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Last Thursday Team SD Worx-Protime held their team presentation, revealing their goals, ambitions, and full lineup for the 2025 season. Lotte Kopecky announced that she will be targeting races with a more rugged profiles, such as Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, and the World Championships in Rwanda. As a consequence of her new schedule, she will also be riding less in 2025. Kopecky will kick off her season at Milan-San Remo on 2 March where she’s eyeing the inaugural women’s race title. Her new race program will impact her track schedule, as she has chosen not to compete in the European Track Championships next month in Zolder, nor in the Nations Cup rounds in March. Anna van der Breggen was realistic about her return to racing. She is aiming for the Ardennes Classics, the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift and the World Championships in Rwanda. She conceded that riders are stronger now than when she retired and that winning will be more difficult.
The Women’s WorldTour calendar has been dealt a blow with the organisers of the Tour of Scandinavia announcing the race’s cancellation. Reasons provided by the organisers included a lack of media partners and lack of enthusiasm from the Federation.
The organisers of the Maryland Cycling Classic have introduced a new women’s race alongside its existing men’s race, which are both set to be held on 6 September 2025. The women’s and men’s races will be held on the same day, and as part of a wider community and festival. The organisers will release the full route details in the coming months. The women’s race is expected to attract a quality field and provide an opportunity for Continental teams that are registered in North America.
La Vuelta Femenina 25 by Carrefour.es will kick off in Barcelona on 4 May and conclude on 10 May. The full route of the race will be revealed either in late February or early March. The modern iteration of the event began as a one-day classic in 2015, coinciding with the final stage of the men’s Vuelta a España. Over the years, it expanded into a week-long race and was rebranded as La Vuelta Femenina in 2023. That same year, the event also moved from its traditional September date to its new spot in early May, marking a significant shift in its calendar.
In 2024, La Fleche Wallonne put the women’s race after the men’s and saw a 17 per cent increase in viewership as a result. As a result, in 2025 the race organisers have put the event on 23 April right after the men’s event. The 28th edition of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes will start from the Grand-Place de Huy and immediately return to the côte de Bohissau, ridden for the last time in 2016. Some 40km into the race, the women’s peloton will join the same route used by the men a little earlier, heading for the Côte de Petite Somme. They will then go twice over the ascents of Ereffe, Cherave and Huy.
Like their Danish counterparts, the Dutch Cycling Federation has also made the decision to send only elite women and men to the road World Championships this year. The Federation may do the same for the 2026 Worlds in Montreal, the reason being a lack of financial resources. Juniors and U23 riders will focus on the European Championships and the Nations Cup program. The Belgian federation is also considering a reduced delegation, but will make a final decision in due course.
AIGCP President Brent Copeland has explained the reasoning behind the new regulations restricting food and water hand-ups to designated feed zones, which were implemented at the recent Tour Down Under. Under the new rules, hand-ups can only occur at official feed zones or from team cars within the convoy. In the past, scattered water points often led to team staff rushing between locations, creating unintended safety hazards. Copeland highlighted that the stricter guidelines not only aim to enhance safety on and off the course but also serve to level the playing field. Smaller teams, which typically have fewer resources than larger budget squads, often struggled to keep up with the logistics of hand-ups.
On Sunday, 9 March some of the biggest names in women’s cycling will gather in Montignoso to battle it out in the 13th edition of the Trofeo Oro in Euro. A total of 27 teams from 13 nations will line up at the start, with the route staying true to tradition, starting and finishing in Montignoso. Seven WorldTour teams have confirmed their participation: UAE Team ADQ, Canyon//SRAM zondacrypto, Ceratizit-WNT Pro Cycling Team, Fenix-Deceuninck, Human Powered Health, Uno-X Mobility, and Roland. The final two hours of the race will be available for live streaming on the event’s official YouTube channel.
Despite its elevation to the Women’s WorldTour in 2023, the stage distances at the Women’s Tour Down Under over the last two years have been noticeably shorter compared to pre-pandemic editions. In 2024, the Tour Down Under was the only Women’s WorldTour event to average under 100km per road stage, while other major races, such as the Tour de France Femmes and the Simac Ladies Tour, featured average stage lengths of 135km and 142km respectively. However, this year the Australian race saw a slight increase in race length, with stages exceeding 100km, though the event was condensed into just three days, compared to the previous four-day format.
The Veenendaal-Veenendaal cycling race will not take place this year. Due to the NATO summit in June, there are not enough police available to supervise the race. It is held in May, but during the NATO summit so many police officers are needed that a month earlier no one is available to secure the race. Alternative options were considered, but this turned out not to be feasible, according to the organisers. The event, traditionally held in May, was set to feature the women’s race in the UCI ProSeries for the first time this year. “When a race is cancelled for one year, it becomes even harder to engage sponsors, volunteers, and other stakeholders the following year. The decisions by the National Police will significantly affect the future of Dutch road cycling for years to come,” Race Director Bart Voskamp commented.
British Cycling has announced its squad for the Cyclocross World Championships, scheduled from 31 January to 2 February. The riders include U23 athletes Zoe Backstedt, Cat Ferguson, Eella MacLean-Howell and Imogen Wolff, but no elite female riders.
With the recent changes to the calendar, the UCI’s new yellow card system, aimed at enhancing cyclist safety, is now in effect. The first official yellow card in cycling was handed out to a Sports Director from Uno-X following an action deemed “incorrect” by race officials. The incident occurred during the second stage of the Tour Down Under, when a Sports Director was fined 211 euros and issued a yellow card after overtaking the peloton in her car without maintaining the required safety distance. This violation occurred shortly after one of her riders was involved in a crash.
Marion Sicot, a French former professional rider, was issued a 10-month suspended prison sentence and a €5,000 fine in a doping trial last week. Sicot, who competed between 2013 and 2019 and represented the national squad, tested positive for erythropoietin in 2019, during which time she rode for Belgian UCI team Dotcini-Van Eyck Sport. She was initially banned following the anti-doping control, and has now been sentenced in court for the import and possession of doping products.
Sara Piffer, an Italian rider with Continental Team Mendelspeck, died during a training ride on Friday morning in the northern Trentino region, when she was reportedly hit by a vehicle. The 19 year-old was training on a minor road when the incident happened. She was evacuated by a hospital helicopter, but to no avail. The talented young rider participated in WorldTour level racing in 2024, in races such as Strade Bianche and the Trofeo Binda. Our condolences to Sara’s family and friends for their tragic loss.
Results
CX World Cup Benidorm: Fem van Empel (NED) ahead of Lucinda Brand (NED) and Marie Schreiber (LUX)
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Why isn’t pro cycling leading the charge on sustainability? From excessive travel to wasteful practices, Lizzie Stannard’s blog explores how women’s cycling can embrace climate action and make meaningful changes for a greener future. Read her ideas right here.
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This week in cycling history
Catherine Marsal
Catherine Marsal is a former French professional rider renowned for her achievements on the road. Born on 20 January 1971, she had a successful career that spanned more than 10 years, earning numerous national titles and competing in major events like the Tour de France Féminin and the World Championships. A four-time World Champion, she showcased her talent on the international stage, representing France at four Summer Olympic Games, the first time at the age of 17 years. After retiring from active competition in the early 2000s, she transitioned into various roles that helped shape the future of the sport. She became an influential advocate for women’s cycling, working as the national coach of the Danish women’s team, and later taking on a leadership role within the French Cycling Federation. In addition to mentoring emerging talents, Marsal has been instrumental in promoting gender equality within the sport, pushing for better opportunities and visibility for female riders.
