Drentse 8

The Movistar Team continues with its series of classics in Europe as the girls travel to Drenthe, a province in the northeast of the Netherlands, to take part in two top-level UCI races. Before the WorldTour event held on Sunday 11th, the squad directed by Jorge Sanz will be tackling a 1.2 course with basically the same rivals they will find 48 hours later.

The Drentse 8 -literally, ‘the eight of Drenthe’, due to the form drawn by the race route- is a long (141.7km), fast-paced course where winds and difficulties inherent to any race in the Netherlands -narrow roads, road furniture, changing weather- make for very exciting race and an increased chance of avoiding a bunch sprint finish. Actually, only two of the past five editions have finished with a group of more than ten riders contesting the win in Dwingeloo together.

Two particularities which distinguish the race from others are the short cobbled section (or ‘keienstrook’, as it’s known in the area) of Vlakendijk / Westeinde -just over 200 meters, tackled twice, last passage 23km from the finish- and, above that, the VAM-berg, an artificial hill made with garbage (compost), whose slopes -300m at 5%- are covered twice into the first half of the race and will again be faced on Sunday.