Drentse 8 van Dwingeloo & Women's Tour of Flanders
Reports and results of this weeks Women's races in Europe. Cooke collects Flanders for her palmares while Regina Schleicher caps the week with a victory in Drentse 8. Brooke Miller top ten...

By Bart Hazen

Women's Tour of Flanders
April 8 : Nicole Cooke (Raleigh Lifeforce)  won the Women's edition Tour of Flanders this week. The rider from Wales got the best of Zoulfia Zabirova in a two up sprint at the finish.. World Champion Marianne Vos (Team DSB Bank) finished third at a few seconds later.

Nicole Cooke, Zabirova and Vos at Flanders. Photo c. Raleigh/Lifeforce

The race started in Oudenaarde and the finish was after 122 km in Meerbeke. The tempo was very high in the beginning due to the work of the Raleigh-Lifeforce team of World Cup leader Nicole Cooke. The bunch split before the first climbs showed up.

On the Valkenberg, with 39km to go, former World Time Trial Champion Karin Thürig attacked and managed to get a gap of 50 seconds. On the Muur of Geraardsbergen Nicole Cooke bridged the gap to her team mate and they worked well together until the final climb of the day, the Bosberg. Cooke didn't stay away and was caught by a group containing Zoulfia Zabirova, Suzanne Ljungskog, Trixi Worrack, Marianne Vos and Karin Thurig.

With 4 km to go Thürig attacked again but without success. Then Cooke and Zabirova attacked and nobody was able to follow them. Cooke beat Zabirova in the sprint while Vos finished 3rd at 5 seconds. Cooke remains in the World Cup lead. Amber Neben finished in 19th today.

Tour of Flanders
122 km - 3.11.00 - 38.325 km/h
1. COOKE Nicole
2. ZABIROVA Zoulfia 0.02
3. VOS Marianne 0.05
4. WORRACK Trixi 0.07
5. THURIG Karin 0.09
6. LJUNGSKOG Susanne 0.09
7. BACCAILLE Monia 0.28
8. BASTIANELLI Marta
9. GOOR Sofie
10. GRAHAM Lorian
11. EGYED Nikki
12. GRAUS Andrea
13. DAHLE FLESJAA Gunn-Rita
14. BEUTLER Annette
15. DOPPMANN Priska
16. RICKARDS Emma
17. VERBEKE Grace
18. BUBNENKOVA Svetlana
19. NEBEN Amber
20. JAUNATRE Marina
21. SELS Loes
22. VAN RIE An
23. KIESANOWSKI Joanne
24. LUTZ Eva
25. VINK Elsbeth
26. GUNNEWIJK LOES
27. ARMSTRONG Kristin
28. DE GOEDE Suzanne
29. SPITZ Sabine
30. BRANDLI Nicole

Drentse 8 van Dwingeloo
April 12:
Regina Schleicher (Equipe Nürnberger) has won the Drentse 8 van Dwingeloo. In the sprint she was faster than Rochelle Gilmore and Giorgia Bronzini.

Ina Teutenberg and Zoulfia Zabirova animated the race and got a gap that at one point was up to 2 minutes. With two laps to go the two still had 45 seconds on a chasing group of 6 with among others Loes Markerink. Due to the high pace of the chase decimated the peloton behind the sextet. Teutenberg and Zabirova looked to keep the chasers at bay; but  with 1 lap to go the two escapees and the six chasers where reeled in by the bunch. The race ended up in a sprint and the German former World Champion, Regina Schleicher, led to the line for the victory.

California's San Francisco Bay area resident Brooke Miller made good showing in 8th place in the second group.

On Saturday the Women will compete in the World Cup race in Drenthe and on Sunday they will compete in the Novilon Damesronde van Drenthe.

Results:
1. 36 GER 19740321 SCHLEICHER, Regina NUR 3.12'19"
2. 73 AUS 19811214 GILMORE, Rochelle MSG 3.12'19"
3. 245 ITA 19830803 BRONZINI, Giorgia ITA 3.12'19"
4. 4 NZL 19790524 KIESANOWSKI, Joanne RLT 3.12'19"
5. 14 NED 19840416 DE GOEDE, Suzanne TMP 3.12'19"
6. 125 ITA 19840410 BACCAILLE, Monia SEM 3.12'19"
7. 44 SWE 19840515 HOLLER, Monica BCT 3.12'21" 2"
8. 255 USA 19760321 MILLER, Brooke USA 3.12'21" 2"
9. 35 GER 19810928 WORRACK, Trixi NUR 3.12'21" 2"
10. 161 SWE 19830929 JOHANSSON, Emma VLL 3.12'21" 2"
11. 23 NED 19851214 MARKERINK, Loes FLX 3.12'21" 2"
12. 33 AUT 19791113 GRAUS, Andrea NUR 3.12'21" 2"
13. 122 ITA 19780508 D'ETTORRE, Alessandra SEM 3.12'21" 2"
14. 61 GER 19820122 BAHLER, Liane FEN 3.12'21" 2"
15. 293 NED 19861007 BRUINS, Regina OS2 3.12'21" 2"
16. 272 LTU 19880722 LELEIVYTE, Rasa LTU 3.12'21" 2"
17. 52 NED 19881027 VAN PAASSEN, Sanne DSB 3.12'21" 2"
18. 174 CHN 19840306 MENG, Lang GPC 3.12'21" 2"
19. 45 SUI 19820807 KUHN, Bettina BCT 3.12'21" 2"
20. 262 AUS 19800908 LOANE, Jocelyn AUS 3.12'21" 2"
21. 95 BEL 19750608 STERCKX, Kathleen AAD 3.12'27" 8"
22. 181 NED 19820531 SPIJKERMAN, Bertine TSC 3.12'29" 10"
23. 266 AUS 19771108 GRAHAM, Lorian AUS 3.12'29" 10"
24. 194 AUS 19840909 MACKIE, Emma VVP 3.12'29" 10"
25. 74 AUS 19730827 GOLLAN, Olivia MSG 3.12'29" 10"
26. 212 GER 19860102 JÖHREND, Marlen GER 3.12'29" 10"
27. 145 RSA 19850603 DU TOIT, Yolandi LBL 3.12'29" 10"
28. 34 LTU 19751127 PUCINSKAITE, Edita NUR 3.12'29" 10"
29. 135 EST 19771212 TREIER, Grete MIC 3.12'29" 10"
30. 24 NED 19750926 MELCHERS-VAN POPPEL, Mirjam FLX 3.12'29" 10"