Wollaston goes back to back, Andresen wins at Cadel's race

TOBIAS Lund Andresen confidently predicted he would win and rival Matthew Brennan’s mistake made sure that prophecy came true.

The difference in body language between the two sprinters told the story after Sunday’s Cadel Evans Great Ocean Race.

Ally Wollaston went back-to-back in the women’s Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race.

Andresen was bursting with excitement, having claimed the Men’s Road Race in the UCI WorldTour event for the first time. Brennan’s shoulders slumped when he tried a quick escape from the podium presentation, only for journalists to ask for a comment.

Olivier Peace (Team Picnic PostNL) and Julian Badry (Team Australia) were the first two riders over the Challambra Climb.

Brennan mistimed his sprint at the end of the 183.8km course that passed through Barwon Heads and Torquay before returning to the Geelong Waterfront, ensuring fellow recent Tour Down Under stage winner Lund Andresen would come over the top and relegate him to second place.

Petra Stiasny (Human Powered Health), who attacked early and led for all but 35km of the women’s race, takes in a much-needed drink at Moriac.

“I told the [Declathon CMA CGM] guys with one lap to go, if they put me in the perfect position… I will win the race,” Lund Andresen said.

“I was feeling good and I put myself out there. It worked out.”

The men’s peloton whips around a corner in Torquay.

It was also a big day for third-placed Brady Gilmore, whose venerated NSN teammate and compatriot Simon Clarke raced for the last time.

They have been room-mates since a November training camp and Gilmore said Clarke’s influence has been “massive”.

“It was a bit of an emotional morning actually, just knowing he’s not going to be racing with us any more.”

In the Women’s Road Race on Saturday. New Zealand’s Ally Wollaston became the first back-to-back winner.

The men’s podium: Matthew Brennan (second), Tobias Lund Andresen (first), Brady Gilmore (third).

Outsprinting a group of 11 other UCI Women’s WorldTour riders, Wollaston’s (FDJ United-SUEZ) win was as much a show of her strength and class as of her team-mates.

Wollaston won the 142.4km WorldTour race from second placed Great Britain’s Josie Nelson (Team Picnic PostNL) and Spaniard Mireia Benito (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) in third.

“It was definitely the goal for us this year to come back and win. To pull it off today is an amazing feeling. I’m so, so proud,” Wollaston said.

The women’s podium (L-R): Josie Nelson (second), Ally Wollaston (first), Mireia Benito (first).

“There were six of us really riding together today… there’s no way I would have won without them. Everyone played a really key role even in controlling the early breakaway.”

Earlier in the week, Australian Sam Welsford and Italian Martina Fidanza sprinted to victories in the first edition of the Cadel’s Criteriums at Geelong’s Eastern Gardens (replacing the cancelled Surf Coast Classic events), cyclists of all ages did laps of a Geelong Waterfront circuit in the Family Ride, and just under 3,000 cyclists took part in the People’s Ride.

– WITH AAP