Ella Harris is overcome with emotion in her post-race interview after winning a stage of the Herald Sun Tour. Photo / Twitter
Ella Harris is overcome with emotion in her post-race interview after winning a stage of the Herald Sun Tour. Photo / Twitter
Kiwi cyclist Ella Harris has won the biggest race of her career – and won a lot of hearts in the process.
Harris has claimed a stunning victory on the second and final stage of the Women's Herald Sun Tour, coming back despite being dropped multiple times on the finalclimb, to power past her rivals and claim her first professional win.
Then, overcome with emotion, the 21-year-old delivered a tearful interview - which you can watch above - that left cycling commentators and fans thrilled with her success.
"It means so much to me – I've got so many people to thank," an elated Harris told interviewer David McKenzie, sobbing and grinning at the same time.
"I'm just ecstatic, it's my first professional win and I've been wanting it for so long – it's awesome."
Ella Harris is overcome with emotion in her post-race interview after winning a stage of the Herald Sun Tour. Photo / Twitter
Harris is one of New Zealand's most promising riders, having last year won the youth category of the Vuelta a Burgos, finishing as the second best young rider at the Emakumeen Bira, and finishing fourth overall at the Colorado Classic.
Just one of two Kiwis on the Women's World Tour, Harris usually rides for top team Canyon SRAM after earning a spot on the team via a competition run by online indoor training platform Zwift, but today was riding for the New Zealand national team.
Already this year Harris has finished 13th at the Tour Down Under and ninth in the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, and she used those close calls as a motivator to win today's stage, which ended with a 19.3 kilometre climb at an average gradient of five per cent.
"At TDU and Cadel I felt like I was always so close to getting a result but I didn't have the legs, and then today, at the start I wasn't feeling so good, but then as I went on, I kept clawing my way back," she said.
"The bunch, they kept accelerating and I've got zero punch, I kept getting dropped but I kept dieseling my way back on.
"With about 500 metres to go, I felt like I had a bit more power than everyone else, and I actually had that sensation on stage two at TDU but I completely got swamped, so I was expecting the same thing to happen again today, but to come across the line in first after getting dropped in the surprise crosswinds yesterday, I can't believe it."
A fantastic win for Ella Harris on the final stage of the Lexus of Blackburn Women’s Herald Sun Tour with second for Sarah Gigante and third for Lucy Kennedy, which secured the overall. #jhst#suntour#womenscyclingpic.twitter.com/tT03nDWMOQ
Those 49 seconds lost yesterday meant Harris couldn't take the overall win – she finished fourth – but considering she was continually dropped by a leading set of four riders on the lengthy final climb, even winning this stage was unlikely.
Harris even admitted she didn't think she would win until she saw the summit, but had a motto pushing her to the top.
"I've got a little motto I like to use – above and beyond – it's what I'm using to get through all my races this year, and I kept saying that to myself 'above and beyond', right to the line, and I got there.
"As soon as I got across the line, I've never got to salute before so I had no idea what to do, my friends are probably teasing me right now, but I'm just so excited."
Harris' emotional interview left renowned commentator Matthew Keenan, who called her victory "heroic", thrilled.
"That was one of the best interviews I have ever seen," said Keenan.
"I loved every bit of it - and I loved the emotion."
