Montréal (V)
27-05-2009 19:19:57
Columbia-Highroad’s former World Champion Judith Arndt will make her return to racing in the Montreal World Cup in Canada following a period of almost eight months off the bike. Arndt broke her collarbone early in the season and then on her return race in Holland this Spring, she crashed and broke her wrist. But doctors have finally given Arndt the all-clear.
Arndt will return to racing in the Montreal World Cup this Saturday, a race she has twice won – in 2008 and 2006 – and finished another three times on the podium. Her teammate Mara Abbott has also finished second in the race, back in her World Cup debut in 2007.
“Judith’s still in pain and it’s not going to be easy, but she’s extremely motivated,” commented Columbia-Highroad women’s team manager Petra Rossner. “Part of the problem with the wrist injury was that she had an uneven position on the bike and it was very hard to train. She’s made up for that as best she could with a lot of running. She’s only raced 30 kilometres since the World Championships last October, and to get good race condition she’ll need to do exactly that – race.”
The only road cycling World Cup event to take place on the North American continent, Montreal is famous for being one of the toughest on the calendar. The main challenge will be the Mont Royal climb, to be tackled 11 times on Sunday, making a total race distance of 110.6 kilometres.
“It’s really not very tactical, more a question of holding on and holding as more and more riders gradually get eliminated from the back end of the bunch each time round,” Rossner adds. “The climb isn’t too steep, just a steady couple of kilometres, but it comes round again and again. Then when the bunch is down to 30 or 35, you have to make your move at exactly the right time, not too early, not too late. It’s a really great event.”
Team Columbia-Highroad for Montreal World Cup: Mara Abbott (USA); Kim Anderson (USA); Judith Arndt (Ger); Kate Bates (Aus); Ellen Van Dijk (Hol); Alex Wrubleski (Can).
