My top 10 moments in the 2023 women’s road cycling season

Cyclist
My top 10 moments in the 2023 women’s road cycling season

It has been another entertaining year for the women’s peloton, SD Worx’s Demi Vollering taking front and centre stage, as well as most of the rest of the stage as well. She started strong at the Classics with wins at Strade Bianche and the Ardennes Triple of Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, got even stronger mid-season by winning the Tour de France Femmes, and wrapped it all up with the overall at the Tour de Romandie. It was little wonder that she walked away with the Velo d’Or award. 

There were plenty of other riders who shone in 2023 though. The legendary Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) hung up her road cleats at the end of the year, but not before burnishing her legacy further with two more Grand Tour wins at La Vuelta Femenina and the Giro d’Italia Donne. She challenged hard for the triple, attempting back-to-back Tour de France Femmes titles, yet was usurped by Vollering on the Tourmalet and was unable to regain the yellow jersey – but more on that later.  

At the World Championships in Glasgow, Lotte Kopecky became the first Belgian woman in 50 years to win the rainbow bands for the elite road race. At the European Championships, meanwhile, 19-year-old Brit Zoe Bäckstedt took a win in the U23 time-trial to add to a palmarès that is already the envy of racers twice her age. 

I’m looking forward to next year already, but for now, here are my favourite moments from the 2023 women’s pro season. 

1. Alison Jackson dances in celebration after winning Paris-Roubaix 

Paris Roubaix Femmes, 6th April 2023 

What do you get when you combine the feat of winning such a historic race with the ever-charismatic Alison Jackson of EF Education-Tibco-SVB? My favourite moment of the women’s road cycling season. Even after 145.4km of punishing cobblestones, mud-caked bodies, aching limbs, chaotic crashes and race-ending group splits, it still came down to a sprint on the wooden banks of the Vélodrome André-Pétrieux.  

The Roubaix Velodrome has welcomed thousands of cyclists over the years, hosting the finish line of the men’s Paris-Roubaix since 1943 and the women’s race since its inception in 2021. Now, in 2023, the winner of Paris-Roubaix Femmes would be decided from a seven-woman leading group. Jackson was the one who encouraged the group to work together in the final 6km, such was the closeness of the chasers who threatened to bolster the number of contenders at the finish.  

Jackson came over the top of Marion Borras (St Michel-Mavic-Auber-93), head bobbing and weaving with her efforts, and raised her arms almost in disbelief at the finish. She clambered off her bike, which had the Top Gun-inspired message ‘don’t think, just do’ stickered on the handlebars, and broke out into dance.  

Always one for TikTok dances, Jackson delighted those watching with her sheer, uninhibited joy at winning. Perhaps one day, the women’s peloton will ride over the Trouée d’Arenberg too. Although you probably wouldn’t want to dance while doing that. 

2. Demi Vollering powers to Tour de France Femmes victory atop the misty Col du Tourmalet as Kasia Niewiadoma shines 

Stage 7, Tour de France Femmes, 29th July 2023 

On Stage 7 of the Tour de France Femmes, SD Worx’s Demi Vollering sat seventh on GC. She was 1:07 behind general classification leader and teammate Lotte Kopecky after receiving a 20 second penalty for drafting on Stage 5.  

The day was primed for dramatics with a Vollering vs Annemiek van Vleuten showdown hotly anticipated. The double-punch of the Col d’Aspin (12km, 6.5%) and Col du Tourmalet (17km, 7.3%) waited menacingly. Canyon-SRAM’s Kasia Niewiadoma attacked on the descent of the former and her gap grew as Vollering and Van Vleuten refused to work together. Would this refusal to cooperate be their downfall? 

At times, it looked so. The audacity of Niewiadoma being metres from the clutches of the chasing group with 12km to go, only to shoot ahead once more and evade capture, was something to behold. She went on to have close to 50 seconds at the foot of the Tourmalet, leaving everything on the road in the performance of a lifetime. But like the increasing altitude, Vollering rose to the occasion. Emerging from the shrouding mist came a Jaws-esque figure hunting down Niewiadoma. Vollering passed her inside the final 5km. Despite being backlit with team car beams and motorbike lights, the materialising pink jersey and yellow helmet was unmistakable. Vollering seized the day. She crossed the line and shot up the GC standings to lead by almost two minutes ahead of Niewiadoma.

After an individual time-trial the following day, Vollering was crowned the winner of the Tour de France Femmes by 3:03 ahead of both Kopecky and Niewiadoma. That’s right, eight stages couldn’t separate the two on the podium. It would go down to a matter of hundredths of a second. In the end, Kopecky had the advantage, completing an SD Worx 1-2 as Niewiadoma took home the polka dot jersey too.

With Annemiek van Vleuten’s road retirement, Vollering has a huge target on her back for the next Grand Tours in 2024. Yet with her strength and Van Vleuten out of the picture, perhaps her back is all her rivals will see.  

3. ‘It seemed like there were two of us riding’: Lotte Kopecky wins emotional Nokere Koerse, four days after her brother’s death 

Nokere Koerse, 15th March 2023 

The pain of losing a family member is indescribable. After the sudden loss of her brother Seppe, it would be understandable had Lotte Kopecky not raced the 129km Nokere Koerse just four days later. But the SD Worx rider said, ‘I really wanted to race no matter what.’  

And race she did. Kopecky was a force to be reckoned with, attacking at multiple opportunities before successfully dropping the pack in the closing stages. She crossed the line while shaking her head, 28 seconds ahead of teammate Lorena Wiebes in an inspirational demonstration of what she does best. 

‘The past few days weren’t easy,’ she said, ‘but there’s no point in letting my head hang down and sitting at home on the sofa. I wanted to make the most of it today, I wasn’t thinking about winning beforehand… I was tremendously strong. I hope I was able to make my brother a bit proud.’ 

Allez Lotte Kopecky. RIP Seppe Kopecky. 

4. Demi Vollering crowned Queen of the Ardennes after historic triple 

The Ardennes Classics, 16th – 23rd April 2023 

One of the most impressive weeks in cycling history? Paving the way for her incredibly successful season, Demi Vollering won the Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège to be rightfully crowned the Queen of the Ardennes. She etched her name in the history books by winning all three in the same year, becoming only the second woman to complete the impressive feat after Anna van der Breggen in 2017. 

The Amstel Gold Race packed 21 short (and not sweet) climbs over 155km, including five ascents of the Cauberg. It was on the final crest of the summit in the last 2km that Vollering launched an attack over the leading group.  

She did the same one week later on the famed Mur de Huy at La Flèche Wallonne. Vollering shot away – as fast as someone can do on the energy-sapping slope – at the bottom of the climb and was joined by Movistar’s Liane Lippert and Mavi García of Liv Racing-TeqFind. Vollering hit an even faster pace in the last 300m though and dropped those with her.  

While she cried after the finish line, all other eyes turned to the next race to see whether she could join her directeur sportif Anna van der Breggen in completing the Ardennes triple. At Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Vollering and Elisa Longo Borghini (then Trek-Segafredo, now Lidl-Trek) rode away with 10km to go and the duo would stay away to battle it out at the finish. They waited until the final 200m before sprinting, with Vollering managing to open up a small gap to complete the historic triple, punching the air and celebrating through tears with her family and dog.  

5. ‘We’re Vikings!’: Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig re-finds winning ways at home 

Stage 5, Tour of Scandinavia, 27th August 2023 

FDJ-Suez’s Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig didn’t experience her most prosperous season. However, she arrived at the Tour of Scandinavia having just won a bronze medal in the UCI World Championships Road Race. 

Uttrup Ludwig ignited on Stage 2, sprinting past Annemiek van Vleuten for the win. The two proved to be on fine form as only 17 seconds separated them on GC heading into the final day. The rain began to beat down on the peloton. The lone rider up ahead – AG Insurance-Soudal-QuickStep’s Anya Louw – had been caught. It was in the final kilometre of Stage 5 into Haderslev that Uttrup Ludwig made her move, dancing on the pedals away from the bunch and towards stage victory.  

The effort was etched on her face, and she collapsed on the sodden ground after the finish line. By the end of the week, Uttrup Ludwig had two stage wins to her name, and second place overall, just two seconds down on eventual winner Van Vleuten. 

In characteristic fashion, she was a delight to listen to once she had been picked up off the floor. ‘Welcome to Denmark. Ha! This [weather] is what I’m used to,’ she said. ‘It was awesome. I thought it was great. I was like, yep, we’re Vikings, come on, let’s go!’ 

6. Shirin van Anrooij launches blistering 30km solo attack to win inaugural Tour de l’Avenir Femmes  

Stage 5, Tour de l’Avenir Femmes, 1st September 2023 

The much-anticipated Tour de l’Avenir Femmes ran its first edition for the U23 women’s peloton in 2023. The five-day race, contested by national teams rather than trade teams, began with a 14.8km team time-trial, followed by a flat stage, a lumpy stage, and two full-on mountain stages. The final day packed in 2,543m of elevation into 96km from Saint-Gervais-Mont-Blanc to Sainte Foy Tarentaise. 

It was on this last stage that Shirin van Anrooij (Netherlands) – who scored her first WorldTour win at Trofeo Alfredo Binda earlier in the season for Lidl-Trek – successfully executed a crushing 30km solo attack. Van Anrooij had over 2:20 on her closest competitor Anna Shackley of Great Britain at the finish line, winning the day and the general classification. It was a thrilling display of attacking prowess. Long may such opportunities for the U23 women continue. 

7. Pocket rocket Gaia Realini inches out Annemiek van Vleuten for her first WorldTour win at La Vuelta Feminina   

Stage 6, La Vuelta Femenina, 6th May 2023 

Lidl-Trek’s Gaia Realini is a force to be reckoned with. She placed third overall at La Vuelta Femenina and third again at the Giro d’Italia Donne. While not participating in the Tour de France Femmes, she did finish third at both the Tour de l’Avenir Femmes and La Flèche Wallonne. It will be exciting to see how her 2024 unfolds.  

At La Vuelta Femenina, Realini was up against big hitter Annemiek van Vleuten. With the peloton over a minute behind in the final kilometres, the duo would sprint it out between themselves. Realini opened her sprint at the same moment as Van Vleuten, the two locked in a side-by-side battle with no one pulling ahead. A classic bike throw to the line led to a photo finish. Would it be Realini with her first WorldTour victory, or Van Vleuten with her umpteenth? 

Realini it was! She burst into tears, finding comfort in the arms of teammates and her directeur sportif. This was her moment and she grabbed it with both hands.  

8. Ricarda Bauernfeind empties the tank at the Tour de France Femmes  

Stage 5, Tour de France Femmes, 27th July 2023 

Talk about nail-biting. Ricarda Bauernfeind (Canyon-SRAM) forged a solo gap on the peloton during Stage 5 of the Tour de France Femmes. If their threatening presence wasn’t enough, SD Worx’s Marlen Reusser and Movistar’s Liane Lippert jumped clear from the main bunch in the final 5km. Bauernfeind put her head down and rode hard. It felt like the long stretch of tarmac into Albi would never end. 

… Until it did. The chasers kept looking behind. The flamme rouge beckoned, calling Bauernfeind’s name. The 23-year-old earned Canyon-SRAM their first victory in the Tour de France Femmes and, unsurprisingly, Bauernfeind won the combativity award for the day too. 

9. Vollering vs Kopecky at Strade Bianche as teammates battle it out  

Strade Bianche, 4th March 2023 

The white gravel roads of Tuscany. A horse leading the race. Two teammates battling each other for the win. The women’s Strade Bianche had it all. 

Sometimes it’s good to see riders decide who wins. Maybe one deliberately pumps the brakes to avoid crossing the line ahead of their teammate, perhaps to acknowledge the efforts of a loyal domestique over the years. Or, as in the case of Tadej Pogačar at the Tour of Slovenia, the decision is made via rock, paper, scissors.  

At other times, however, it’s good to see teammates just fighting one another for a victory. After navigating the unexpected obstacle of a loose horse on course of Strade Bianche (the horse, Zlatana, was unharmed), SD Worx engaged in their usual show of domination, chasing down Kristen Faulkner (Jayco-AlUla) and leaving her behind on the fearsome Via Santa Catarina for a two-up sprint.  

Teammates Demi Vollering and Lotte Kopecky powered down the hill to the line and both lunged for the victory. Then they had to wait – and wait – for the result of the photo finish to find out the winner. The air felt uncomfortably icy. In the end, Kopecky’s bike throw came that bit too early and Vollering was announced as victor. Thankfully, any tension seemed to have dissipated by the time the pair were celebrating on the podium. 

10. Still boss: Marianne Vos goes back-to-back at La Vuelta Femenina

Stages 3 and 4, La Vuelta Femenina, 3rd – 4th May 2023 

How fortunate are we to live at the same time as Jumbo-Visma’s Marianne Vos? To be able to witness, first-hand, such a legend of the sport across multiple disciplines? It’s a wonderful experience.  

Resplendent in the maillot rojo and leading the race, Vos battled through crosswinds on Stage 3, sprinting to victory on the longest stage of the race. On the following day, plenty of uncategorised bumps littered Stage 4, with the Category 3 Alto de Horche (4km, 4.9%) awaiting before a descent to the finish line.  

In a phenomenal surge of power, Vos clawed her way back to a flying Marlen Reusser (SD Worx) in the final kilometre and overhauled her for back-to-back stage victories. Truly, Vos is the GOAT. 

Let’s hope for more of the same in 2024. I’m so excited for what the next year will bring.

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