In a remarkable comeback to professional cycling, Lotta Henttala (née Lepistö) has captured two second-place podium finishes in the opening stages at Setmana Valenciana , and is just one step away from victory.
"All in all, I am happy with today. Thinking about how last year a comeback wasn’t even on my mind, and now this. It is so great to be part of this team, and it just feels like gold being back,” Henttala said after finishing second to former World Champion Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo) on stage 2 into Vila-Real.
Henttala made her return to the women’s professional peloton at the start of this year with AG Insurance-Soudal-QuickStep following a period away from the sport to have her child. She also cited burnout as a reason for her absence from racing.
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“It was super special to have Olavi there," Henttala said. “It’s super nice to be back, but it’s hectic with a peloton of 160. I need to find my place and rhythm again, which is normal, of course."
She has had a successful racing career, most notably winning Gent-Wevelgem in 2017 and two stages of the Women’s Tour as well finishing on the podium in several other races, including the World Championships road race, RideLondon Classique and La Course.
She raced for teams Bigla and Trek-Segafredo before joining Ceratizit-WNT Pro […]
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