Martina Berta wins Los Internacionales de Chelva 2023

Berta wins Los Internacionales de Chelva 2023 after completing a great solo race. The Italian imposed a high pace from the very beginning, maintained it throughout the race and made her rivals' attempts to catch her futile. Second place went to Richards, while Tauber came in third.

Berta achieves a great solo victory in Los Internacionales de Chelva 2023

The race started with the last-minute absence of Indergand, bronze medalist at the last Olympic Games and one of the main favorites to fight for the victory. Otherwise, the start was uneventful.

During the first minutes of the event, there was a group of six riders at the front, who divided into different lines to enter the most twisty part of the circuit in the best possible position.

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After Blochlinger led the group, it was Berta who took the first position. The reigning Italian national champion pressed the pace and managed to make a gap on the others, who were still hanging on to each other. Soon the lead increased to a remarkable 18 seconds, while no one was replying in the chasing group.

The reaction relied on the legs of Richards, who pushed with the aim of getting back in touch with Berta. The Italian rider's strong pace complicated that mission and she was able to maintain the cushion at the start of the second lap.

Berta crossed the finish line in first place. Behind, she was followed by Blochlinger, Specia, Richards, Tauber and, a little further behind, Blunk. Spain's Rocío del Alma was eleventh.

The race continued without too many changes. Berta continued to demonstrate a good physical shape that made it impossible for her rivals to catch her. The second group was losing members; if the first to fall was Blochlinger, now it was Blunk. Thus, the trio of Specia-Richards-Tauber were the only survivors of the chase for Berta.

She started the next lap with a 30-second lead in the race. Meanwhile, Rocio del Alma lost some position, although she remained inside the top15.

Richards moved into second place, pushed the chasing group a little harder and put a few meters of distance on Tauber, who gave up a little with the British rider. Meanwhile, Specia, who had been one of the most combative chasers, dropped behind these two riders.

The next time they crossed the finish line, there were no longer any groups at the front. The first three entered separately. Berta held a big lead of 28 seconds, but not yet big enough to relax completely. Richards, second, rode alone after Tauber crossed the line 40 seconds behind the leader.

The final moments of the race also showed no sign of weakness on the part of the Italian champion, who saw the victory getting closer and closer as the minutes went by. The gap increased even more at the finish line: 34 seconds to Richards and 56 seconds to Tauber.

In the end there were no surprises and Berta raised her arms in victory in her first race of the season. Behind her came Richards in second place. Orbea Factory Team's Dutch rider Tauber followed in third place to take the last step of the podium.

In addition, Specia was able to finish fourth and Mitterwallner completed a great performance after a good comeback to finish fifth.