time in her life she's done
:56:01. > :56:06.that. She's passionate about fashion. She has her own clothing
:56:06. > :56:10.label. That is one of her passions. She's switched on and to sacrifice a
:56:10. > :56:16.day shopping, that means it's all business for her. I don't think this
:56:16. > :56:23.will succeed. I will have to stop talking about. It I feel the cameras
:56:23. > :56:27.are interfearing here. The gap is probably only about two seconds now,
:56:27. > :56:31.really coming down. Oh, and the first crash of the day. What a nasty
:56:31. > :56:39.one as well, they head into the climb. The rider hit the deck there
:56:39. > :56:43.is from Poland and she's causing a problem there can the Swiss rider.
:56:43. > :56:47.Then Ellen Van Dijk of the Netherlands being held up by it
:56:47. > :56:52.momentarily. I think this is one of the issues
:56:52. > :56:54.that you can have. I mention carbon fibre wheels, they're lovely light
:56:54. > :56:58.wheels and they're light where you want it to be, rotational weight,
:56:58. > :57:03.but the braking performance is not as good as machined aluminium.
:57:03. > :57:05.Sometimes you can just get a grab and if you're on the edge of
:57:05. > :57:06.Sometimes you can just get a grab traction in the middle of a corner
:57:06. > :57:10.Sometimes you can just get a grab and your wheel just grabs, it could
:57:10. > :57:23.be enough to lose the wheel. A real indication of when a wall this climb
:57:23. > :57:26.is. Giorgia Bronzini goes past Wilmahson is going backwards
:57:26. > :57:30.is. Giorgia Bronzini goes past rapidly. Annemiek Van Vleuten goes
:57:30. > :57:36.past her. Armitstead is about eighth at the momentment -- moment.
:57:36. > :57:38.Brand is doing a good job at the front there. She's looking quite
:57:38. > :57:42.Brand is doing a good job at the fresh. This is an opportunity to us
:57:42. > :57:46.to look at how everybody is faring. Lizzie Armitstead is making her way
:57:46. > :57:52.up this group as far as I can see. She's in great shape. Looking really
:57:52. > :57:58.good now as they come towards the top of the climb. Armitstead right
:57:58. > :58:03.in there with the leading riders there. But still we haven't seen any
:58:03. > :58:08.activity in terms of animating the race from the Dutch team.
:58:08. > :58:11.Absolutely. This might have been the moment for Marianne Vos to have an
:58:11. > :58:13.attack given that Lucinda Brand got out there and made the others work
:58:13. > :58:18.pretty hard to bridge the gap. This out there and made the others work
:58:18. > :58:24.is the best, here we go, the Dutch are now starting to apply some
:58:24. > :58:29.pressure. As they come to the top, it is the Netherlands hitting the
:58:29. > :58:34.front for the very first time in the race. If it's anything like the
:58:34. > :58:37.men's under 23 race yesterday, there will be attack after attack this
:58:37. > :58:43.with Lucinda Brand leading the way and right on her wheel, Ratto from
:58:43. > :58:47.Italy. The news with over two laps to go here, and inside the final 40
:58:47. > :58:51.kilometres of this women's road race, World Championship, Great
:58:51. > :58:59.Britain's Lizzie Armitstead is still among the leading 15 riders on the
:58:59. > :59:03.road. Time to say goodbye now on BBC One.
:59:03. > :59:03.But turn over to BBC Two for the