Life Time Unbound Gravel 200: Lachlan Morton And Rosa KlöSer Conquer The Flint Hills Of Kansas
Keegan Swenson retains the top spot of the men’s 2024 Life Time Grand Prix presented by Mazda, while Haley Smith takes the lead of the women’s standings from Sofia Gomez Villafane.
EMPORIA, KS (Saturday, June 1): An unprecedented nine-rider sprint finish resulted in a stunning debut win for German PhD student Rosa Klöser in the women’s elite UNBOUND Gravel 200. Australian fan-favorite Lachlan Morton (EF Education-EasyPost) took his first victory in the men’s race following a thrilling long-range breakaway alongside second-place finisher Chad Haga (USA).
A couple of rain-free days allowed for the fastest racing ever seen at UNBOUND, with average speeds above 22mph (35kph) for the men’s race and 19.4mph (31kph) for the women. Following an overcast start to the day, blue skies and light winds characterized race-day conditions, with the dry, dusty dirt roads marking fears of ‘peanut butter mud’ as unfounded.
For the first time in the race’s history, the 2024 edition of UNBOUND Gravel saw the elite women’s field secure an individual start time a full 15 minutes after the elite men and 25 minutes ahead of the amateurs.
Klöser’s victory followed an eventful day on the gravel roads North of Emporia, with a crash, flat tire, and wheel change risking a premature end to her race. She worked hard to bridge a two-minute gap solo to contest the biggest sprint finish in the history of UNBOUND Gravel, beating high-caliber racers, including SD-Worx’s Geerike Schreurs (Netherlands) and first American finisher Paige Onweller (Trek-Driftless) into second and third place.
In the men’s race, Denmark’s Tobias Kongstad attacked early, setting the stage for a 200-mile game of cat and mouse, which pitted breakaways against enormous chasing groups. Big names, including defending Life Time Grand Prix champion Keegan Swenson (USA), UCI Gravel World champion Matej Mohorič (Slovenia), Greg Van Avermaet (Belgium), and Ian Boswell (USA) tested the pace for the of 50-strong packs of chasers, but Haga’s attack around 150 miles – with Morton in close pursuit – set the scene for the final hours of the race.
A final sprint for the line down Emporia’s Commercial Street saw Morton triumph over Haga, with Kongstad’s 6 am efforts on Emporia’s asphalt rewarded with third place just three minutes after the breakaway pair.
Racing fans can watch the action unfold from home when the UNBOUND Gravel 200 extended highlights are published on the Life Time Grand Prix YouTube channel within 48 hours of the finish line.
The Results From The Unbound Gravel 200 Are As Follows:
Men’s Race
- Lachlan Morton 9hr, 11min, 47sec
- Chad Haga + 01sec
- Tobias Kongstad + 02min, 34sec
- Piotr Havik + 02min, 35sec
- Mattia De Marchi + 02min, 40sec
Full results HERE
Women’s Race
- Rosa Klöser 10hr, 26min, 02sec
- Geerike Schreurs +01sec
- Paige Onweller +01sec
- Heather Jackson +01sec
- Carolin Schiff +01sec
Full results HERE
Life Time Grand Prix Leaderboard
These results have triggered a number of changes to the Life Time Grand Prix overall standings, with UNBOUND Gravel 200 acting as the second race in the seven-race series.
Swenson’s 14th-place finish allows him to maintain his place at the top of the men’s leaderboard with 59 points. Payson McElveen is now hot on his heels in second place (58 points) after crossing the UNBOUND finish line in 8th. Matthew Beers retains third place in the overall standings (56 points) following today’s 13th-place finish.
Today’s racing has significantly shaken up the women’s Life Time Grand Prix standings, with Fuego XL winner Sofia Gomez Villafane’s 15th place dropping her to third (55 points), while Haley Smith’s UNBOUND 4th place boosting her to the top of the overall podium (62 points). Hannah Otto has also taken a step up the standings to second (58 points) following her 8th place result, just two seconds behind today’s race winner.
Men’s Race
- Keegan Swenson 59 points
- Payson McElveen 58 points
- Matthew Beers 56 points
Women’s Race
- Hayley Smith 62 points
- Hannah Otto 58 points
- Sophia Gomez Villafane 55 points
XL 350 MILE
Men’s Race
- Sebastian Breuer 20:05:36
- Logan Kasper 20:05:38
- Trevor Quass 20:57:52
Women’s Race
- Svenja Betz 23:46:57
- Ivy Pedersen 26:05:59
- Becca Book 26:37:46
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