Cat Ferguson (Movistar) started the final stage of the Tour of Britain Women in the green leader’s jersey, three seconds ahead of Ally Wollaston (FDJ-Suez), but after the finish, she had dropped to overall runner-up as Wollaston leapfrogged her to win the GC by four seconds.
Ferguson came second to Wollaston in all three intermediate sprints, suffered a puncture along the way, and finished seventh in the sprint finish while Wollaston sprinted to third.
“It was eventful, let’s say. Always something going on with the three intermediate sprints, and I also had a puncture. I noticed that I had sealant everywhere after the first sprint, but I didn’t want to change [bike] as it felt OK, then slowly it was going down,” Ferguson looked back on the stage.
The slow puncture on lap 5 explains why the 19-year-old Yorkshirewoman was often near the tail end of the peloton, only moving up for the intermediate sprint at the end of lap 6, then dropping back again and doing a bunny-hop to test the tyre pressure.
This was the third day that the rider wearing the green leader’s jersey had suffered misfortune: Stage 1 winner Kim Le Court (AG Insurance-Soudal) crashed early on stage 2 and eventually abandoned the race after another crash on stage 3, Kristen Faulkner (EF Education-Oatly), the GC leader after stage 2, crashed several times on stage 3 and lost over three minutes, dropping out of the GC race.
Eventually, Ferguson decided to change bikes after all, but stayed calm and picked a good spot for the change. On her spare bike, she chased back through the race convoy and was at the back of the peloton again as the riders crossed the finish line after seven laps.
“Previously I would probably have panicked a lot more, but thankfully having done it in an OK place, there was still a lap and a half to go before the next sprint. Luck was on my side,” she said.
With Ferguson and Wollaston on the same time after the intermediate sprints, the GC was still up for grabs going into the final lap. Ferguson was positioned well but got boxed in somewhat in the corners on Glasgow Green and couldn’t respond to Wollaston’s sprint.
“I was in an OK position, but then I got a bit chopped up on some corners before. Ally sort of went away, and I knew that that was it. Of course, I’m gutted, but she was the stronger sprinter today,” Ferguson admitted she was beaten fair and square.
Despite missing the overall victory, the 19-year-old considered her race to have been a success and confirmed that she would have signed up for the runner-up spot and a stage win ahead of the race.
“I can’t not be happy with second place. If you told me at the beginning of it that I’d come second overall and also win a stage, I’d have been over the moon. I can’t be too disappointed,” she said.
Last but not least, Ferguson thanked her team as well as family and friends for showing up at the race in her home country.
“It’s been a really good and memorable week, definitely one I’ll remember. And with all the crowds here today, my family and friends, it’s been super special, and I’m grateful to the team and everyone for their support,” said Ferguson.
