Zoe Bäckstedt (Canyon//SRAM) completed a stunning double in the elite women's road race at the British Road Championships in Aberystwyth on Sunday. After successfully defending her individual time trial title on Thursday, Bäckstedt added the road race to her palmares, her first elite title on the road won on home soil in Wales.
DAS-Hutchinson's Josie Knight finished second, a fantastic reward following a brave solo ride in the breakaway for the track specialist, and last year's champion Millie Couzens (Fenix-Premier Tech) won the sprint from a reduced bunch to round out the podium.
Knight attacked early in the race, ahead of the finishing circuit in Aberystwyth, and led the race alone for over 90 kilometres, enjoying a gap of around 8 minutes at one point.
A chase group of three riders - Bäckstedt, Matilda McKibben (O'Shea Red Chilli Bikes) and Jo Tindley (Smurfit Westrock Cycling Team) - attempted to make an impact on Knight's advantage and cut it down to four minutes with three laps of the local circuit remaining, when Bäckstedt launched an attack to leave the trio and set off in pursuit of Knight.
