Your news
Get your week started with the latest news in women’s cycling
Team SD Worx’s Lorena Wiebes has donated her premium for winning Ronde van Drenthe to the Amy Pieters Foundation. It was also the first time since her accident that Amy has been able to visit a race.
The UCI has opened applications for its Ethics Commission. The deadline is 31 March. The Ethics Code reflects and defines the most important core values for behaviour and conduct in the UCI and its affiliates.
After she wore a continuous blood glucose monitor during Strade Bianche, which is not allowed under UCI rules, Kristen Faulkner was disqualified from the race, after initially placing third. After her disqualification, the Jayco Alula rider issued a statement that the glucose monitor she was wearing did not transmit any data during or after the race and that she thought she could therefore wear the device. She emphasised that her intentions were not to violate any rules or gain an unfair advantage.
Elisa Longo Borghini has missed Trofeo Binda, as she is still recovering from Covid and has only been able to start training very slowly.
Susanne Andersen broke her collarbone in a crash at Nokere Koerse, while Anouska Koster broke her hand. Lauretta Hanson was also involved in a crash at the same race. She sustained multiple rib fractures, a fracture of the left collarbone as well as a fracture of the left transverse process of T1. She will be off the bike for a minimum of six weeks before she can resume training. Sarah Roy also fractured her sacrum at the Tour de Normandie. We wish all riders well in their recovery.
On a lighter note, 40 mountain goats were sent to part of the Paris-Roubaix course to feed on the grass and weeds that have been growing on the cobbled sections, in order to clean up the road for the race.
The organisers of The Women’s Tour, Sweetspot, have said they must find new partners to fill a £500,000 funding shortfall in order to put on the race. The three main costs are policing and accommodation, both around £50,000 per day, and TV production, which costs £175,000 for the week. If the event does not go ahead in June, it will leave a large hole in the racing calendar, as the event has established a strong reputation in the UK and abroad. The Women’s Tour has now launched a crowdfunding campaign to secure more funds to cover costs. More information can be found here.
The inaugural USA Cycling Gravel National Championships will be held in Gering, Nebraska, on 9 September. A US$60,000 prize purse will be split equally between the top five finishers in the elite men’s and women’s races and the top three elite men and women will qualify for the UCI Gravel World Championships in Veneto, Italy, on 7-8 October this year. This will be an important step for USA Cycling to expand in this discipline.
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Results
Danilith Nokere Koerse: Lotte Kopecky (Team SD Worx) ahead of Lorena Wiebes (Team SD Worx) and Marta Bastianelli (UAE Team ADQ)
Trofeo Alfredo Binda: Shirin van Anrooij (Trek-Segafredo) ahead of Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo) and Vittoria Guazzini (FDJ – Suez)
Tour de Normandie
Stage 1: Gladys Verhulst (FDJ – Suez) ahead of Martina Alzini (Cofidis) and Christine Majerus (Team SD Worx)
Stage 2: Cedrine Kerbaol (CERATIZIT-WNT Pro Cycling) ahead of Audrey Cordon-Ragot (Zaaf Cycling Team) and Christine Majerus
Stage 3: Shari Bossuyt (Canyon//SRAM) ahead of Martina Alzini and Roxane Fournier (St Michel – Mavic – Auber93)
Tissot Nations Cup:
Team Sprint: China ahead of Germany and France
Team Pursuit: France ahead of New Zealand and Germany
Elimination: Jennifer Valente (USA) ahead of Victoire Berteau (FRA) and Sophie Lewis (GBR)
Madison: France ahead of Denmark and New Zealand
Sprint: Emma Finucane (GBR) ahead of Sophie Capewell (GBR) and Emma Hinze (GER)
Keirin: Mina Sato (JPN) ahead of Nicky Degrendele (BEL) and Alessa-Catriona Propster (GER)
Omnium: Ally Wollaston (NZL) ahead of Victoire Berteau (FRA) and Amalie Dideriksen (DEN)
Zwift Blog
Abi Smith of EF Education-TIBCO-SVB gives her top 10 tips for cold-weather training in her latest blog! Check out all of her advice here.
Vox Performance Project
Find out how Vox Performance Project participant Ruth Fisher prepared for the UCI Gran Fondo World Championships with the help of Precision Fuel & Hydration and Supersapiens! Check out her latest blog here.
This week in cycling history
Hanka Kupfernagel
Born on 19 March 1974, this German rider was the first cyclo-cross world champion. The event took place in 2000 in the Netherlands, half a century after the men’s first elite race was held. She won seven consecutive medals at the CX Worlds, including three gold medals in 2000, 2001 and 2005, two silver medals in 2002 and 2003, and the bronze medal in 2004. Although the primary focus of most of her career was cross, she also won big road, track and mountain bike races. Her major career victories include a gold medal in the ITT at the 2003 Road World Championships in Germany and a silver medal in the road race at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Three and a half years after retiring, she participated in the national cyclo-cross championships in 2019 at the age of 44, finishing in second place. She is now retired from competition but still active in sports including beach volley ball, skiing and horse riding.
Susanne Ljungskog
This Swedish rider celebrated her 47th birthday on 16 March. She was a multiple-time national champion, four-time Olympian and won the world road championships in 2002 in Belgium and in 2003 in Canada. In addition, she won two world cups and several stage races. Picking up a bike at the age of 12 and after winning many races, she continued to become one of Sweden’s most successful riders. After having been diagnosed with hemochromatosis, an illness that causes the body to accumulate too much iron and also leads to secondary diseases with joints, heart problems and diabetes, she retired from active competition in 2010 to work as a commentator for Swedish broadcasting and radio, and is now a consultant with Pema, a company that provides staffing solutions. In her free time, Ljungskog also encourages others to take up riding. She coaches groups of girls and women not only on how to race, but also on how to enjoy exploring different landscapes on the bike.
Performance Corner
Should you use caffeine as part of your fueling strategy?
Caffeine is a strong performance enhancer for the vast majority of athletes if used intelligently.
How much you take (and when you take it) will be influenced by body size, genetics, personal preference, race duration, previous experiences, tolerance, and sensitivity. Find out more here.
Questions? Email hello@pfandh.com. Click here to get 15% off fuel and electrolytes.
Zwift Rides of the week
The Voxwomen Club
Celebrate women’s cycling through our new club on Zwift! Here, you can be part of the journey and complete rides that cater to the busy lives we live and find motivation and enjoyment through riding. The rides will be held every other Tuesday @ 7am/11am/1pm PST (3pm/7pm/9pm GMT). Rides are approximately 40 minutes and feature special guests to lead the events.
It’s also open pace and no drop, thanks to the Zwift bubble feature, which keeps everyone together so you can ride at your own pace without being dropped from the group. The first ride is this Tuesday, so be sure to join us here!
