BOLOGNA — Alessia Vigilia sprung a surprise at the Giro dell'Emilia Donne on Saturday, taking a solo victory for Uno-X Mobility after attacking the peloton early in the race. The Italian stopped the clock at 2:50:46 on the 111.3km route from Ferrara to Bologna, with Sarah Van Dam (Visma-Lease a Bike) finishing second five seconds behind and Lauren Dickson (FDJ United-SUEZ) third at 14 seconds.
The 13th edition of the second-tier ProSeries one-day race finished atop the famous San Luca climb in Bologna, where riders crossed the finish line at the top of the climb with only the final 10km to go. Apart from the finale, the course was largely flat. A short climb to Botteghino with 80km remaining provided the day's first obstacle, but the peloton stayed together through the opening kilometres before Vigilia made her decisive early move and held clear to the line.
The victory was only the third of the 27-year-old's career and her first in three years. It is certainly the most prestigious of her career, with her two previous successes coming in .2, fourth-tier events.
Malou Eisen (VolkerWessels) finished fourth, followed by Nikola Nosková (Cofidis Women Team) at 27 seconds and Julie Bego (Cofidis Women Team) at 31 seconds. Maud Oudeman (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Rosita Reijnhout (Visma-Lease a Bike) were next, with Henrietta Christie (EF Education-Oatly) ninth at 33 seconds and Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv AlUla Jayco) completing the top 10.