Racing

Magdeleine Vallieres takes first pro win at the Trofeo Palma Femina

The young Québécoise solos to our second victory in just as many days

January 21, 2024

Yesterday, we said we couldn’t write a better script.

Well, today, our story got better. Magdeleine Vallieres took her first pro victory at the Trofeo Palma Femina, making it two victories in two days for EF Education–Cannondale. 

“I am so happy. I feel like I'm going to wake up and it's just a dream,” said Magdeleine.

The inaugural Trofeo Palma Femina featured a challenging course with four categorized climbs in the final 40 kilometers. With several teams setting a hard pace on the climb, the group was whittled down, but it was on the descent of the Coll Grau that the final selection was made. 

Magdeleine came over the penultimate climb  – the Coll de Sa Creu – in an elite group of riders. EF Education–Cannondale general manager Esra Tromp knew she was ready to go for it for it based on her recent form.

“Mags has been racing well already and yesterday, Emma Trott [team performance manager] texted me saying to watch out for Mags tomorrow,” said Esra. 

As the riders began the descent, Magdeleine Vallieres was still there and looking strong. The descent down the Coll de Sa Creu was particularly twisty and technical and after a crash by Silvia Persico (UAE), Magdeleine moved to the front and quickly opened up a gap on the remaining riders in group one. There were eight kilometers to go. She flew down the mountain.

“Everyone worked so well and so hard together all day," said the young rider from Quebec. "It was my turn to be aggressive on the climbs and to try to read the race and see what I could do. I attacked a couple of times at the top of the climbs and then on the descent.I didn’t know the descent so I just kept looking at the Wahoo and was like ‘Okay, this looks straight, I can push’ and then there would be a turn and I had to slam on the brakes. Everyone on the team was supporting each other so it was just so perfect."

Magdeleine railed corners all the way down the descent and as she started the final climb up to the finish at the Castell de Bellver she still couldn’t see her chasers. When she got to the line, the young Quebecoise had time to celebrate and soak in her first pro win.

"I’m rooming with Noemi [Rüegg] and with her win yesterday she shined so much that it must have radiated on me for today and gave me some extra motivation," said Magdeleine.

While winning is always what we hope for in sport, it is never a given, especially not in cycling. Tromp knows as much.

“We wanted to start our season in Mallorca, thinking this was a good chance to have a team camp and do some races where we could learn, find each other, communicate, to learn to race with each other and make mistakes. This only sets us up better for the rest of the season,” Esra said.

“I said to them, ‘Okay, of course if we can win, we can win, but use these races to gain experiences together.’ Well, now they definitely have some experiences together! For Noemi yesterday, it was her first big win. And now for Mags, this is her first career win, so that builds confidence and I think there’s a really good vibe within the team,” Esra said. 

It’s a dream start for EF Education-Cannondale. Tonight they will celebrate with the entire team and tomorrow they will be back at it to take on the final race in the Challenge Mallorca Femina – the Trofeo Binissalem-Andratx.

Let the good times roll.

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