Being in the thick of the action for much of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes could not stop Pauliena Rooijakkers (Fenix-Deceuninck) from soaring to a top ten finish on the Mur de Huy on Wednesday - a standout result which the Dutchwoman said she had not expected after racing so hard from the word go.
Rooijakkers was an early breakaway alongside Grace Brown (FDJ-SUEZ) and attacked again in the last 10km. After these exploits, she entered the Mur de Huy in 22nd position but passed rider after rider to cross the line in sixth place.
