“Being in the leader’s jersey is all about being in control, having everything cool and under control,” said Rivera following her first UCI Women’s WorldTour stage race victory. “The girls and I did really well at that.  We set a really good pace on the climbs, there were a few attacks but eventually they came back.”

“I’m really proud to have taken the win, the jersey belongs to the whole team.”

We can be super proud of the team. What they showed today and through the whole week is outstanding. They controlled the whole race and paced on the climbs; they were so strong that no one could attack. It’s really amazing and the win can only be for the whole team, they were super strong and executed the plan to perfection in the end.

“I feel really proud to be a part of this team. It’s been a really special week,” said Rowe who was suffering the effects of injury following a Stage Four crash on Saturday. “I was suffering out the saddle so I just tried to conserve as much energy as possible, riding on the drops up the climb to be as aero as possible and stay in contact with the bunch. After that I got more and more confident that I would be there at the finish. Marianne went for the intermediate sprint to help defend my third place from the two Boels [Dolmans] girls who were just three seconds behind me.

“I had my doubts [getting over the two SKODA Queen of the Mountain climbs], but my team and team-mates didn’t. They believed in me. When I survived the two climbs there was a big chance that it would end in the sprint so I tried to focus on it and try my best.”