TWENTY20 Kicks Off Le Tour Virtual Weekend
Dreams of Racing Le Tour de France!
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BOISE, ID - July 8 2020. With the addition of British Directeur Sportif Dan Fleeman, the team was set to race the first edition of Le Tour de France Virtual. Stage 1 was a rolling stage suited for the power rider and a mountain stage for stage 2, which suited the pure climbers.
STAGE 1
WORLD: Watopia
COURSE: Watopia Hilly Reverse
ELEVATION GAIN: 108m climbing per lap
TOTAL DISTANCE: 36.4km total (4 laps of 9.1km)
Chloé Dygert (USA), Shayna Powless (USA), Jasmin Duehring (CAN), and Natalia Franco (COL)
D.S Dan Fleeman (GBR)
Stage 1 featured a small circuit with four climbs of 2.5km. Very early in the race the front group skimmed down to 20 riders with Chloé, Shayna, and Jasmin representing TWENTY20 in that front pack. Chloé finished a strong 5th with Shayna just behind in 12th and Jasmin picking up vital GC points in 17th.
"It was fun racing the first stage of the Tour de France Virtual - what a great opportunity for women’s cycling to be a part of the huge broadcast for the event,” commented Chloe Dygert. “The race was a consistent strong pace from start to finish - it was a close sprint that really came down to Zwift power up timing. Looking forward to stage 3 and a brand new Zwift France course!”
After some frustrating technical issues, Natalia rolled in a little further behind but was saving her legs for stage 2. TWENTY20 was in 5th on GC going into stage 2.
“I dreamed of racing the Tour de France with the big hitters for years,” said Colombian athlete, Natalia Franco. “I feel fortunate that I got to do the first virtual edition and the first TdF where women are treated equally. Same stages, same courses, same kilometers and most importantly same exposure! Thanks Zwift for allowing women to showcase what we are capable of!”
“It has been an honor to compete in the first ever Zwift Tour de France with Team TWENTY20,” shared Shayna Powless. “It’s truly amazing that the world’s most prestigious cycling event has been made available for both professional teams, and the public community on the ever-expanding Zwift platform. I’m definitely looking forward to battling it out in the upcoming stages!”
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Stage 2 was a completely different circuit featuring a 20-minute climb that would decide the race. As such, we had a fresh group of riders with only Natalia competing in both stages.
STAGE 2
WORLD: Watopia
COURSE: Mountain
ELEVATION GAIN: 682 m (2238 ft) LAP DISTANCE: 29.5 km (18.3 miles) LAPS: 1
TOTAL DISTANCE: 29.5 km (18.3 miles)
Courtney Nelson (USA), Lea Davison (USA), Jen Luebke (USA), and Natalia Franco (COL) D.S Dan Fleeman (GBR)
“As expected, the climb had a massive impact on the stage,” commented D.S Dan Fleeman. “Courtney and Lea were right up towards the front for most of the climb both making a 20 rider selection as soon as the climb started to kick upwards. Frustratingly, Natalia had more technical issues (which we have now troubleshooted and rectified), as did Jen, although neither gave in and both pushed on to earn solid results.”
Courtney crested the top of the climb in 8th spot but was stuck in no man’s land for the descent and was eventually caught by a small group, finishing 12th on the stage. Lea also had a solid ride finishing 17th and Natalia, despite her technical issues, really dug deep to come back and finish 21st, giving us extra vital points for the GC and white jersey competition. Jen kept going and didn’t give in despite many frustrating issues and finished the stage strongly.
“Racing virtually is tough (if not tougher) than outdoors and this event proved to live up to my expectations,” commented Courtney Nelson. “Being one of the newest members of Team TWENTY20 and selected to climb with the best in the world alongside three team members for the Tour de France was a dream. Based on my test rides and recon for Stage 2, I knew going into this stage that it was going to be a battle. There would be, and there was, a big field split heading into the first turn of the Epic KOM climb, where there were points for the QOM at the top. Strategy definitely comes into play for these races plus the added Zwift element of the power up and timing of use.”
After the 2 stages we remain 5th on GC, but it’s very close and a podium place overall is still possible.
“I was very impressed with how the girls raced in stages 1 and 2,” said D.S., Dan Fleeman. I believe with a few refinements we can get a stage win and improve our GC position. The riders are motivated going into stages 3 and 4.”
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“ EQUALITY: this is what ‘a first’ looks like. The first time the women have equal race opportunity, distance, climbing, and media coverage to the men in Zwift virtual Le Tour. This was stage 2 with TWENTY20 So awesome. This was also the FIRST time I’ve seen a max heart rate of 203. Holy moly. This is a win in the cycling world and we must keep pushing for equality and representation especially for the BiPOC community. Black lives matter.” Commented Lea Davison.
TWENTY20 heads into Stage 3 (Saturday, July 11) in 5th place GC and 4th place young rider classification.
WORLD: France
ROUTE: R.G.V.
LAP DISTANCE: 24km (14.9 miles) ELEVATION GAIN PER LAP: 133m (436 ft) LAPS: 2
TOTAL DISTANCE: 48km (29.8 miles) ESTIMATED FINISH TIME: 60 minutes
Stage 3 Roster
Chloé Dygert (USA)
Shayna Powless (USA)
Georgia Simmerling (CAN)
Jasmin Duehring (CAN)
D.S Dan Fleeman (GBR)
WORLD: France
ROUTE: Casse-Pattes
LAP DISTANCE: 22.9km (14.3 miles) ELEVATION GAIN PER LAP: 155m (508 ft) LAPS: 2
TOTAL DISTANCE: 45.8km (28.6 miles) ESTIMATED FINISH TIME: 60 minutes
Stage 4 Roster
Chloé Dygert (USA)
Jasmin Duehring (CAN)
Lea Davison (USA)
Jen Luebke (USA)
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Gratitude to our 2020 Partners
Zwift, FELT Bicycles, Zipp, SRAM, Quarq, Bonds Family Foundation, Violich Farms, Wild Health, Domestique Foundation, Sho-Air International, Athlos, Kenda Tire, Oakley, Speedplay, Catlike, J.A and Kathryn Albertson Family Foundation, PACE Ranch, Mikes Bikes, Velo Saddles, Training Peaks, Arundel Cages, KX3 Sports. AMP Human, DZ Nuts, Clif Bar, Rowan Interactive Media, Park Tool, Seasucker Racks, Sock Guy, Karen Malkin Health, NormaTec, USA Cycling Foundation, Victory Circle Graphix, Bauer Haus.
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About TWENTY20 Pro Cycling
Formed in 2005, Team Twenty20 is a women’s professional and junior development cycling team focused on creating a pathway for athletes to the Olympics. The team has since produced 4 Olympic medalists, 17 world champions, and the current roster boasts 5 national champions hailing from the USA, Canada, and Mexico. Directed by 3x Olympic gold medalist, Kristin Armstrong, Twenty20’s unique team model enables experienced and elite riders to perform at their highest potential while offering junior riders a groundbreaking mentor program. The team is on the forefront of esports in cycling with partner Zwift, and works diligently with innovators and leaders in the sport for product advancement.
For ten consecutive years, the team has been awarded the USA Cycling Centers of Excellence Award, which is awarded to select junior and Under-23 development teams that excel in the development of young cyclists into nationally competitive athletes. Developing future champions on the bike and leaders in the community are at the core of Twenty20’s values, with an emphasis to support athletes in obtaining the best education possible for life after cycling.
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