The leader of the UCI Women's World Cup, Wiggle-Honda's Jolien d'Hoore, has announced she will not be competing at the final event of the series this weekend in order to fully prepare for September's World Championships.
D'Hoore took the lead last weekend with a win at the Crescent Vårgårda road race in Sweden as a late crash by Lizzie Armitstead saw her slip down the leaderboard.
But the 25-year-old Belgian said she always planned to have a month of solid training before the World Championships in Richmond on September 26.
"I have taken a decision now," she is reported as saying in Het Nieuwsblad. "I will not start on Saturday. The goal was to have a solid block of training this week with a view to the World Championships next month.
"If I need to travel to Plouay, I quickly lose three days and also I find a course there that is for me. So I prefer to train a few days and next Tuesday I will start in the Boels Rental Ladies Tour, a major stage race, where I want to perform.”
D'Hoore has been on fine form this season, winning 10 races and coming second overall at the Aviva Women's Tour in June.
Her non-participation at Sunday's GP Plouay effectively leaves Armitstead battling it out with Anna Van Der Breggen - winner of La Course - for the overall victory. D'Hoore's teammate Elisa Longo Borghini sits 65 points behind Van Der Breggen and has an outside chance of scooping victory, with 120 points on offer for a win on Sunday.
Of course, if none of these riders performs well at the series-ending race then D'Hoore will be crowned champion. It's literally all up for grabs.
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
-
-
Cycling keeps you fit but are you doing enough to stay healthy?
It’s possible to be very fit in one specific way, for example being fast on a bike, while being unhealthy in other ways
-
Dr Hutch: Motor-doping isn't rife, there's no way cyclists would use it discreetly enough
Some fans think that motor-doping is rife, but Cycling Weekly's columnist Dr Hutch is having none of it
-
21 things you didn't know about Lizzie Deignan
The trailblazing British cyclist has been at the top of the sport for over a decade
-
Lizzie Deignan to make Tour de France Femmes debut this July
'It's the biggest stage in the world,' says Brit
-
CW Live: USA Cycling announces Esports roster; Soudal Quick-Step and Israel-Premier Tech release new kit; Lizzie Deignan back racing in May; Peter Sagan 'disappointed' in Wout van Aert; Cyclist killed in London
Everything you need to know in the world of cycling this Friday
-
Lizzie Deignan: Tour de France Femmes will be 'dynamic' compared to men's Tour
Trek-Segafredo rider says that eventually she would like to see a three-week Tour for women
-
Here is the Great Britain women’s team for World Championships 2020 in Imola
The swiftly re-arranged World Championships are just a few weeks away and the Great Britain women’s team has been confirmed.
-
Why a women’s Tour de France next year is a no-go
With a women's Tour de France all but certain, calls for it to happen in 2021 are wide of the mark, argues Owen Rogers
-
‘I thought it was a weird sport’: Lizzie Deignan on how she started cycling on ‘Home Roads’ podcast
Lizzie Deignan as offered an honest insight into her home life, being scouted from school, and how she spent her year away from racing in the ‘Home Roads’ podcast.
-
Former world champion Lizzie Deignan announces pregnancy
Lizzie Deignan and her husband Philip are due to have their first child in September
