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Get your week started with the latest news in women’s cycling
Leah Thomas, who has been riding for Trek-Segafredo, will be leaving the team. The U.S. rider had back surgery earlier this year and decided to take a break from racing to concentrate on her rehabilitation.
Emily Newsom, who has been with EF-Education TIBCO SVB for the past five years, has decided to leave the team to concentrate on gravel racing in her home country. The U.S. rider says she prefers riding through wide-open countryside, dense forests or over desert mountains, rather than in a chaotic peloton.
Former Belgian champion Jesse Vandenbulcke steps up to the WorldTour with U.S. squad Human Powered Health. She is a former national road champion and rode for Le Col-Wahoo in 2022.
Becky Storrie joins Team DSM for 2023. Hailing from the Isle of Man, Storrie is a former triathlete who made the switch to cycling a couple of years ago.
Belarusian rider Anastasiya Kolesava will be joining Arkéa Pro Cycling Team for one year, while Mélanie Briot, who has been working as a Sports Director at an amateur level, joins the team in 2023 as a Sports Director.
The future of B&B Hotels’ women’s team is bleak, with squad management unable to secure the necessary funding for next season, leaving riders searching for new teams for 2023.
Plantur Pura has revealed its new kit for 2023, when it will be named Fenix-Deceuninck.
Liv Racing Xstra will enter 2023 under a new name: Liv Racing TeqFind. The company TeqFind replaces Xstra on the jersey. TeqFind is the new brand name that falls under the umbrella of Xstra Data Storage, so the team partner remains unchanged. The aubergine-purple colour still features in the new kit.
Diane Ingabire, current Rwandan road and ITT national champion, Austrian road and MTB rider Daniela Schmidsberger, Algerian elite road and U23 ITT champion Nesrine Houili, and German road and track rider Justyna Czapla will join CANYON//SRAM Generation next season.
The National Cycling Centre in Couva, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Centre National de Cyclisme de Bromont (CNCB) in Bromont, Canada, have received the UCI WCC Continental Satellite label. These centres join the existing UCI WCC network of development satellites in Japan, Korea, South Africa, India and Portugal and assist the UCI World Cycling Centre in Switzerland in its mission to develop athletes and train people in cycling professions such as mechanics and coaches.
Alexandra Greenfield has moved into the role of new Head of Sports at Uno-X Pro cycling women’s team after having previously worked as assistant Sports Director at the Norwegian team.
A preview of the future UCI Track Champions League metaverse experience was presented at the UCI Track Champions League 2022 finals in London. This new experience will offer unique and immersive engagement opportunities for fans, who can watch a selection of the race action through alternative angles and via on-board cameras, with two screens that also incorporate real-time data from the athletes and much more.
A petition called “Let Women Ride,” initiated by a rider from a local high school club, has called on the organisers of the Sea Otter Classic, the largest cycling event in the USA, to create a more equal racing system. The current system does not give all athletes, particularly women, the opportunity for a fair race as every women’s age category is started behind the men’s, meaning the best women riders often have to pass many much slower male riders thereby disrupting their racing. The organisers have promised to address this, an issue that also affects other cycling events.
USA Cycling has amended its Fan Code of Conduct to address conduct that is inconsistent with these goals. The Code of Conduct is applicable to all attendees of USA Cycling sanctioned events, whether as spectators or participants. Prohibited conduct includes behaviour that is unruly, disruptive, threatening or violent in nature towards officials, athletes, staff, volunteers, or fans including throwing any objects onto the course.
Results
UCI World Cup Dublin: Fem van Empel ahead of Puck Pieterse and Denise Betsema (NED)
Exact Cross Essen: Aniek van Alphen (NED) ahead of Alicia Franck (BEL) and Yara Kastelijn (NED)
Sharon Laws Rider of the Year
Your votes have been tallied and the results are in!
The rider of the year is Annemiek van Vleuten of Movistar Team, the young rider of the year is Shirin van Anrooij of Trek-Segafredo and the team of the year is Trek-Segafredo. Congratulations to all winners, and thank you for casting your votes!
Vox Performance Project
When the opportunity to join the project arose, Claire jumped at the chance to kickstart her training and represent women over 50. Now, Claire is implementing nutritional and training tools to reach her goals. Read more here!
Vox Performance Project participant Yannika Propach reflects on how she’s striving to achieve her cycling goals while juggling a busy life at the same time. Check out her blog here!
Voxwomen Podcast p/b Liv
Hannah Walker and Lia Hervey recap the inaugural Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift and also look to the next edition. Featuring Demi Vollering, Annemiek van Vleuten, Katarzyna Niewiadoma, Shirin van Anrooij and Zwift’s Kate Veronneau, you can listen here!
Zwift Blog
EF Education-TIBCO’s Abi Smith writes about the art of off-seasoning in her latest blog! She also reveals some of her hidden talents in addition to cycling. Have a read here!
This week in cycling history
Rachel Atherton
Born on 6 December 1987, the British professional downhill MTB racer Rachel Atherton started MTB competitions at the age of 5, encouraged by two brothers, who also raced. She went on to become a former multiple national champion, European champion and UCI World Champion. In June 2016, Atherton became the first woman to win 10 consecutive rounds of the World Cup. In September that same year, she also achieved the unprecedented feat of winning every round in a World Cup season. She also has a rather unique way of storing her rainbow jerseys, keeping them in a birdcage, so that she can take them out, touch them and remember those races. In 2019, she sustained an injury but after a three-year absence from racing, she returned in September to the Lenzerheide World Cup race, where she took sixth place.
Zwift Rides of the week
Zwift Pro Training Camp
Consider this your invitation to four different camps, hosted by four top-tier teams. Training camps have a rich history in cycling. They’re where teammates come together, get to know each other, and work hard. Closed to all except official team members…until now. More information here!
ZRacing: Race Like a Pro
Get ready to Race Like a Pro throughout multiple worlds while wearing some of the most iconic team kits in cycling. Stage 2 kicks off December 12 – 18 with one lap of the Richmond Rollercoaster route. Complete all four routes in this month’s series to pick up the “Race Like a Pro” badge for your trophy case. Find out more here!
From our online shop
Be Part of the Journey Mountain Hoodie – £45
Since the launch of Voxwomen, we have always used the message, “Be Part of the Journey.” Women’s cycling has been on a journey and the development of the sport continues. This mountain design links with this message and looks great on this relaxed hoodie. Wear before or after an event, and it will be sure to keep you warm. Get yours here!
