Kendall Ryan (L39ion of Los Angeles) scored the win in the elite women's criterium at the USA Pro Road Championships, taking advantage of a stellar lead-out from teammate Holly Breck to sprint to glory.
She beat out Cynisca Cycling duo Alexis Magner and Chloe Patrick to the win at the end of the race around the six-corner course in Charleston, West Virginia, with a decisive sprint finish.
"I'm seeing Stars and Stripes right now. I'm in a great mood and I'm super happy with how my team rode, and there's only three of us in the race," Ryan said after the finish.
"I think we just orchestrated the race and played it really well. I'm so proud of them, proud of myself. I didn't have a great start to the season. I had a concussion in March, so I'm just finally feeling like myself again and glad to be back in the Stars and Stripes jersey.
"I didn't really have to do anything today, and I owe this win to [my team]. I mean, they selflessly covered every single move they needed to be in. I think they couldn't have raced any better. They were there when they needed to be and were really smart about how they spent their energy. It was really important that I had teammates today because it would have been a lot different."
The Californian lined up as part of a 46-woman peloton to start the 75-minute race, which saw her L39ion of Los Angeles team trading attacks all race long with Fount Cycling and Cynisca Cycling.
The first separation came at the 23-minute mark when Andrea Cyr (Fount Cycling) got clear, taking Allison Mrugal (Cynisca Cycling) and Holly Breck (L39ion of Los Angeles) with her.
However, that move was eventually brought back, as were numerous others later in the race. With one lap to go, it was all together in the group before Cyr launched another move. She'd be caught once again before the finish, though, with her capture leading to the final sprint, set up by Breck.
From there, Ryan was ready and waiting in the wheel ready to deliver the winning sprint. Behind her, Magner and Patrick had to make do with filling out the podium spots.
Results
| Pos. | Rider (Nation) Team | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kendall Ryan (USA) L39ion of Los Angeles | |
| 2 | Alexis Magner (USA) Cynisca Cycling | |
| 3 | Chloe Patrick (USA) Cynisca Cycling |
