In a stunning display of grit and determination, Tiffany Cromwell pulled off a remarkable victory in today’s Gravel World Series race at Sea Otter Europe, overcoming a tough start to power back into contention and clinch the win.
The race, held over a challenging 107km course that tested the physical and mental endurance of the competitors, initially saw Tiffany fall behind early on. The poor start seemed to put her out of contention, barely able to stay in the top ten riders. In a stunning turn of events, Tiffany clawed her way back through the field, picking off riders one by one. Tiffany had moved into fourth place at the second and final feed station but was still more than two minutes behind the leaders.

“I have no idea how I pulled that one off,” Tiffany said at the finish line. “Given how terrible I was at the start, I thought my chances were over.”

Refusing to give up, she dug deep, drawing on her vast experience and never-say-die attitude to launch a relentless comeback.

“It just shows that in gravel racing, anything can happen. You can’t count yourself out too early,” Tiffany remarked. “I was a long way back when I got the time gap from Sascha (Schmalenbach). I found a good group and returned to the third rider. I admit I was sort of okay with that. With 10km to go, I saw the two leaders and couldn’t believe what I saw. I knew I had to keep trying to get to those two. I kept telling myself to just keep pushing, and somehow, it worked. We were in three, and then Axelle crashed on a corner, so it was just down to Alison and me for the sprint. I’m pretty happy to get that win after such a bad start to the race.”

The win also adds another significant achievement to Tiffany’s career, solidifying her reputation as one of the top riders in the gravel scene, and comes just two weeks ahead of the UCI Gravel World Championships on October 5.

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