Even in a year where the speeds were high and the warm weather had dried up much of the mud, there was no avoiding the mishaps and misadventures that put an end to so many riders' 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Unbound Gravel hopes – 200 miles of rough t꧟errain can take its toll no matter what conditions unfold.

There were 62 finishers in the elite women's field of Unbound Gravel 200, and 14 DNFs, many of the names among them expected to be right at the front of the field, including 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Sarah Sturm, who came 🍨third at The Traka 360 earlier in the month and was seventh from among the 🦋lead group at Unbound 200 last year. Crashes took quite a toll in the women's race.

In the elite men's race, 115 crossed the line and 28 were marked down as DNFs. There were also those who managed to cross the line but, due to everything from crashes to mechanicals saw all the training and preparation not reflected in their position on the results list. 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Mattia de Marchi, for one, was among the favourites at the start, particularly after cᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚoming fifth last year but he finished in 61st after a 🅠broken chain early.

As always, the⭕ numbers and results only tell part of the story so we have trawled through the coverage and social media, asked questions on the ground and reached out to others to reveal some of the stories behind those DNFs or results that didn't match the form.

Elite women's race

Sarah Sturm (DNF) – Sarah Sturm had entered the race among the favourites, having taken third in The Traka 360 earlier in the mo♔nth and also stood on the podium of the race in 2023. However, ♒after a crash on Divide Road, she remounted her bike and got back into a threatening chase group, but ended the race, her first DNF in a big race, at mile 70 with concerns of a concussion.

"I knew I hit my head hard, I had an immediate headache but later, in my chase back to the lead group it had faded, making the decision extremely hard," she wrote on Instagram a😼fter the race. "Long game: brain health is everyth💎ing. Bike racing is temporary."

Hannah Shell (DNF) - Finishing 12th two ti𝄹mes at Unbound Gravel 200, Shell's fifth appearance in Kansas ended in a DNF for the first time.🐲 She said she started with "diamonds in the legs", but crashed on Divide Road when a rider swerved then braked abruptly in front of her. She then sliced her tyre on a sharp rock and could not keep a spare tube inflated to continue. She had been in the top three of the Life Time Grand Prix wildcard standings, but her race and series entry ended on the side of the road.

Rosa Klöser (4th) - The 2024 winner first had to fight back after having hit the deck as a rider crashed in front of her, just as the crucial move including eventual winner Karolina Migoń was going. Still the defending champion continued to fight for a podium spot another mishap struck - a wrong turn. 

"I had to unclip, turn around and get back," Klöser told Cyclingnews. "The other three girls were already ahead of me, so I kind of already had to do a sprint to catch up with them on the line and then, unfortunately, I had to settle for fourth today."

Klara Sofie Skovgård Hansen (DNF) - Another of the victims of 💝an early crash, she ended in a ditch with a "fractured, dislocated shoulder and an open knee". On Instagram she said it took two hours before an ambulance moved her from the course to hospital, where she had successful surgery and waඣs released Tuesday.

"Traveling across the world to racܫe means accepting risks—but I never expected to feel unsafe. I truly hope the organizers work to improve emergency access. It felt ironic looking up at a livestream media helicopter," the Danish gravel champion said on her social media.

Samara Sheppard (41st) – A crash in the bunch behind the New Zealan😼d-born rider meant she was taken out from behind and had a broken front wheel and jammed rear, losing 13 minutes and leaving her with a chase to move up from 74th spot to 41st by the line.

Nicole Frain (DNF) - Things were looking good for the former Australian road champion when𒊎 early on in the race she made the crucial front group but then just as her race looked to be falling into a place another rider crashed and took her out.

Anna Yamauchi (DNF) - It wasn't a good day for the woman who after Sea Otter had been leading the chase for a wildcard entry into the Life Time Grand Prix🌠 series, with Anna Yamaucꦚhi crashing early and having to pull the pin and end her wildcard chances at aid stat⛄ion 1.

Emily Newsom (DNF) - Another in the running for a Grand Prix wildcard who faced an outcome that ruined not just her race but also her series hopes. N𒆙ewsom was third at Unbound 200 two years ago, but she went down and hit her head when a rider crashed in front of her, just four miles from the start in downtown Emporia as the sun began to rise. "After forgetting all my maple gels in feed one and feeli꧃ng nauseous I decided my head was worth more than gutting it out for 130 more miles so I called it a day."

Elite men's race

Mattia de Marchi (61st) - The big races just aren't falling in the Italian's favour at the moment with a brake out at The Traka 360 and then a br🐼oken chain early in Unbound 200 which left him posting "Always chasing, The story ofꦅ my life." on his Instagram story. 

Lawrence Naesen (DNF) - The former AG2R Citroën WorldTour𓆏 team rider simply that "s*** happens" and thaꦡt it was a "Good day until blood came out."

Keegan Swenson (7th) - It may not have been obvious in the results but Keegan Swenson had quite a day out in the Flint Hills, crossing the line with ripped kit and a bloodied body after a crash at mile 130. On top of that he had a puncture, a failed tyre plug plus a wheel swap with teammate Tobin Ortenblad. Still, he got through the day without having to utilise the 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:double valve hack. 

Tim Declercq (DNF)  - One flat, Tim Declercq could handle, eܫven two but "the third time flat was too m🎃uch" the Lidl-Trek rider told .

Jelle Van Damme (DNF) - An encounter with a barbed wire fence quickly brought an end to the race for the Belgian, with social media showing some pretty nasty cuts across his back to be treated as a result.

Chad Haga (78) - Last year's runner up wasn't having a great day, in what had been a tough season after breaking his arm at the end of 2024 and the struggle continued at Unbound but a bit of perspective can change plenty. "So I rode around having a little pi𒅌ty party until a human moment presented itself when Jelle ♒Van Damme wrapped himself in barbed wire. I was just one guy having a bad day, helping another guy having a worse day," said .

Russell Finsterwald (17th) - A puncture put Russell Finsterwald out of the chase group 👍but linking up with a puncture hit Matt Beers and Petr Vakoc, who suffered in the heat, helped haul back som🔯e ground for all three.

Niki Terpstra (DNF) - It was an accident before 💜Unbound that ruined Niꦐki Terpstra's day, with a neck and back/shoulder injury caused by a crash in April going from uncomfortable to unbearable as the miles accrued. That left Terpstra having to step off at the second aid station.

Tom Dumoulin (DNS) - The former Giro d'Italia winner went home with mixed feelings after cheering on his compatriots𒁏 from the feed zone after he didn't manage to make it to the star🔴t line.

"I had a great time in Emporia, Kansas," Dumoulin wrote on Instagram. "It's crazy to see how this little town on the prairie turns into the Mecca of gr🏅avel racing for a week during Unbound. I was supposed to compete in the 100 miles, but unfortunately I couldn't start because of a stupid crash three days before. I hurt my hand and it was too painful to put any weight on the handlebars in the days after."

Matthew Beers (16th) - Another of the pre-race favourites who had a stop and start flat-filled day of racing, that left him joking that if he remembered how hard it was he wouldn't go back, as his instagra💙m post below outlined.