Anna van der Breggen charged into first place at the Giro d’Italia Women on Tuesday, after winning stage four's time trial over a minute faster than world champion Marlen Reusser.

The SD-Worx Protime rider looked strong from the outset, moving through the intermediate checkpoint as the fastest rider before pushing hard across the finish line in a time of 31.38 (at an average of 24.164 km/h), 1:04 ahead of Movistar's Reusser. Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ) rounded out the podium 1:10 behind Van der Breggen.

"I hope I'm an example that you need to keep fighting and in the end it will come again," Van der Breggen said after the race. "You are never there in one step. For me, it feels like I've worked really hard these past two years to get to this point. Winning today in this way really means a lot to me."

The 12.7km individual time trial came after an initial three flat stages, posing a brutal fourth stage of the race. The stage kicked off flat before before a 8.2% gradient climb boosted off over 7.4 kilometres. At its steepest, the climb pitched up at 14% before flattening out towards the finish line.

Reusser occupied the hot seat for the second half of the stage, taking hold of the time trial with a time of 32.42, and deposing Urška Žigart (AG Insurance-Soudal) in the process. For the bulk of the stage, none came close to toppling the world champion, though an impressive ride from Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv AlUla Jayco) saw the Italian slot in 27 seconds behind Reusser, having set the fastest intermediate time at the foot of the climb.

Meanwhile, Vollering was charging through the course, passing the intermediate in a faster time than Reusser. But it wasn't enough to topple the Swiss rider. As the course flattened out towards the finish, Vollering pushed hard across the line and into second, six seconds down from Reusser.

But the most impressive performance of the day came from Anna van der Breggen. In the blue mountains jersey, the 36-year-old first bested Colonel’s intermediate time, before continuing on to tuck into a time trial position to mount the final climb and over the finish line as the fastest rider.

After coming out of retirement, the three-time Giro d'Italia winner moves to the top of the GC, as the pink jersey shifts from Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek).

"Getting [the maglia rosa] is one [challenge], then always wearing it is another difficult task, especially with more stages coming up," Van der Breggen said, before gesturing outside. "I mean, It’s started raining now and it will rain in the upcoming stages as well. I know a lot will happen and it will be really hard to defend this jersey; goal one is finished, that deserves a great celebration. To keep the jersey is the next one, but the first is most important, so I’m really proud of that."

Before finishing her interview, Van der Breggen made reference to her absent teammates: Mikayla Harvey, who crashed in yesterday's race, and Lorena Wiebes. "Wearing the pink jersey in the Giro, it’s a dream," she said. "I will enjoy it with Lorena, who is not here. I think she will be really proud, and I’m proud of her."

GIRO D’ITALIA WOMEN: STAGE 4 (ITT), Belluno > Nevegal (12.7km)

1. Anna van der Breggen (Ned) SD Worx–Protime, 31:38
2. Marlen Reusser (Sui) Movistar, +1:04
3. Demi Vollering (Ned) FDJ United–Suez, +1:10
4. Antonia Niedermaier (Ger) Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto, +1:26
5. Monica Trinca Colonel (Ita) Liv AlUla Jayco, +1:31
6. Lauren Dickson (GBr) FDJ United–Suez, +1:38
7. Femke de Vries (Ned) Visma-Lease a Bike, +1:39
8. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE ADQ, +1:51
9. Urška Žigart (Slo) AG Insurance-Soudal, +1:54
10. Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek, +1:55

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE 4

1. Anna van der Breggen (Ned) SD Worx–Protime, 11:31:32
2. Marlen Reusser (Sui) Movistar, +1:04
3. Demi Vollering (Ned) FDJ United–Suez, +1:10
4. Antonia Niedermaier (Ger) Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto, +1:26
5. Monica Trinca Colonel (Ita) Liv AlUla Jayco, +1:31
6. Lauren Dickson (GBr) FDJ United–Suez, +1:38
7. Femke de Vries (Ned) Visma-Lease a Bike, +1:39
8. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE ADQ, +1:51
9. Urška Žigart (Slo) AG Insurance-Soudal, +1:54
10. Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek, +1:55

This social media roundup was rekindled in the heights of silly season. Every week Jonas Abrahamsen supplied us with goofy Instagram laughs, and our social media feeds were awash with Christmas jumper-ed teams. Anyone remember Visma-Lease a Bike's beehive knits?

As the new year settles in, January team camps are finishing, and riders are gearing up towards a spring and summer of racing - if they haven't already headed to Australia for the Tour Down Under.

While more serious times are on the horizon, fear not. The internet is still turning up some gold. Anyone fancy an underwater 5k?

1. The people’s princes: Yves Lampaert and Soudal Quick-Step teammates helped one stranded driver get back onto the road. But who is this mysterious helmet-wearing driver?

2. WTF is zone two? For time trial world Champion Marlen Reusser, it looks like its a sit down and a frothy coffee.

3. Robyn Clay and her Picnic Post-NL teammates hold Eleanora Ciabocco on a Calpe shoreline in an idyllic end to a January camp full of cats, coastlines and strawberry smoothies. “A couple more weeks of prep before we go racing,” she writes in her Instagram caption.

4. Lidl-Trek are also calling time on their January camp, but not before they quiz their riders on their favourite Christmas gift (we’re still flogging this horse). Felicity Wilson-Haffenden wins hands down, after taking home the Australian National Individual Time Trial title, and the first win for Lidl Trek in 2026. Meanwhile, Anna Henderson has been gifted an entire new set of kitchen utensils to use on her return to the UK - a peak adulthood pressie.

5. Pass through the Swiss town of Schöfflisdorf and you might catch a glimpse of Swiss Olympian, Noemi Rüegg on a training ride turned grocery run, eggs tucked into her EF Education-Oatly jersey – all to the soundtrack of panting breath and tweeting birds.

6. “It’s somewhere that makes sense to me,” says Alice Towers of the Cape Town roads she rode on with her brother, Lucas, under looming clifftops and unravelling seascapes. This is another of EF Pro Cycling’s ‘Beyond Your Universe’ series, available to watch in full on YouTube.

7. Taco van der Hoorn soundtracked this post with Karma Police by Radiohead – we hope that's not reflective of his mood.

8. Reckon you could cycle underwater? A cyclist’s horror story or a feat of unmatched daring? 12 minutes is impressive regardless.

9. Nothing will shame me out of Christmas day thirds. If you're recovering from Christmas indulgence, we have tips on how to get back into training and a break down on the science of detraining and retraining.

10. Welsh rider, Stevie Williams, opens up about the struggles he’s had after injuring his knee in 2019, followed by another operation six months ago. As the NSN team heads out to the Tour Down Under, Williams is hoping for a brighter 2026. Poor Stevie won't be at the Adelaide Oval this year.

11. Who needs a top-of-the-range bike when milliseconds can be shaved off from an aerodynamic head?

The Tour de Suisse, one of the key warm-up races for the Tour de France, has announced a major overhaul, aimed at becoming sustainable.

Perhaps the biggest change will see the men's event reduced from eight to five days. However, the women's and men's WorldTour races will now be held at the same time (the women usually race in the preceding week to the men).

In addition, the women's race will be boosted from four to the same five stages as the men – and, crucially, they will all start and finish in the same place.

Both events will be held from June 17-21, 2026.

The aim was parity between men and women, as well as "financial robustness" and greater visibility, said Hans-Peter Zurbrügg, chairman of TDS organiser Cycling Unlimited.

Race organisers say this will mean a better deal for both fans and the media trying to tell the story of the race.

Tour director Oliver Senn said in a statement: “Without a new concept, the future of the Tour de Suisse as a cultural asset and brand would be at risk in the medium term. We are deliberately focusing on a model that places even greater emphasis on women’s cycling."

He added: "The strong interest from TV viewers, roadside fans, and digital communities confirm: cycling is booming – and the Tour de Suisse enjoys a deep bond with the Swiss public."

The men's edition of the Tour de Suisse has been running since 1933 – that's 15 years longer than the more popular Critérium du Dauphiné – and is regarded as one of the biggest non-Grand Tour stage races of the year. The women's race was held once in 2001 before starting up again in 2021.

Its illustrious honours list includes some of cycling's biggest names – Eddy Merckx, Sean Kelly, Egan Bernal and Geraint Thomas on the men's side; Lizzie Deignan and Demi Vollering on the women's.

This year's women's race saw home rider Marlen Reusser (Movistar) lead from start to finish after breaking away with Vollering on stage one and defending a slender lead all the way to the final day, which she won solo.

In the men's race this year, Joāo Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) slowly hopped his way up the GC as the race got lumpier and more mountainous, finally grabbing the lead and the overall win on the final stage mountain time trial, which he won decisively.

Ten days after the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift concluded, the weight debate shows no sign of fading. Winner Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (visma - Lease a Bike) shed a reported 4kg in preparation for the punishing climbs, a decision that has dominated conversations in the peloton and beyond.

As she makes her celebratory tour to sponsors and media outlets across France, fellow riders are sounding the alarm, using social media and interviews to question the broader implications of her much-discussed weight loss.

“Ferrand-Prévot has set a new standard. When riders are so successful with this, it puts pressure on all of us,” Swiss cyclist Marlen Reusser tells Tages-Anzeiger.

Reusser had been a favourite for this year's Tour but ended up watching the race unfold from home while recovering from food poisoning.

She says she found herself both impressed and concerned by Ferrand-Prévot’s approach, and even wondered if she would need to lose weight for future editions.

In cycling, power-to-weight ratio is an inescapable metric. In the fight against gravity, every extra kilogram costs precious watts. Riders strive to optimise their bodies and equipment alike for the demands of the terrain. Over the decades, that focus has driven many athletes, men and women alike, into disordered eating, and the sport continues to struggle a balance between health and performance.

Reusser comes at this from a unique perspective. She's both a fierce competitor and a physician. She recognises that Ferrand-Prévot's weight loss was part of a calculated and supervised strategy tailored specifically to the Tour, and that the Française now plans to return to her normal weight.

But what does this do to the body, Reusser ponders. "Is it perhaps not so harmful if the deficiency is not a permanent condition?” she asks. “To what extent is it optimisation, and when does it become pathological?”

She notes that research in this area is limited. Most women in the pro peloton already fall below the standard body fat percentages but that being below the norm doesn’t necessarily mean harmful levels. However, Reusser like many of her peers, is quick to point out the that long-term undernutrition has serious consequences for women.

She references RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport), a prevalent condition that arises when athletes don’t consume enough calories to meet the demands of training and daily life. The resulting energy deficit can disrupt multiple bodily systems, affecting reproductive and bone health, metabolism and mental well-being.

Reusser worries that Ferrand-Prévot’s approach to race optimisation may have gone too far, sending the wrong message to young riders entering the sport, especially those that do not have access to a nutritionist and professional supervision. Critique is warranted, she says.

“My young teammate asked me: ‘Did you see? Ferrand-Prévot measures her body fat and then decides whether she’s allowed to have breakfast’,” she says, fearing that years of educational work around malnutrition and anorexia are at risk of being undone.

In the past, Reusser campaigned for a body fat limit to be adopted by cycling's governing bodies but it went nowhere.

When it comes to herself and her future Grand Tour aspirations, Reusser says she intends to stay true to herself, and maintain the balance of health and on-the-bike success.

Reusser is only the latest in a slew of female professional cyclists to come forward.

Dutch rider Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez), this year's runner-up in the Tour, pushed back hard against the weight-centric narrative: "The biggest priority is to be healthy...I can show girls that you don't have to be super, super skinny, and that you can just believe that if you have the power and that you train hard, that you can make it," she stated. "I make, and will continue to make, every decision in my career by putting my health first."

French pro Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education), who has a background in nutrition, also warned that cycling is in a “dangerous moment,” noting that decreasing weight in the name of performance can damage menstrual health and bone density.

Leaning out in preparation of a race is a common practice in a variety of elite sports for both men and women athletes, yet Ferrand-Prévot’s weight loss has drawn disproportionate scrutiny. But many, like Reusser, argue the discrepancy is necessary.

American Kristen Faulkner (EF Education), for example, has spoken candidly about female health concerns in racing, highlighting that underfueling affects women differently than the male peloton. “If a man doesn’t fuel properly, he bonks, but if a woman doesn’t fuel properly, she could lose her period.”

The ongoing debate has prompted the women’s riders’ union, The Cyclists’ Alliance (TCA), to call for mandatory yearly RED-S and bone mineral screenings to safeguard athlete health. The organisation also plans to launch a campaign of education and awareness for health and wellbeing.

"The current system is not set up to protect female health, so I believe it’s our duty to continue educating and advocating for better standards that allow women to perform with well-fuelled, strong, and happy bodies," TCA president Grace Brown said in a statement this week.

Swiss champion, Marlen Reusser won the opening time trial stage of the 2025 Giro d’Italia Women, taking the race leader’s maglia rosa by 12 seconds ahead of her rivals.

The Movistar rider’s effort was perfectly paced, setting the fastest time at the intermediate check on the 14.2km course, and holding her advantage to the finish in the centre of Bergamo, but an average speed of 49.06kph.

She was challenged strongly by the SD Worx-Protime pair of Lotte Kopecky and Anna van der Breggen, who finished second and fourth, 12 and 20 seconds down respectively, giving the Dutch team tactical options as the race wears on.

Defending champion Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) bisected the two SD Worx riders perfectly, taking third place at 16 seconds.

The race was keenly fought throughout, with a series of top times posted by the early riders. Starting 55th of the 153 rdiers, Olympic silver medalist, Anna Henderson (Lidl-Trek) clocked 17.49, and was in the hot seat for well over an hour before losing out, the former British champion eventually finishing sixth.

Of the other GC favourites Monica Trinca Colonel was best placed, the Liv-Alula-Jayco rider finishing ninth, 41 seconds down, on the same time as Henderson’s team mate Shirin van Anrooij.

Reusser was effusive in her post race interview. “I’m still very excited and I can almost not believe it that we won, it feels like a little bit surreal. I was not sure how good my TT is, it’s really a big dream of mine to win here and to wear pink.”

HOW IT HAPPENED

Men’s Giro organiser, RCS took over the race last year, but have maintained the race’s habit of beginning with a time trial, whether that be an individual effort, a prologue or a team time trial. Indeed, 2025 is the 12th consecutive edition to have opened with a race of truth, this time starting and finishing in the northern city of Bergamo.

Australian, Amber Pate (Liv-Alula-Jayco) was the first of the 153 riders to head down the ramp for the pan flat, 14.2km course, first heading out on a long opening straight, before a dead turn and returning to a intermediate timing point after 8.5km. This came immediately after beginning the more technical final few kilometres.

Pate eventually stopped the clock with a time of 19:04, though she was soon beaten Norwegian Junior time trial champion, 18-year-old Kamilla Aesebø (Uno-X Mobility) clocking an impressive time of 18:39.

However, as the day wore on, predictably the times got faster, Lidl-Trek rouleur Lauretta Hanson, taking 25 seconds off the young Norwegian. She too was soon usurped, this time by Ruth Edwards (Human Powered Health), the American clocking 18:13.

Next it was Norwegian TT champion, Katrin Aalerud’s (Uno-X Mobility) turn, briefly taking the lead, before Olympic silver medalist and former British champion, Anna Henderson who took her place, an impressive 17 seconds out of Aalerud.

After more than an hour in the hot seat Henderson was beaten, first by Lieke Nooijen (Visma-Lease a Bike) then by pre-race favourite and four time winner Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime), who crossed the line in 17:42, though she never quite reached the leader’s waiting area before Reusser took her place.

Monday’s second stage sees the peloton on their road bikes for the first of the 2025 Giro’s three uphill finishes. Over its 92km the peloton climbs 1,450m as it heads north, into the Alps between Clusone and Aprica.

RESULTS

GIRO D’ITALIA WOMEN, STAGE ONE, BERGAMO > BERGAMO (14.2KM ITT)

1. Marlen Reusser (Sui) Movistar, in 17:22
2. Lotte Kopecky (Bel) SD Worx-Protime, +12s
3. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE Team ADQ, +16s
4. Anna van der Breggen (Ned) SD Worx-Protime, +20s
5. Lieke Nooijen (Ned) Visma-Lease a Bike, +24s
6. Anna Henderson (Gbr) Lidl-Trek, +27s
7. Christina Schweinberger (Aut) Fenix-Deceuninck, +30s
8. Alessia Vigilia (Ita) FDJ-SUEZ, +40s
9. Monica Trinca Colonel (Ita) Liv-Alula-Jayco, +41s
10. Shirin van Anrooij (Ned) Lidl-Trek, at same time

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION AFTER STAGE ONE

1. Marlen Reusser (Sui) Movistar, in 17:22
2. Lotte Kopecky (Bel) SD Worx-Protime, +12s
3. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) UAE Team ADQ, +16s
4. Anna van der Breggen (Ned) SD Worx-Protime, +20s
5. Lieke Nooijen (Ned) Visma-Lease a Bike, +24s
6. Anna Henderson (Gbr) Lidl-Trek, +27s
7. Christina Schweinberger (Aut) Fenix-Deceuninck, +30s
8. Alessia Vigilia (Ita) FDJ-SUEZ, +40s
9. Monica Trinca Colonel (Ita) Liv-Alula-Jayco, +41s
10. Shirin van Anrooij (Ned) Lidl-Trek, at same time

Movistar rider, Marlen Reusser won the final stage of the Tour de Suisse Women with a strong, audacious attack on the descent of the final climb to take her home race victory alone, on the shores of Lake Lucerne.

After taking the overall lead by winning the four day race's opening stage, the Swiss woman set a relentless pace on the day’s final climb, leading a group of only four women over the top and into the final 15km.

After a well-timed attack on the descent from Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto), Reusser allowed rival Demi Vollering (FDJ-SUEZ) to close the gap before launching the decisive move on a small rise. She then managed to hold her advantage, finishing 28 seconds ahead of Niewiadoma, with Demi Vollering (FDJ-SUEZ) third on the day.

Vollering finished second on general classification, while Niewiadoma was third overall.

It was a consummate performance from the Swiss rider, who was perfectly positioned throughout the day, despite only having one of her Movistar team mates in support in the closing kilometres.

As the road kicked up for the day’s final climb, she moved to the front of the bunch, setting an infernal pace which not only shredded the peloton on the 9% slopes, but prevented any of her rivals attacking.

Vollering appeared to out of sorts on the final comb, occasionally slipping back in the group before finding herself on the decent, though the Dutch woman was unable to respond effectively when her former team mate made her race winning move.

Reusser’s victory sets up an intriguing summer, with the Giro d’Italia Women and then the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift all coming in the next seven weeks.

“I think we have a rivalry the whole year and I’m making so many steps at this moment, and I think I’m really developing a lot and I think it will keep being interesting,” she said of her battle with Vollering.

“It’s great, I’m really, really happy. I’m back in life and super happy and today I don’t think about last year,” Reususer said, referring to her injury and illness blighted 2024 season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The sixth edition of the Tour de Suisse Women Took place across four stages, heading basically west to east, across the centre of the country. The race’s podium was largely decided on Thursday’s opening stage, starting and finishing in Gstaad, when Marlen Reusser (Movistar) attacked over the top of the day’s defining climb.

Only defending champion Demi Vollering (FDJ-SUEZ) managed to go with the Swiss rider, the pair finishing 1:42 ahead of Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto).

The Polish rider then clawed back 20 seconds of her deficit with her own audacious attack on stage two, while Vollering’s team mate, Amber Kraak took a solo stage win.

Former world champion Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) won Saturday’s third stage bunch kick after some dynamic racing, setting the scene for Sunday’s final day showdown. The leading duo of Reusser and Vollering started the final stage separated only by day one’s bonus seconds, four seconds between them, and Niewiadoma still a threat at 1.21.

Stage four’s undulating, 129.4km course took place on the northern shores of Lake Lucerne, starting and finishing in the town of Küssnacht, following the same route as the opening stage of the men’s race, held later in the day. With the whole race staged close to Vollering’s adopted home, and with the time gaps so close, the pressure was on the dominant Dutch woman to perform.

This fourth day was second only to stage two in the amount of climbing, with 1,939m of ascent over four classified climbs. The first of those, the Adligenswilerstrasse, came only 6.5km after the peloton rolled out under leaden skies and on wet roads for on an opening loop almost to the suburbs of Lucerne itself.

At 3.8km with an average gradient of 9.1%, Michaelskreuzstrasse presented the next obstacle and, after a flurry of attacks, Julia Borgström (AG Insurance-Soudal), Loes Adegeest (FDJ-SUEZ) and Afghan champion Fariba Hashimi (Ceratizit) took a lead of 35 seconds over the top of its brutal slopes.

However, with 90km remaining, just after the race passed the finish line to begin a long, eastern loop, Hashimi was last woman standing, and was soon swallowed up by a raging peloton.

The Afghan woman, though, was keen to be up the road, and soon infiltrated an 11 woman leading group who set about building an advantage on the flatter roads adjacent to the lake’s shores. However, with bonus seconds available at both the Tissot Kilometre and on the finish line so critical to the the overall result, they were soon caught, though the race refused to settle.

With multiple attacks continuing, at 63km to go and the sun now shining on dry roads, New Zealander, Henrietta Christie (EF Education-Oatley) got away, and despite repeated counter attacks, managed to build a lead which briefly approached one minute.

Behind her, though, both Vollering and and Reusser competed for the Tissot Kilometre bonus seconds, the former finishing second and cutting her rival’s overall advantage to only three seconds. But by the time they reached the second sprint, 1,000m later, Christie had been joined by Steffi Häberlin (SD Worx-Protime) and Julia Borgström (AG Insurance-Soudal), the trio hoovering up the bonuses.

When the leaders reached Küssnacht again, with with just over 39km to go, their lead had once again reached one minute, but though none of them was any threat to the general classification, FDJ-SUEZ worked in the bunch to ensure that did not increase.

The race was now tackling the opening loop, and its climbs, for a second time and when Häberlin took maximum mountains points at the top of the Adligenswilerstrasse, the break’s lead was only 15 seconds.

By now Reusser had only sprinter and Serbian champion Jelena Erić in support, however, it was LidlTrek who finally caught the leaders close to the bottom of the Michaelskreuzstrasse, the race’s final climb, with 18km to go.

Here, the moment the road tipped upwards, Reusser headed to the front of the bunch, setting the pace, with both Vollering and Niewiadoma close behind, instantly whittling the leading group to just a handful of riders.

The Swiss woman’s relentless pace on the early part of the climb ensured only four women crested the the top, Niamh Fisher-Black (Lidl-Trek) joining Reusser, Vollering and Niewiadoma onto the descent.

Even then, the race was not over, Reusser attacking before Niewadoma cleverly used a traffic island to attack, drawing out Vollering in pursuit. Reusser then sat on her wheel before making her decisive move with 9km of the race to go.

RESULTS: TOUR DE SUISSE WOMEN, STAGE 4, KÜSSNACHT > KÜSSNACHT (129.4KM)

1. Marlen Reusser (Sui) Movistar, in Anne Other (Nation) Team, in 3:19:36

2. Kasia Niewiadoma (Pol) Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto, at 28 sec
3. Demi Vollering (Ned) FDJ-SUEZ, at st
4. Cédrine Kerbaol (Fra) EF Education-Oatly, at 41 sec
5. Yara Kastelijn (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, at 1:11
6. Niamh Fisher-Black (NZ) Lidl-Trek
7. Urška Žigart (Slo) AG Insurance-Soudal, all at st
8. Sarah Gigante (Aus) AG Insurance-Soudal, at 1:15
9. Isabella Holmgren (Can) Lidl-Trek, at 1:53
10. Marion Bunel (Fra) Visma-Lease a Bike, at 1:54

FINAL GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Marlen Reusser (Sui) Movistar, in Anne Other (Nation) Team, in 13:03:00
2. Demi Vollering (Ned) FDJ-SUEZ, at 36 sec
3. Kasia Niewiadoma (Pol) Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto, at 1:56
4. Niamh Fisher-Black (NZ) Lidl-Trek, at 3:25
5. Urška Žigart (Slo) AG Insurance-Soudal, at 3:25
6. Cédrine Kerbaol (Fra) EF Education-Oatly, at 3:27
7. Yara Kastelijn (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, at 3:57
8. Mavi García (Esp) Liv-Alula-Jayco, at 4:29
9. Marion Bunel (Fra) Visma-Lease a Bike, at 4:40
10. Eleonora Ciabocco (Ita) Picnic-PostNL, at 4:59

The 2025 cycling season is well and truly up and running with some talking points already beginning to develop after the first races flashed by. The Tour Down Under is done and dusted and all eyes now turn to Europe and the imminent arrival of Opening Weekend, via the Middle East.

Here are five takeaways from the Tour Down Under and recent men’s and women’s races in Spain to whet the appetite for what's to come in the weeks ahead.

Marc Hirschi starts as he means to go on with Tudor

Marc Hirschi kickstarted his career at Tudor with an emphatic win at the Clàssica Comunitat Valenciana in Spain, the second race of the European men’s racing season, and showed signs that there’s more to come.

Hirschi was in scintillating form at the tail end of last year for UAE Emirates. The Swiss star enjoyed a trio of victories at the Clásica San Sebastián, Coppa Agostoni and Sabatini and finished sixth overall in the men’s elite World Championships road race. His transfer to a new environment could well be the catalyst to him kicking on even further in the coming years and take him to the next level.

Along with fellow new arrival Julian Alaphilippe, who Hirschi narrowly beat in his San Sebastián victory, Hirschi will enjoy a clear leadership role at the Fabian Cancellara-backed squad and will represent a real threat in the hillier Classics.

Will Sam Welsford make the Tour de France?

Australian sprinter Sam Welsford grabbed his second successive hat trick of stage wins at the Tour Down Under, but will he be able to sustain his form and ensure he lands a spot in Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe’s Tour de France team?

After splitting his focus between his track ambitions at last summer’s Olympics and his goals on the road, he now says it is all in for results for his trade team and the start of the year couldn’t have gone much better. Red Bull team management will have been impressed with his opening performance, but the French Grand Tour is still a long way off.

Building on his Tour Down Under success with a few wins in the upcoming UAE Tour, followed by a solid performance in Paris-Nice, could well put him in contention for a return to the Tour this summer where he says he will be targeting opening day victory and the race's first yellow jersey if selected. However, three wins at the TDU last year did not amount to much more in Europe. Welsford will hope this year is different.

Marlen Reusser demonstrates impressive form on Movistar debut

Similarly to the likes of Marc Hirschi and Jhonatan Narváez, Marlen Reusser started as she meant to go on at Movistar after switching to the Spanish team from SD Worx-Protime last year.

Reusser endured a difficult 2024 campaign after the latter half of her season was derailed by illness, although she appeared back to full fitness and looked sharp when holding off Mavi García to win the Trofeo Palma Femina on Sunday. The Swiss rider expertly held off Garcia on the climb to the finish before sprinting away to take the win on the ascent with little response from the Spaniard.

It’s difficult to read too much into early season results, but Reusser could well be on track to return to the one-day form she demonstrated in 2023 when she took the win in Gent-Wevelgem and finished third at Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes.

Jhonatan Narváez begins with a bang at UAE Team Emirates

Jhonatan Narváez went one better at the Tour Down Under on debut for UAE Emirates after finishing second overall last time out in Australia. The Ecuadorian secured the overall win last week by nine seconds after taking a stage victory on Willunga Hill.

Narváez was one of several to make for the exit door at Ineos Grenadiers at the end of last season and, on paper, represented an astute signing for UAE Emirates. The Ecuadorian achieved some solid results for Ineos in the Classics last year and could be set to replicate those performances this spring.

A race like Strade Bianche and the E3 Saxo Classic appear tailor made to his strengths as a puncheur, although the latter would appear more of a possibility this year with Tadej Pogačar set to lead UAE in Tuscany at Strade Bianche.

Oscar Onley shows good form in Australia

After his stage-winning exploits on Willunga Hill 12 months ago, Oscar Onley was a huge favourite to double up on his success this time round in Australia and seal a second consecutive win on the famous climb. However, the 22-year-old Scottish rider ended up taking second place, which all but sealed fourth overall in the general classification.

Onley’s ride in Australia was just 15 seconds off of overall Tour Down Under victory and a first WorldTour stage race win, showing that a major victory is just around the corner.

Onley made clear in a recent interview with Cycling Weekly that he is aiming for a Tour de France stage win this year. His form in 2024, particularly at the World Championships, showed that he is more than capable of holding his own on the biggest of stages.

Lidl-Trek’s Lizzie Deignan is set for a spell out of action after suffering a broken arm at the Tour of Flanders on Sunday, and has said she will "change direction" when she bounces back.

Deignan explained on Instagram on Monday that the fracture marked her first of her entire professional career. 

"So happy to be a part of Lidl-Trek’s brilliant classics campaign so far," she wrote. "Unfortunately that came crashing down yesterday when I broke my arm. I am lucky enough to say that after 15 years pro this is my first broken bone. 

"It feels like I’ve been swimming against the tide recently so I will first take time to recover and then change my direction. Thanks for so many lovely concerned messages."  

Lidl-Trek shared a brief update regarding the specifics of Deignan’s injury on Sunday afternoon which explained the full details of the fracture that she suffered. 

"Lizzie Deignan’s tenth participation in the Ronde van Vlaanderen ended with a DNF and, unfortunately, in the worst possible way," the team wrote. "Involved in a crash in the early part of the race, with 145 km to go, Lizzie Deignan was forced to withdraw the race and taken to the nearby hospital for checks. 

"Unfortunately, x-ray showed the fracture of the radial head of the right arm."

Lidl-Trek went on to win the Tour of Flanders through Elisa Longo Borghini. The win was the Italian's second at the Belgian Monument, and puts her in a select club with Deignan as winners of both Paris-Roubaix Femmes and De Ronde.

Deignan’s fracture will keep her out of Roubaix this Sunday - a race she famously won before - but the exact impact the injury will have on her schedule is currently unknown. 

SD Worx-Protime’s Marlen Reusser was involved in the same crash and is set to undergo surgery on Tuesday to address some of the seroious injuries she suffered. 

The Swiss rider suffered a fractured jaw and broken teeth in the incident as well as other injuries. 

"The current Swiss champion underwent further examinations today at the Inselspital in Bern with the following diagnosis: in addition to the jaw, both ear canals and eight teeth are also broken. The 32-year-old will undergo surgery tomorrow, Tuesday, and will have to wear splints for around four weeks," read a statement from her team, SD Worx-Protime.

Reusser shared several images on Instagram of herself in hospital after the incident in which a deep cut was visible on her chin. 

"I’m doing well and I’m in good spirits that I’ll soon be completely healthy again," she said. 

Marlen Reusser has said she feels like she is in a "never-ending downward spiral", after she abandoned the World Championships elite women's time trial partway through.

The Swiss rider, the winner of the time trial at the recent Tour de France Femmes, climbed off her bike before the second intermediate time check on Thursday, later citing burnout as the reason behind the decision.

On television, she was shown easing up, shaking her head, before getting off her TT bike and sitting on the grass verge. She was one of the favourites for the event, which was won by Chloé Dygert of the United States.

"I had to give up... It wasn't a mechanical problem, it was just me," Reusser told DirectVelo later on Thursday.

"It's a special situation. I've been cycling for a long time. This is my seventh World Championships. Since I've been cycling, I've always raced with passion. My life revolves around cycling. I love what I do, I love this lifestyle and I find a lot of positives in it. But it also costs me a lot of energy. 

"Last year was very difficult for me. I was ill and didn't feel well for a long time. I cut two weeks off during the winter break, but then it started up again very quickly. 2023 has been a great year for me so far. But from the Tour de Suisse onwards, it just wasn't the same. Even though I won the race, I immediately had to refocus on the Tour de France. I didn't have time to catch my breath. Then I had to do the Tour and the World Championship in quick succession. I didn't even have time to enjoy the various victories."

Reusser has had her most successful year-to-date with her trade team, SD Worx. She won Gent-Wevelgem, stages of Itzulia and the Tour, and the Tour de Suisse overall. she has also been a key part of the squad as Lotte Kopecky and Demi Vollering have dominated other events. She also won the mixed relay team time trial at the Worlds last week, crashing in the process.

"Since the Tour, I feel I need time to breathe and rediscover my desire to go out and win," Reusser continued. "It's a bit like preparing for an exam. There's all the preparation, the stress of D-Day, and when it's done, you relax. And I need that moment of relaxation.

"But instead, I feel like I'm caught up in a never-ending downward spiral. I had this feeling for the first time four weeks ago. But with the support of Swiss Cycling, the sponsors and so on, I just had to keep going. That's why I came to the Worlds, even though I knew it wasn't going to work out. I tried to get my head back on straight, but it wasn't going well today, just as it hasn't been going well since the start of this World Championship.

"On this individual time trial, as soon as I tried to put it right, I felt that it wasn't possible. I couldn't accelerate. So I decided to stop. I wasn't ready to race that time trial. I had no desire to do it. The moment I put my foot down, I told myself it probably wasn't a good idea... But I wanted to do it. I know it's not cool for Eddy, my trainer, for everyone, all those who have put so much energy into me. But I accept this decision. I need a break. I'm not a machine. Cycling has so many great things to offer, so many great races, so many Classics."

The Swiss rider is not the first professional cyclist to suffer from burnout, with Tom Dumoulin, Marcel Kittel and Pete Kennaugh among those who cited it as a reason for pausing or stopping their careers.

Reusser is currently on the start list for the elite women's road race on Sunday.

There was a feeling of frustration after the finish line of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift on Sunday. As the riders gasped for air, breathless in the humidity of Clermont-Ferrand, many were left wondering what could have been. After all, there was a yellow jersey on the line, and all but one of them missed out. 

The honours, in the end, went to Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx), the winner of the race’s first stage with a 10km solo attack. When the Belgian launched her move, she took the rest of the field by surprise, leaving some of the GC favourites with a sour taste in their mouths. 

“I think I really messed up when Lotte went,” Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-Sram) told Cycling Weekly after the race. “I just lost a couple of seconds. I was trying to get out of Ashleigh Moolman [Pasio]’s wheel because she was kind of blocking me. It’s a pity for us it ended up like this because I think we could have had a better result.”

On the road into Clermont-Ferrand, chaos reigned in the group that followed Kopecky. “Sometimes it feels like no-one wants to work together because everyone has a different tactic or strategy in mind,” Niewiadoma explained. And with little organisation between the chasers, the time gap blew out. 

A few seconds over the top of the Côte de Durtol soon turned into 20, and ultimately 41 over the line. 

Speaking to the media, Moolman Pasio, the sole AG Insurance - Soudal Quick-Step rider in the group, said: "It wasn't actually my job to chase.

“There were multiple riders from other teams. But at the same time, I didn’t want to just sit up, so I tried to keep things going," she explained. "I don’t understand the mentality to attack, counter attack, because if we work together we could bring her back.” 

For Moolman Pasio, the disorder came when Kopecky's attack caught the GC contenders off guard. “She just came with speed from behind,” the South African said. “It was the element of surprise. In hindsight, maybe I’m kicking myself because I knew she was going to go, so why didn’t I just sit on her wheel? Why did I get caught up sitting on Demi [Vollering]’s wheel? 

“But I suppose that doesn’t make sense. Demi’s here to ride the GC, I’m here to ride GC. So nothing is lost today.” 

This, perhaps, is where the crux of it all lay. By virtue of not being a GC contender, the favourites did not deem Kopecky to be a threat, and so gave her licence to draw out an advantage. 

The SD Worx rider’s team-mate Marlen Reusser knew that would always be the case. “It was all the GC riders behind, not the sprinters, and that’s always the game,” she told Cycling Weekly. “They look at each other, and Lotte isn’t a GC rider, so that’s the big advantage that she had there.

“It went perfect,” Reusser added with a smile. 

SD Worx has become so dominant that the team now can concern itself with how it wins, rather than just whether it is victorious or not.

On Sunday, on stage three of Itzulia Women, the Dutch super-team could have decided to try and leave the General Classification as it was going into the final stage: Demi Vollering (SD Worx) in first, with a healthy 56 seconds over her teammate Marlen Reusser in second, and 1-05 over Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM), in third.

Vollering was in top form, with her streak of victories at Itzulia such that she seemed almost unbeatable in the Basque Country, despite a strong lineup for the Women's WorldTour race in the north of Spain.

The 26-year-old won every stage of the race and the overall, obviously, in 2022, and was heading to do the same in this year's race, with victories on stage one and two. Vollering has won nine times across 18 opportunities in 2023, so she is in good nick.

And yet, on Sunday, SD Worx decided to race from the front, not wait for other teams to attack, and turned the race upside down - but in doing so, replaced their woman in the lead with another of their riders, Marlen Reusser. Simple.

Vollering and Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar), the world champion, were initially away together on the climb to Mendizorrotz, after the former attacked first, but were chased down by Niewiadoma, Reusser and Olivia Baril (UAE Team ADQ) 14km from the finish. Instead of sitting on and waiting for the inevitable sprint, Reusser was given the green light to attack.

The European time trial champion showed the power that led her to win Gent-Wevelgem earlier this year, putting 2-38 into the chasing group behind by the finish, which saw her win overall by 1-50 from Vollering. The latter, inevitably, won the sprint for second, SD Worx's seventh 1-2 of the season, with the general classification results being the eighth.

Other teams would have simply tried to have protected its GC lead, but not SD Worx. The team is so powerful that it can dictate which of its riders wins.

Sunday's tactic was redolent of the method SD Worx used throughout the Classics season, sending one rider up the road in the knowledge that if they were brought back, they would still win the sprint. It proved so effective on the cobbles, so why not on hillier days too?

"I can't believe it and I'm really overwhelmed because when we discussed our team tactics today in the meeting we could just have stayed with one and two as it was," Reusser explained post-race. "We could try to defend it, but we said no, we want to race aggressively and be the ones that force the other teams to act."

"I asked Demi what if this tactic leads to a change in the GC and I win it instead she said that's fine for her and today you saw that she was the strongest and could stay with the attack. Then she waited for me and didn't ride and gave me the chance to put in this attack which we planned.

"That's a real champ and I'm so thankful for her to do that and I'm really grateful that I had good legs. I'm really satisfied with my performance and my climbing. It's so nice that we finish this tour with one and two in that way."

It helps that Reusser and Vollering are great friends, the pair spending time in the Sierra Nevada for a training block ahead of the Tour of Flanders, but this result also proves how SD Worx is operating on a different level from the other teams around it; it has so many options for a race like this. 19 wins in 33 race days this year beggars belief.

It might also prove invaluable to build this sort of camaraderie in a team; for Vollering to allow her record and the overall win to disappear in the aid of Reusser's victory shows how close the bond is at SD Worx. Come bigger goals like the Tour de France Femmes, that kind of camaraderie could be crucial.

For now, the Women's WorldTour moves onto another Spanish stage race, this one the Vuelta a Burgos, and it would take a brave person to bet against SD Worx coming out on top once again. The team is simply too good.

The centrepiece event of the Belgian Spring Classics takes place this weekend, and some of the biggest names in the men’s and women’s WorldTour are set to do battle once more. Taking place on Sunday, the 107th edition of the men’s Tour of Flanders is widely anticipated to be a scrap between the trio who largely stole the show at the recent E3 Saxo Classic.

'De Ronde' is undoubtedly one of the biggest one-day races on the planet, with swarms of cycling fans gathering on the race's iconic cobbled climbs, including the Oude Kwaremont, in their thousands to watch the riders take on the brutal course in Belgium. The men’s race is due to start in Brugge for the first time since 2016, before finishing on the outskirts of Oudenaarde 273 kilometres later.

First established in 2004, the women’s race starts and finishes in Oudenaarde and includes the same hellish climbs as the men’s edition. Lotte Kopecky captured the victory while wearing the Belgian national champions jersey last year, and the thousands of local fans lining the course will be screaming her name once more on Sunday.

Here’s Cycling Weekly’s five men and five women to watch when the racing gets going. 

Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck)

With the way that Mathieu van der Poel has begun his spring campaign, it’s hard to bet against him completing the Flanders hat-trick on Sunday.

After his scintillating Milan-San Remo victory, Van der Poel lit up the E3 Saxo Classic in his final racing appearance before the Ronde and Roubaix. The flying Dutchman was as aggressive as always, rampaging up the Taaienberg in the first of a series of brutal attacks that drew Wout van Aert and Tadej Pogačar out into the open.

While Van Aert ended up snatching the win from his grasp, Van der Poel made him work for it, every second of the way, and will do exactly the same again when the Ronde gets underway on Sunday.

Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers)

After winning Strade Bianche in early March, Pidcock suffered slight misfortune when a crash at Tirreno-Adriatico left him with minor concussion.

The Yorkshireman was forced to sit out Milan-San Remo, although made his return to racing with a respectable 11th place at Dwars door Vlaanderen. Before his injury, Pidcock would have been widely expected to contend for the San Remo title, and on his day, is more than capable of matching the trio of Van Aert, Pogačar and Van der Poel.

Now that Pidcock has managed to get another race day under his belt ahead of his third appearance in Flanders on Sunday, the Ineos man will be full of optimism on his chances of competing with his aforementioned rivals. 

Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) 

Coming into the Ronde, Van Aert will be bursting with confidence after already getting one over on Van der Poel and Pogačar last week.

The Jumbo-Visma man could follow every single move from Van der Poel at E3, and was even able to put his long standing rival on the ropes on several occasions during the race. After losing out to the Dutchman in final sprints on previous occasions, beating his rival in last week's final dash to the line will have provided Van Aert with a timely feather in his cap ahead of the Flanders cobbles.

However, Van Aert’s biggest weapon will be his reliable, and fiercely loyal right hand man Christophe Laporte. Last weekend, Van Aert and Laporte memorably dominated Gent-Wevelgem before the Belgian handed his teammate the victory. As a result, Laporte will undoubtedly be right by his friend's side on Sunday, backing him all the way in the scrap for victory in the Monument. 

Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) 

Since he was outfoxed by Van der Poel in the closing stages of last year’s Ronde, Pogačar will be determined not to let lightning strike twice on Sunday.

The Slovenian was in the thick of the action at the E3 Classic, and was largely able to match each acceleration from Van der Poel and Van Aert, even making his own big attack on the Oude Kwaremont as he looked to stretch things.

Similarly to Jumbo-Visma, Pogačar’s team is full of solid Classics riders including the likes of Tim Wellens. Pogačar is also undoubtedly the best climber of the three favourites.

If he brings his climbing legs to the cobbles once again on Sunday, and the likes of Wellens are able to stick with him until the final phase of racing, then the two-time Tour de France winner may well add yet another Monument to his palmarès this weekend. 

Christophe Laporte (Jumbo-Visma)

After winning two-major Classics in a matter of days, Christophe Laporte firmly deserves his place in the top five overall contenders for Flanders.

Taking victory at both Gent-Wevelgem and Dwars door Vlaanderen in such quick succession is no mean feat, proving what many already knew; Laporte is yet another fearsome weapon in the Jumbo-Visma arsenal of talent.

Moving to the Dutch team from Cofidis has provided the Frenchman with an opportunity to really raise his level. He took an excellent stage victory at last summer’s Tour de France, and is a rider equally as formidable as the likes of Wout van Aert. As was well documented, the Frenchman was largely handed victory in Gent-Wevelgem by his Belgian teammate, although that shouldn’t take away from his own capabilities whatsoever.

After his Dwars victory, Laporte reiterated that he would be firmly in the service of Van Aert on Sunday. However, should things go wrong for Van Aert in some way, expect Laporte to be given the nod to push on and challenge at the sharp end of the action.

Demi Vollering (SD Worx) 

Coming into the Tour of Flanders, the strength in depth at SD Worx is somewhat terrifying. Vollering is one of four riders at the Dutch team potentially capable of winning, and showed she’s in strong form with victory at Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday.

Earlier this year, the team’s strength was no more evident than when Vollering and Kopecky both found themselves together going into the last 500 metres of Strade Bianche. The duo sprinted for the line, with Vollering eventually coming out on top. The Dutchwoman has won two of the three one-day races she’s started this season, and on paper is her team’s most in-form rider.

Her best result in Flanders was fifth in 2021, but she certainly has the strength and power to do better this time around. The only barrier to Vollering winning Flanders could well come from within her own ranks.

Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) 

Earlier this year, Marianne Vos underwent major pelvic artery surgery to correct a long-standing injury. However, that didn’t stop Vos on her return to racing action earlier this week.

In only her second race of the road season at Dwars door Vlaanderen, Vos was one of a select few who could compete with the SD Worx duo of Marlen Reusser and Vollering. When Vollering launched her final attack, Vos was the only rider who could match her, although her compatriot ultimately rode her off her wheel.

Nevertheless, third place was a highly respectable result for Vos and an impressive sign of her fitness given her recent surgery and recovery. The Jumbo-Visma rider won the Tour of Flanders back in 2013, although she then didn’t return until five years later.

With that said, and her form she showed this week, it feels like you certainly can’t count Vos out on Sunday.  

Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ-Suez)

Earlier this week, Uttrup Ludwig showed she’s gradually building form ahead of the Ronde, putting in a big attack on the cobbles as part of the front group at Dwars door Vlaanderen.

Ultimately, it would come to nothing, but proved that the FDJ Suez rider definitely has the legs to make a difference. In early March, the Danish puncheur took a solid third place behind the SD Worx duo of Vollering and Kopecky. She’s yet to win in 2023, but comes into the Tour of Flanders with a solid team behind her.

Uttrup Ludwig has regularly been in contention in Flanders, finishing sixth last year. Her best placed finish was third in 2019. With the power of Grace Brown in support on Sunday, she could well hit the podium again this time around.

Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar)

It seems inevitable that whatever race Annemiek van Vleuten signs on for, she’s then instantly considered a favourite for the win. Although with her absolute domination last year, it really is no surprise.

Van Vleuten has won the Tour of Flanders on two previous occasions in 2011 and 2021, and has achieved four podium finishes in between her two victories. The Movistar rider had a difficult start to her current campaign, with an untimely mechanical ruling her out of contention. She made amends for her bad luck on Opening Weekend, going on to take fourth at Strade Bianche.

Since that race, Van Vleuten has been out of the spotlight, training at altitude ahead of her wider goals later in the year. However, despite her absence from other races this spring her rivals certainly won't underestimate her.

As she proved in 2022, Van Vleuten on her day is undoubtedly the best female bike racer in the world. If she turns up in her best shape on Sunday, it could well be game over the moment some of the trickier climbs begin.
 

Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx)

The reigning Tour of Flanders female champion returns for another stab at victory. If Kopecky is able to muster up a race-winning performance on Sunday, she will become only the second woman to ever win consecutive editions. Unsurprisingly, the only rider to win two editions in a row is Movistar’s Van Vleuten.

Kopecky is in lightning form, and has already won on the cobbles in 2023 at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. As well as her win on Opening Weekend, she won Nokere Koerse and took second behind teammate Demi Vollering at Strade Bianche.

The SD Worx rider has the power and tenacity to launch a move and make it stick on climbs like the Oude Kwaremont and Paterberg. Kopecky also possesses a powerful enough final turn of speed to win a reduced bunch sprint back in Oudenaarde. With that in mind, she’s our out-and-out favourite for the win.  
 

In just her third outing this year, Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) soloed through the wind and rain to claim a maiden Classics victory at Gent-Wevelgem.

The Swiss rider drifted off the front with 40km to go and drew on her time-trialling prowess to stay clear of the peloton. 

By the time she crested the final climb, Reusser’s advantage stood at over a minute, which she then doubled on the flat roads into Wevelgem. A wrong turn in the final 5km brought a moment of panic, but ultimately didn't dent the SD Worx rider's resounding victory. 

"I'm so tired, I think I'm not yet here with my head," she said after the race. 

Asked about her race-winning move, Reusser said: "I didn't attack. I thought maybe we could make a little bit of a selection, or a small group, and there was just nobody on my wheel. I thought, 'Let's try a bit!'

"With 1km to go, I was slowly getting more sure, but even at 400m, 300m, I was thinking maybe somebody will come, but I was thinking it was going to work out." 

The attritional conditions in West Flanders made for a crash-marred race, in which Reusser herself took a tumble early on. 

Megan Jastrab (Team DSM) sprinted to second from the peloton - a first Classics podium for the 21-year-old American - while Canyon-Sram's Maike van der Duin was awarded third place in a photo finish.

How it happened

Heading north out of Ypres, the peloton travelled towards the coastline on a tour of the First World War battlefields. The opening 100km of racing were set up to be relatively featureless, before the route dealt a string of seven challenging bergs. 

For the first half of the race, the pack kept any hopeful attackers on a tight leash. Pien Limpens (Parkhotel Valkenburg) and Malin Eriksen (Duolar-Chevalmeire) were both allowed a small gap, but were swiftly swallowed up by the bunch. 

No attacks came over the opening two climbs, before a crash on the cobbles forced Brugge-De Panne winner Pfeiffer Georgi (Team DSM) into a bike change. The former British road champion then fell victim to a pile-up with 44km to go, when a rider hit the ridge in the middle of the road and slid out through the peloton. 

On the first of two ascents of the Kemmelberg, Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx) and Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-Sram) whittled down the peloton, before both were caught by the bunch. 

With 40km remaining, Reusser then slipped off the front on the Baneberg, the penultimate climb, and drew out a one-minute gap into the foot of the Kemmelberg. Just a handful of kilometres later, the SD Worx rider had managed to stretch her advantage to over two minutes, tucking her elbows in to remain as aerodynamic as possible.  

A chasing group finally set sail with 15km remaining, but their efforts came too late. Reusser’s team-mate Christine Majerus (SD Worx) cleverly interfered, rolling and easing up to slow their advances. Into the final 5km, Reusser held so much of a gap, that even a brief wrong turn proved inconsequential. 

The victory marked the Swiss rider's first since claiming stage four of last year's Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, and proved another tactical masterclass from SD Worx. The Dutch team have enjoyed a commanding start to the 2023 season, also winning Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Strade Bianche and the Ronde van Drenthe, all with different riders.

"If you know Marlen, you know she's capable of doing this," Kopecky told reporters after the race. Perhaps the peloton didn't know Reusser as well as they should have. 

Results

Gent-Wevelgem 2023 (162.5km)

1. Marlen Reusser (Sui) SD Worx, in 4-16-47
2. Megan Jastrab (USA) Team DSM
3. Maike van der Duin (Ned) Canyon-Sram
4. Karlijn Swinkels (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
5. Christina Schweinberger (Aut) Fenix-Deceuninck
6. Marta Bastianelli (Ita) UAE Team ADQ
7. Elinor Barker (GBr) Uno-X
8. Clara Copponi (Fra) FDJ Suez
9. Anna Henderson (GBr) Jumbo-Visma
10. Shari Bossuyt (Bel) Canyon-Sram, all at 2-42

Want to know how the best riders in the world train? For each article in this long-running MY WEEK IN TRAINING series from Cycling Weekly's print edition, we sit down with an elite rider who talks us through a recent week of training in granular detail. This time it's the turn of Swiss pro Marlen Reusser...

A latecomer to cycling who didn’t compete in her first race until she was 25, Marlen Reusser has quickly made a name for herself in the women’s peloton as one of the strongest time triallists. The 30-year-old Swiss rider defended her European TT title in August, and is also a three-time national champion against the clock, while she took silver in last year’s Olympics. 

A qualified medical doctor, Reusser is a woman of many talents – she won the gravel stage at July’s Tour de France Femmes, has 14 UCI wins to her name and has twice triumphed at the Swiss road race championships. Here she tells us about her training before the TdFF. 

What was this week’s purpose? 

I caught Covid after the Women’s Tour [6-11 June] and it took me a while to feel good again, so I spent these two weeks in Livigno in the Italian Alps, and in the first week I just did endurance rides with little intensity. The second week I did intense efforts but it felt like the cruellest and harshest training of my life. I was so far away from my normal watts. My coach [Hendrik Werner, who is also Reusser’s partner] did some lactate testing with me using a mobile measuring tool, and it was interesting to see how my body adapted throughout the two weeks and got better. One of my strengths is that I adapt very fast to training. 

Do you have specific TT sessions? 

It’s very hard but if I want to do a fast TT, I do six-minute efforts at VO2max on my time trial bike. Everyone can do four minutes but six minutes stretches you further. It’s about keeping the pressure on the pedals for a good duration of time. 

Rider profile: Marlen Reusser

Age: 30

Height: 5ft 11in

FTP: Not disclosed

Lives: Bern, Switzerland

Rides for: SD Worx

Best results: 2x European TT champion (2021, 2022); 1st – Stage 4, Tour de France Femmes (2022); 2nd – Olympic Games TT (2021)

Instagram: @marlenreusser

Is there anything you’ve removed from your training?

Yes, I no longer do strength and core training. I was really disciplined with this, but I always had trouble with lower back pain and I realised that during core exercises I was only activating my back a little bit. So I stopped doing core and strength exercises and now it’s better.

Does having a medical background help?

For sure, it gives me an advantage, as I have a good feeling for my body. Also, I can read ingredients lists and work out how much of it is marketing, and figure out the proper nutrition. Those who don’t understand science overthink things more, but I am very relaxed as I have studied these topics. Having the knowledge, I’m able to explain things.

The week: Facts and figures

When: 11-17 July, 2022

Where: Livigno, Italy

Training for: Tour de France Femmes

Total riding: 24hr

Z3+ effort: 2hr 40min

Monday: VO2max intervals – 4hr 15min

I’ll remember this day for the rest of my life, as it was my first hard TT session in a long time. I rode 34km down to altitude, and then did efforts on my TT bike where we also measured my blood lactate for the first time in a while. It was five eight-minute VO2max threshold efforts, but it was a disaster. The first eight minutes I felt OK, but from the second one I couldn’t hold the watts, and I kept getting worse every time. It was not a nice experience, but one week later we repeated it and it went so much better, so it id train my body.

Tuesday: Easy endurance ride – 5hr

Because of the hard time I had the day before, I was not looking forward to this ride. I was so tired, but in the end it was much more fun, helped by riding with [SD Worx team-mate] Chantal van den Broek-Blaak and later Zdeněk Štybar [Quick Step-Alpha Vinyl]. It was the last day of a three-day block and it was a basic endurance ride, a really easy Zone 2 day, covering 129km and 2,700m of elevation.

Wednesday: Rest day – 0hr

Today was a rest day, so my boyfriend and I went for a nice meal at a little mountain resort, with him running alongside me as I rode my mountain bike. If I feel my legs need a spin on a rest day, I’ll go for a short ride, but rarely more than 90 minutes. For me it’s super-easy to do nothing on rest days.

Thursday: Over-under intervals – 4hr

I named this ‘Second try of Monster Intervals’ on TrainingPeaks. We tried it the week before but I failed and had to stop the session, something that rarely happens. We went down to sea level again and controlled my lactate. My pre-warm-up consisted of three six-second sprints, and three 30-second high-cadence sprints. The proper warm-up was 20/40 intervals, followed by a six-minute rest. I then did 13 times 30/15 intervals that were very hard, with a 10-minute rest afterwards. Over and under thresholds were next: four times four minutes ‘over’, one minute ‘under’, finishing with two six-minute intervals at V02max. After failing the week before, I was very emotional to have completed it this time. 

Friday: TT intervals – 4hr 30min

More TT intervals on my road bike, including four eight-minute efforts. The first effort was at sweetspot intensity, the next two were at threshold, and the last one was divided into 30/90s with the 30 seconds being sprinting speed and the 90 seconds riding at tempo. I produced more watts on the third and fourth efforts with lower blood lactate, so it showed the form was coming before the Tour. 

Saturday: Long mountainous ride – 6hr 15min

This was a long, Zone 2 endurance ride including climbing the Stelvio with my coach and the paracyclist Matthias Schindler, who weren’t as trained for long-distance riding as I am. I’m not someone who pushes the pace in training – in fact, I’m probably the slowest! I can get bored on endurance rides, but I know they’re so important to be able to do longer stages and it gives us a bigger aerobic capacity. If I am bored, I listen to audiobooks, figure out problems in my head, and engage my mind.

Sunday: Travel day – 0hr

We had a four-hour drive home back to Switzerland. I don’t count travel days as rest days, as I can’t move as often as I would like, but I try to change position in the car and walk when we stop for petrol.

This article was originally published in the 22 September 2022 print edition of Cycling Weekly magazine. Subscribe online and get the magazine delivered to your door every week.