Copy and paste: Pfeiffer Georgi wins British national road race for second year running

Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V. That's how simple it was for Pfeiffer Georgi on Sunday, as the dsm-firmenich PostNL rider "copied and pasted" her ride at the 2023 British national road race to aplomb at the 2024 edition.

The 23-year-old became the first rider since Nicole Cooke to win British National Road Race titles back-to-back, and a three-time winner in the process, demonstrating her dominance in the race in recent years.

Georgi attacked up Saltburn Bank on the final lap of the 130km race, and went clear, winning from Anna Henderson (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Lizzie Deignan (Lidl-Trek).

She was set up by her teammate, Josie Nelson, and had such a gap by the finish line that she was able to sit up and celebrate. North Yorkshire clearly suits her.

Sophie Wright (Fenix-Deceuninck) tried something late on, with a fierce attack, but punctured as her attempt came to nothing. Her teammate Flora Perkins won the under-23 title, finishing fourth overall.

"I actually just kind of copied and pasted my tactics from last year," Georgi said post-stage. "I told Josie to take the corners first and sprint as fast as she could, and then I came on the inside and sprinted from the bottom. Near the top of the climb, I heard someone say 'you’ve got it,' so I took a quick peek, and I was able to celebrate in the last 100m."

It was her first victory of 2024, although this year did see her take a marquee result at Paris-Roubaix, where she finished third. Another year in the red, white and blue national champion's bands awaits. 

"I can’t believe it," Georgi said. "I doubted a lot today. With a lap to go I wasn’t sure how I was feeling but my team supported me fully. We had a plan and we committed and luckily, it paid off. I felt a bit of pressure from myself, I really wanted to win and pay the girls back."

Saltburn Bank and its fearsome incline was always set to crown the winner, but there were aggressive riders from Alice Towers (Canyon-SRAM) among others. Wright, in particular, shook up the race with a late attack which saw her lead by 30 seconds inside the final 10km, but a puncture snuffed out her lead. 

Results

British National Road Championships 2024, road race: Saltburn-by-the-Sea > Saltburn-by-the-Sea (130km)

1. Pfeiffer Georgi, dsm-firmenich PostNL
2. Anna Henderson, Visma-Lease a Bike
3. Lizzie Deignan, Lidl-Trek
4. Flora Perkins, Fenix-Deceuninck
5. Millie Couzens, Fenix-Deceuninck
6. Alice Towers, Canyon-SRAM
7. Josie Nelson, dsm-firmenich PostNL
8. Claire Steels, Movistar
9. Elinor Barker, Uno-X Mobility