Anna Henderson (Lidl-Trek) overcame Caroline Andersson (Jayco-AlUla) in a two-way sprint to the line at the Tour of Guangxi, the one-day Women's WorldTour event that marks the end of top tier racing for 2025.
The pair had broken away from the lead group on the final climb with around 20km to go and then worked together to keep the gap so they could fight for victory at the end of the four laps of the circuit around Nanning.
Andersson was on the front as the pair headed to the line but Henderson had the pace to leap from her wheel and claim her second Women's WorldTour win, having already swept up a stage of the Giro d'Italia women earlier in the season.
"We were always in the right breakaway, we were always in the moves, we never missed anything and then, I was just really lucky that I had a really good day on the bike," said Henderson in a team release. "I was super good on the climb so I could attack twice and then, make these small groups. I had Elisa [Balsamo] behind all the time so I could always play that game of Elisa's coming.
"Overall I am just super happy and it's really nice to finish the season like this. My first year with Lidl-Trek ending in a win, it's been really good."
It was nearly a minute later that a group of six behind, who had been playing games on the lead in as they tried to position to grasp that final podium spot, crossed the line. Elynor Backstedt (UAE Team ADQ) was the first of the group to jump, but she was overhauled by Usoa Ostolaza (Laboral Kutxa - Fundación Euskadi), who took third, and also Marina Komina (Li Ning Star) in fourth.
How it Unfolded
The 108.5km race with 1273m of elevation gain was run over a Nanning circuit with the challenge of the Qingxiushan climb - 1.3km at 11.5% – on each of the four laps. The three-day Chongming Island Tour which had played out earlier in the week had been a race for those who enjoyed flat terrain, while the sting of Qingxiushan made this a very different battle in China.
Some of those who had been revelling in the sprint-friendly tour now found themselves falling off the back in the one-day WorldTour race, with regular changes among those out front as riders surged away on the climbs and then were drawn in a little - only for the ever-thinning groups to be fractured again on the next pass.
It was, however, not surprising when there was a more decisive acceleration on the final pass of Qingxiushan, at just over 20km to the end, which provided a crucial opportunity. Before then the front group, had grown to 12 as an earlier break including Henderson, Giorgia Vettorello (Roland Le Dévoluy), Marina Komina (Li Ning Star) and Usoa Ostolaza (Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi) was swept up in by the chase behind.
As the final climb dug in that group, however, split once again with Henderson and Andersson charging toward the summit and then continuing on over it. They worked together to fend off the chase behind, with the group of six in pursuit behind at around 50 seconds at 5km to go. The two race leaders then held the gap well enough that eventually the pursuit behind slowed to prioritise the fight for third instead, realising that the top two spots of the podium were now out of reach.
Henderson headed toward the line in prime position, on Andersson's wheel and despite the Jayco–AlUla's best efforts to hold her at bay and claim the first win of her career, she had to settle for her first Women's WorldTour podium placing as Henderson celebrated over the line.
"I would have loved to finish it off better, but Henderson was just better in the sprint today. I didn’t have the legs anymore," said Andersson in a team statement. "In one way, I’m disappointed but it’s also my first WorldTour podium so I have to be satisfied. It’s a really nice way to end the season and it gives me a lot of confidence and motivation for next year.”
