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Get your week started with the latest news in women’s cycling
German rider Romy Kasper has joined AG Insurance NXTG Racing for the next season. She was previously with Jumbo-Visma. The 34 year old will take on the role of road captain and help the young riders on AG Insurance-NXTG make their next steps.
After successful corrective surgery for iliac artery endofibrosis, Tayler Wiles will be returning to racing with Trek-Segafredo until the end of 2023, while teammate Elynor Bäckstedt extended with the U.S. squad until the end of 2024.
U23 World Cyclocross champion of 2021, Dutch cyclocross champion and Dutch mountainbike champion Fem van Empel joins Jumbo-Visma for the next two years.
Dutch all-rounder Floortje Mackaij will join Movistar Team for the next two seasons. She has been riding in the pro peloton for 9 years, most recently with Team DSM.
Part of the original roster at Movistar Team dating back to 2016, Alicia González and Lourdes Oyarbide will continue to ride for the Spanish squad until the end of 2023.
Trinidad and Tobago champion Teniel Campbell has extended her contract with Team BikeExchange-Jayco for another two years. The Tour Cycliste Féminin International de l’Ardèche stage winner aims to improve her abilities, especially preparing for the cobbled classics.
2017 winner of Zwift Academy, German rider Tanja Erath has decided to retire after five years in the pro peloton. She has been with EF-TIBCO-SVB for the last two seasons.
Audrey Cordon Ragot has suffered a stroke, which prevented her from representing France at the World Championships. She has received medical care and is now beginning her recovery and we wish Audrey all the best.
The first WorldTour edition of the Women’s Tour Down Under will have only three stages but features the challenging Corkscrew Road. The first stage will be for the sprinters, the second suited to puncheurs and the final one is made for climbers. The event is scheduled from 15 to 17 January 2023 preceded by a criterium on 14 January.
The website of the Tour of Scandinavia has reported that the expansion to include Denmark and Sweden in addition to Norway has seen an increase in popularity of the race. Figures reveal that if all platforms that have broadcasted the race either via TV or online including relays/repeats are included, the total number of viewers is estimated to be over 16 million, only second to the Tour de France Femmes this year.
The 2025 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships will be held in the Valais area in Switzerland. Preparations have already begun to get the event started.
The Independent union for the women’s peloton, the Cyclists’ Alliance, has released the results of their annual Rider Survey. Results demonstrated progress for riders in the Women’s WorldTour in improved working conditions and salaries, while many riders in continental teams still struggle with financial difficulties and lack of support. Financial reasons remain the main reason for leaving the sport earlier than planned for many athletes. Details of the survey results can be found here.
Former Australian pro rider and coach Pat Shaw is aiming to form a new women’s team for rider development in Australia. In order to make up a funding shortfall, he launched a Gofundme campaign several weeks ago. The response has been incredible and the required sum of AUD 100,000 has already been surpassed.
Critique has been raised on the decision of the French Cycling Federation who ensured that the elite male riders of the French team travelled in business class on the long trip to Australia while the women had to make do with economy class. The organisation has cited strain on its budget for not providing its female athletes with business class tickets.
The Women’s Continental team Laboral Kuxta-Fundacion Euskadi aims to expand with a €1.8 million budget and acquire a Women’s WorldTeam licence in 2024. The Spanish squad hopes to continue to develop riders from the Basque Country but also add several higher profile international riders to their squad. Laboral Kutxa, Orbea and Etxeondo have extended their partnership with the team through to 2029 and team management is hopeful that they will be able to move up to WorldTour
Results
Grisette GP de Wallonie: Julie de Wilde ahead of Justine Ghekiere and Yara Kastelijn (all Plantur Pura)
AG Tour de la Semois
Stage 1: Mischa Bredewold (Parkhotel Valkenburg) ahead of Maria Confalonieri (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling) and Eleonora Gasparrini (Valcar-Travel & Service)
Stage 2: Lorena Wiebes (Team DSM) ahead of Josie Nelson (Team Coop-Hitec Products) and Maria Confalonieri (Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling)
GC: Maria Confalonieri ahead of Mischa Bredewold and Eleanora Gasparrini
Road World Championships ITT: Ellen van Dijk (NED) ahead of Grace Brown (AUS) and Marlen Reusser (SUI)
Zwift Blog
We check in with Abi Smith of EF Education-TIBCO-SVB for an insightful recount of this year’s season, from her setbacks, to overcoming obstacles, and all the good memories from the season. Read all about it here.
This week in cycling history
Alison Sydor
Born 9 September 1966, Sydor is a Canadian former professional cross-country and mountain cyclist. She won a silver medal at the Summer Olympics in 1996 in the mountain bike discipline, thirteen World Championship medals and three consecutive World Championship titles in 1994, 1995, and 1996. After a long career, she retired in 2010. In 2013 she was inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. Now living in Vancouver, Sydor is still active in her sport and has also taken up skiing in her free time.
Kathy Watt
An Australian former pro-rider, Watt celebrated her 58th birthday on 11 September. She won the 1992 Barcelona road race gold medal and the silver in the pursuits. Watt started her athletic career as a runner but an injury forced her to abandon the sport and she moved to cycling which became her true passion. In 1990 she won the first ever Commonwealth Games women’s road race gold medal. She came out of retirement to win the 2006 Commonwealth Games time trial silver medal along with five national titles against the clock before the now 56 year old retired for the final time. She obtained a B.A. in Science, is now coaching, and works as a personal trainer and photographer for sporting events.
Monica Valvic
Another birthday this past week was Monica Valvic’s. The now 52 year old won Norway’s first world road title in Agrigento in 1994 and was victorious on five occasions at the Norwegian National Road Race Championships.
Zwift rides of the week
Challenged Athletes Foundation Ride
For the first time, we are incorporating handcycling in-game. This is the first step of a larger plan to provide more inclusion for adaptive athletes in Zwift. Join us for a week-long series featuring group rides celebrating adaptive athletes, the Challenged Athletes Foundation and the arrival of the Zwift Handcycle. More info here!
ZRacing Monthly Series – Get Rolling
The ZRacing Monthly Series has entered the 3rd week of racing! Stage 3 heads to France for 1 lap of the popular Douce France route. Race each stage this month to compete for the GC and earn the Get Rolling ZRacing badge. Read more here!
From our online shop
Voxwomen T-shirt – £20
Get yours this summer! Wear our new t-shirt to show your support for the sport. Everyone will know you’re an avid follower of women’s cycling when you wear this item to support Voxwomen! Get yours here!
