Kasia Niewiadoma timed her assault on the Mur de Huy to perfection to win La Flèche Wallonne and take her first highway victory for 5 years.
The Canyon-SRAM rider launched her effort with 200m to go, defeating defending champion Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek).
Niewiadoma begins each race as one of many favourites, however had not stood on the highest step of a highway race podium for the reason that Ladies’s Tour in 2019; her assault on Wednesday noticed this unlucky report lastly be damaged.
The elite trio broke clear on the ultimate ascent of the Mur, with all eyes on Vollering, earlier than Niewiadoma attacked on one of many steepest elements of the ultimate climb to take the win.
In addition to Niewiadoma’s first win for 5 years, it was Canyon-SRAM’s first victory of the season. Vollering completed in second, unable to maintain up with the Pole, with Longo Borghini narrowly behind.
“It means loads,” she mentioned post-race. “I actually hope that with that victory I impressed lots of people who’re pursuing their desires for therefore lengthy. As a result of I’ve skilled numerous failures, numerous second and third-places, however I by no means stopped believing that as a staff we may win one other race.
“I do actually hope that race will encourage lots of people to maintain believing, to maintain pursuing their desires, cos the rewards are all the time there ready for us.”
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Niewiadoma is the reigning gravel world champion, however had completed on the rostrum 30 occasions since her final victory in June 2019, together with third on the Tour de France Femmes twice.
The race was dominated early on by the climate, with rain and snow impacting the riders, because it had the boys’s race earlier within the day.
“The race was tremendous brutal, as a result of as we began it rained so arduous and the temperature dropped very low, however I knew it was my day,” Niewiadoma continued. “The climate situations had been on my facet, as a result of I all the time profit from races like this. As a staff we stored optimistic, regardless that we had been all shaking from the chilly. Everybody was there for one another, my teammates werre superb taking good care of me.”
She additionally referenced Lorena Wiebes’ early celebration on Sunday, on the Amstel Gold Race: “After Sunday I used to be like I’m not going to have a good time even a centimetre earlier than the road, I didn’t wish to waste power trying round, I simply gave my finest as a result of I wished to dash for the victory.”
The way it occurred
(Picture credit score: Getty Photographs)
The longest-ever girls’s version of La Flèche Wallonne started within the apocalyptic climate situations that had formed the boys’s race earlier within the day.
Given the rain and snow confronted by the peloton within the first 20km, it was not a shock that it took till 40km in for the day’s break to be established. Sara Martín (Movistar) Julie Van de Velde (AG Insurance coverage-Soudal) and Elena Hartmann (Roland) managed to flee simply after the second categorised climb of the day, the Côte de Courriere.
The hole between the peloton and the trio out entrance slowly grew, but it surely appeared the bunch had been content material to permit the hole to increase to over three minutes. Because the riders hit the Mur de Huy for the primary time – and penultimate – Hartmann struggled to carry onto the break, and she or he was dropped by about 30km to go.
Behind, Grace Brown (FDJ Suez) and Pauliena Rooijakkers (Fenix-Deceuninck) attacked from the peloton, in a transfer which may have been harmful however was by no means allowed a lot leeway by a peloton who had been eager to regain management of the race.
With 16.2km to go, Brown and Rooijakkers had been caught, with the hole to the 2 riders out entrance at simply 1:27.
The peloton actually began to dramatically scale back in numbers on the penultimate climb of the day, the Côte d’Ereffe, and the time to the duo out entrance was lowered to below a minute for the primary time in nearly 90km.
A number of the day’s favourites had been alert to a short push off the entrance by Riejanne Markus (Visma-Lease a Bike), together with Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek). Rooijakkers then went off the entrance alone once more, as her Fenix-Deceuninck staff tried to cease counter-moves from the peloton.
She was joined by Longo Borghini and Elise Chabbey (Canyon-SRAM) with 8km to go, simply after they’d caught Martin and Van de Velde out entrance. They had been chased by Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime). They had been reeled in by the peloton.
Markus was the following to assault, the Dutchwoman heading off the entrance with simply over 5km left. She went alone into the ultimate kilometre, however was then caught by the thinned-out bunch behind.
With Markus caught, Vollering surged to the entrance, adopted by Longo Borghini and Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM).
Outcomes: La Flèche Wallonne Féminine 2024 (146km)
1. Kasia Niewiadoma (Pol) Canyon-SRAM, in 3:55:39
2. Demi Vollering (Ned) SD Worx-Protime, +2s
3. Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) Lidl-Trek, +4s
4. Évita Muzic (Fra) FDJ-Suez, +7s
5. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (RSA) AG Insurance coverage-Soudal, +11s
6. Pauliena Rooijakkers (Ned) Fenix-Deceuninck, +15s
7. Juliette Labous (Fra) dsm-firmenich PostNL, +19s
8. Fem van Empel (Ned) Visma-Lease a Bike, +24s
9. Marta Cavalli (Ita) FDJ-Suez, +27s
10. Ane Santesteban (Spa) Labora Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi, st
