Tour de Romandie: Kopecky takes overall lead after second place in mountain stage

Belgium's Lotte Kopecky took the overall lead in the women's Tour de Romandie after finishing second in the race's second stage. The reigning world champion showed her strength in the mountain stage of the three-day WorldTour stage race in Switzerland.

Kopecky ultimately lost out to Dutch teammate Demi Vollering in a millimeter sprint, but took the leader's jersey from Italy's Elisa Balsamo.

After a flat start, the second stage of the women's Tour de Romandie ended with a climb of nearly ten kilometers averaging 8.2 percent to the finish in Vercorin. Two Belgian riders did remarkably well on the final climb: not only Kopecky, but also eighteen-year-old Lore De Schepper stayed with the favorites for a long time.

When top favorite Vollering attacked in the final kilometer, Kopecky was the only one who could answer, sprinting with Vollering for the stage win. The Dutchwoman finished with a small lead over Kopecky, with Italy's Gaia Realini third at 0'34".

The women's Tour de Romandie will conclude on Sunday with a hilly 144.2km stage in Morges.

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