Kelly Benefit Strategies rider Alex Candelario negotiated a tricky circuit and rode his leadout train to victory in the latest installment of the USA CRITS Speed Week series on Thursday in Greenwood, South Carolina,

“The team rode really well,” Candelario said. “We knew we’d probably be riding for a field sprint, so we lined up all the boys with 10 laps to go. They did a great job of keeping guys in check. One of the Rock Racing guys jumped in the final, but Martin Gilbert responded and dropped me off at 250 meters to go.”

The win at the Uptown Greenwood Pro Cycling Challenge moves Candelario into third place in the men’s overall Speed Week standings, while simultaneously giving his team the lead in the overall team rankings.

Because of the technical nature of the course, which included an uphill finish, the dynamics of the race shifted from what had been seen on the fast, flat circuits of the previous three events. This, however, played to Candelario’s strengths.

“(The hill) wasn’t too much of a factor in the final, but definitely on the leadout," he said. "Guys couldn’t come up and mess with our train so much. And I like sprinting on hills anyway.”

After the team came close with French-Canadian Keven Lacombe at both the Athens Twilight Criterium and Beaufort Memorial Cycling Classic, Candelario reached the podium himself with a third-place finish at the Downtown Walterboro Criterium. The team’s outright victory in Greenwood, though, was extremely satisfying.

“Every night it’s been tough. There are a lot of good guys doing this series," he said. "During the previous nights we’ve been playing a lot of defense. But more of our guys were riding better tonight, and we still had three sprinters left at the end.”

If the final hill didn’t figure too greatly in the men’s event, the final hundred meters to the start/finish line cast a greater shadow over the women’s 40-lap race.

Over nearly an hour’s worth of action, the women’s race was a far more contested outing than the previous Speed Week contests. Whereas the men’s race saw occasional breakaway attempts throughout the evening, that was not the case with the women’s field. More riders were able to keep pace with the field as a result of the group having to crest the incline on each lap.

With four laps to go, however, the women from Cheerwine put together one of their textbook leadout trains to dissuade any of their competitors from taking their chances in the final sprint. But lying in wait was the one woman who’s dashed the hopes of the women in the cherry-red jerseys –Tina Pic (Colavita-Sutter Home).

Pic knew to keep a sharp eye out for Cheerwine’s top two riders, Kelly Benjamin and longtime rival Laura Van Gilder, and made her move toward victory after having closely ridden their wheels during the final moments of racing. Pic also won this event last year.

Pic now has a 57-point lead over her chief competitors in the overall rankings, but she and her Colavita colleagues still trail Cheerwine in the team standings.

USA CRITS Speedweek Overall Leader (Women)
1. Tina Pic, Colavita/Sutter Home, 976
2. Van Gilder Laura, Cheerwine, 919
3. Kelly Benjamin, Cheerwine, 917
4. Rebecca Larson, Aaron's, 904
5. Shontelle Gauthier, Colavita/Sutter Home, 876
6. Anna Lang, Aaron's, 875
7. Tiffany Cromwell,, Colavita/Sutter Home, 871
8. Catherine Cheatley (NZ), Cheerwine, 804
9. Jennifer Wilson, Vanderkitten, 783
10. Holli Steelman, Juice Plus, 772