The return of the mixed relay team time trial pitted some of the strongest cycling nations against each other, with Italy emerging victorious at the 2021 European Championships.
Led by powerhouses Filippo Ganna and Elisa Longo Borghini, the Italian TTT unit smashed the 44.8km-long course with a time of 51-59, beating the reigning champions Germanys to second place by 21 seconds.
The mixed relay is a relatively new discipline, introduced during the 2019 season, that only makes an appearance during the European and World Championships.
Despite its unique nature, which sees three male and three female riders male and female from each nation take on the course separately, the event often attracts some star names in the sport.
The course for the Trento 2021 European Championships was a pan flat route along the valley floor.
It was the Dutch team, consisting of Jos van Emden, Koen Bouwman, Bauke Mollema, Floortje Mackaij, Demi Vollering and Amy Pieters, who set an early benchmark time of 52-25, with an average speed of 51.2km/h.
But it was the Italian squad of Ganna, Alessandro De Marchi, Matteo Sobrero, Elisa Longo Borghini, Marta Cavalli and Elena Cecchini who came through to secure the victory, with an average speed of 51.7km/h.
Meanwhile Germany’s six-rider team - Justin Wolf, Miguel Heidemann, Max Walscheid, Mieke Kröger, Tanja Erath, and Corinna Lechner - went into second with a time of 52-20 (51.3km/h).
The European Championships continue on Thursday (September 9) with the men’s and women’s elite time trials, where Filippo Ganna is favourite to take victory as he continues to prepare for the World Championships TT later this month. The women’s TT is wide open however, as Annemiek van Vleuten and Anna van der Breggen (Netherlands) are both absent.
European Championships 2021 mixed relay team time trial
1. Italy, in 51-59
2. Germany, at 21s
3. Netherlands, at 26s
4. France, at 1-28
5. Austria, at 3-24
6. Russia, at 3-35
7. Ukraine, at 3-35
9. Polan, at 3-53
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