UAE Tour: Kim Le Court-Pienaar takes fourth overall

AG Insurance – Soudal concludes a solid week of racing as the only team with two riders in the general classification top ten.

Kim Le Court-Pienaar got her season underway with another very good result at the UAE Tour, just like last year. The Mauritian Champion entered the final day of the World Tour race confident in her chances of ending up in the top ten, and showcased that remarkable determination on the gruelling gradients of Jebel Hafeet, the leg-sapping climb sitting on the border with Oman.

The first African rider to win a Monument, Kim was there when the peloton got reduced to just a handful of riders with around six kilometers to go. A few minutes later, due to the insane tempo pushed at the front of this elite group, she had to let go, but from behind Belgian Champion Justine Ghekiere came to the rescue, pacing her teammate and keeping her in contention for a top five finish.

After Ghekiere peeled off the front, Le Court made an acceleration that saw her dispatch the others and make up time before eventually passing one of the riders up the road from the original leading group. This late surge helped the 29-year-old conclude the stage just outside the podium, a result that elevated her to fourth place on the overall standings. Despite the hard work she put in on the climb, Justine found the resources to conclude in ninth position on both the stage and the GC, making AG Insurance – Soudal the only team to place two riders in the top ten at the end of the week.

“After a winter that wasn’t the smoothest, starting the season at the UAE Tour actually made a lot of sense. Good weather, good vibes, and a race that really offers a bit of everything, echelons, flat stages and a mountain top finish. It’s a great way to build into the season.

Of course, finishing 4th on GC is a little frustrating after being on the podium last year, but overall we can be genuinely proud of how we rode as a team. The commitment we showed to one another all week whether it was for the sprint stages, protecting each other throughout the race, or positioning into Jebel Hafeet really showed how much we’ve stepped up collectively.

We finished the week with five top-10 results, Gladys taking three top-10s in the sprints, myself 4th on GC and Justine finishing 9th overall. UAE is an important race for us to build, learn and grow as a team, and we’ll take a lot from this week into the bigger goals coming up later in the season.”, Kim said after her third general classification top ten finish in the team colors.