When Dutch cyclist Annemiek van Vleuten crossed the finish
line after an intense race in the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday, she thought she had
won a gold medal for her country. She had not. It was Austria‘s Anna
Kiesenhofer who won the gold instead, capitalizing on her rival’s confusion in
the women’s road race.

“When I crossed the line, I thought I had won,” CNN
quoted Van Vleuten as saying after the race.

There are no earpieces for cyclists at the Olympics so there
was no communication between the team and that played a big part in the confusion, according to
the 38-year-old athlete.

“This is an example if you ride an important race like
this without communication. All World Tour races have communication, and now
it’s the three of us standing here and wondering who has actually won. I am
gutted about that, of course,” said Van Vleuten, referring to teammates
Marianne Vos and Anna van der Breggen.

But she is happy to have won her first Olympic medal as she
had suffered a crash in Rio in 2016.

“I am really proud of the medal because I did not have an
Olympic medal. It is also a silver medal with a shine on it, because I felt
super good today,” she said.

The gold-medallist  Kiesenhofer
said that she was out of energy by the end of the race.

“My legs were completely empty. I have never emptied
myself so much in my whole life. I could hardly pedal anymore,” the newly
crowned Olympic champion was quoted as saying by CNN.