Italian Fabiana Luperini (Menikini-Selle Italia-Gysko) ignited the definitive break and outsprinted American Mara Abbott (Webcor) to win the sixth round of the Women's World Cup series in Montréal on Saturday.

Luperini rode Abbott's wheel into the finishing straight and easily came around her in the final 100 meters for the win.

Once again, the quality of the Montréal course came to the forefront. With 11 laps of an 11km circuit, including the famed climb up Mont Royal, attrition is always the name of the game here. Numerous attacks always take place, but it is a difficult course to stay away on one's own.

Unlike the previous nine years, which finished at the top of the climb, this year the finish was at the bottom of Mont Royal on Park Avenue. The riders came from the back side of the mountain along flat roads, then down the opposite side of the road from the finish, where they then executed a hairpin turn leading to a small but significant false-flat climb to the finish. This is a finish that was used in numerous men's World Cup races in the early 1990s.

The initial attack of the day was launched by Kiwi Melissa Holt (Team expresscopy.com) and Russian Ekaterina Malomura (Russian National). They managed to put a few hundred meters on the pack by the end of the first lap, and through the end of lap 2 they had stretched it to 500 meters.

The chasing peloton was led by perennial crowd favorite Jeannie Longo-Ciprelli (Team Uniqa). By now the pace had picked up significantly and the first of many riders that were going to be dropped today were already peeling from the back of the peloton. Holt was absorbed by the pack, but Malomura continued on by herself, with a 30-second gap at the end of lap 3. She was ultimately caught on the climb and by the end of lap 5 the peloton was all back together and relaxing a bit.

Abbott rides to second in her first international race

Photo: Rob Jones

The pace was reduced a bit through the end of lap 6, with Canadians Anne Samplonius (Expresscopy.com) and Alex Wrubleski (Colavita-Sutter Home) and American Helen Kelly (Webcor) leading. The peloton remained together until the first serious move of the day was made on the Mont Royal climb on lap 7. Twenty five riders made the move after the first steep bit and then they consolidated over the top. From this group Luperini and Abbott managed to get away a lap later.

Abbott described the move: "My teammate Katheryn Curi attacked and Luperini counterattacked. I just got on a wheel and bridged up to her and then there were only three of us [the third rider was France’s Edwige Pitel of Team Uniqa]. I went to the front and pulled hard on the climb because I knew that not a lot of riders knew me and if I got a gap that was maybe something I could hold to the end. I probably did too much work, but I had no idea who I was riding with!"

Pitel was with the leaders through the end of lap 9, but was dropped immediately on the Mont Royal climb of lap 10 and disappeared into the pack.

Luperini and Abbott continued to work hard and by the start of the last lap had an strong 90-second lead. Meanwhile, the chase group of 16 began a whole series of tactical maneuvers, primarily initiated by defending champion Judith Arndt (T-Mobile) of Germany and Brit Nicole Cooke (Raleigh Lifeforce), who are in a heated battle for the World Cup leader’s jersey.

Before the start of the last lap Longo-Ciprelli attacked, marked by Arndt's teammate Chantal Beltman of Germany, who just sat on, so Longo-Ciprelli backed off. Meanwhile, Arndt had attacked in the main group and was immediately marked by Cooke.

Attacks and counter-attacks continued through lap 10. Into the last lap, Arndt punched it on the back side of the course on the flats. She managed to make this last to the finish for third place despite crashing on the hairpin turn 200 meters from the line. "I'm really embarrassed. Don't tell anybody,” she said.

Abbott couldn't do much about Luperini coming into the finish.

"I didn't particularly want to be in front, but I found myself there and there wasn't much I could do about it. I just went as hard as I could because you never know what can happen. But I probably worked too hard in that last lap." Still, Abbott was absolutely giddy about taking second in her first international race.

Luperini, through her translator, was very gracious about her win.

"I'm more of an endurance athlete and I didn't want to wait with 10 or 15 kilometers to go for someone else to launch an attack. I didn't want to wait for the other competitors. I want to make to the next Olympics and I need to be a complete rider and I'll make whatever sacrifices I need to do to get there.

“I give a lot of praise to Mara (Abbott). She really worked hard out there. She was awesome. At the finish I just waited. I had her in front and I had enough left to come around her."

In fourth, and leading the chase group sprint, was world champion Marianne Vos (Team DSB Bank) of the Netherlands, who nipped Cooke at the line. Cooke was able to retain the World Cup leader’s Jersey with her fifth-place finish.

Women’s World Cup
Montréal, Québec, Canada
1. Fabiana Luperini (I), Menikini-Selle Italia-Gysko, 110.66km in 3:07:35
2. Mara Abbott (USA), Webcor Builders, at 0:02
3. Judith Arndt (G), T-Mobile, 0:27
4. Marianne Vos (Ned), Team DSB Bank, 1:11
5. Nicole Cooke (GB) Raleigh Lifeforce Creation, s.t.
6. Oenone Wood (Aus), T-Mobile, s.t.
7. Jeannie Longo-Ciprelli (F), Team Uniqa, s.t.
8. Trixi Worrack (G), Équipe Nürnberger Versicherung, s.t.
9. Amber Neben (USA), Team Flexpoint, 1:17
10. Claudia Hausler (G), Équipe Nürnberger Versicherung, 1:22