Cyclist
Cyclist’s 2024 Pro Cycling Awards
It’s time for Cyclist’s 2024 Pro Cycling Awards. With a little help from you, the reader, we have collated the people’s choices for the best sprinters, best climbers, best time-trial performances, best domestiques, best Classics riders, best climbs and the big one: best moment of the 2024 season.
We have taken the results of a series of polls across our social media platforms to put the choices in your hands.
Let’s find out the winners of the biggest prize of the year.
Best sprinters: Jasper Philipsen, Lorena Wiebes
Jasper Philipsen sprinted to a monumental victory at Milan-San Remo early in the year, holding off Michael Matthews, Tadej Pogačar and Mads Pedersen. He won again just a few days later at Brugge-De Panne and finished second behind teammate Mathieu van der Poel for the second consecutive Paris-Roubaix.
The 26-year-old was also a force at the Tour de France, where he won three sprint stages but couldn’t retain his points jersey.
Lorena Wiebes enjoyed her most successful season yet for SD Worx-Protime with 22 victories in 2024. She controlled the sprints with relative ease. Some of her best performances came in flat stage races where she cleaned up either all or all-but-one stage, such as the Baloise Ladies Tour and the RideLondon Classique.
She bounced back from a drought at the Tour de France Femmes to win three out of five stages at the Simac Ladies Tour.
Best climbers: Tadej Pogačar, Demi Vollering
It’s no surprise that you voted Tadej Pogačar and Demi Vollering as the best climbers. Pogačar frequently flew to the top of summit finishes even in the face of adversity like at the Giro when he had a mechanical and a crash on Oropa. There he surged back and attacked to win the maglia rosa on Stage 2, and he would remain in the jersey for the rest of the race, taking more several more stage wins including in the mountains of Livigno and over a double ascent of Monte Grappa.
He then prevailed at the Tour de France on his way to a third maillot jaune. He took the Col du Galibier, Col du Tourmalet, Pla d’Adet, Plateau de Beille and Isola 2000 in his stride.
Vollering climbed her way to a maiden victory at La Vuelta Femenina, kicking off an impressive run of form dominating Itzulia, the Vuelta a Burgos and Tour de Suisse.
Her showstopper performance came on the Alpe d’Huez. Plans for a Tour de France Femmes repeat had faced a blow after a crash on Stage 5. She had to go all out on the final day, and that she did. Attacking from maillot jaune Kasia Niewiadoma in the final 54km, she quickly formed a strong lead alongside Pauliena Rooijakkers. Vollering won the day on the summit of Alpe d’Huez. While she couldn’t overturn the deficit, she climbed her heart out in one of the performances of the season.
Best time-trial performances: Remco Evenepoel, Grace Brown
The Olympic Games. The pinnacle of sporting prowess. Perhaps then, it’s only right that you voted the Olympics time-trials from Remco Evenepoel and Grace Brown as the two standout TTs of 2024.
Evenepoel headed to the start ramp having won one of two races against the clock at the Tour de France. Over the 32.4km course, the Belgian flew through checkpoints and claimed his first gold of the Games, winning by 15 seconds ahead of Filippo Ganna.
Similarly for Grace Brown, it was domination and then some. The Australian TT Champion blew away the field over the 32.4km route, her time of 39min 38sec besting silver medallist Anna Henderson by over a minute and a half.
Best domestiques: Adam Yates, Elise Chabbey
Shielding your leader from the wind. Having them sit on your wheel for countless kilometres. Shuttling bidons. Being left behind exhausted. It’s a hard job being a domestique. UAE Team Emirates have one of the best in Adam Yates. A capable winner in his own right as demonstrated by his two stages and the overall at the Tour de Suisse, Yates can often be found helping Pogačar (if he needs it) in Grand Tours.
Yates rode in both the Tour de France and Vuelta a España in 2024. At the Tour, he raced to sixth overall. There was a memorable moment on the Pla d’Adet during Stage 14 when he attacked on Pogačar’s order, providing a bridge later on for his leader to win the stage. Such domestique work is instrumental in a Grand Tour-winning squad and Yates is always there in a key support role.
31-year-old Elise Chabbey has been a strong domestique for Canyon-SRAM, always one to attack and light up the race while sweeping up points in mountains classifications. Always a reliable rider to rely on, Chabbey has now made the switch to FDJ-Suez for the upcoming season with an eye on winning more. But take note, she’ll always be there to support her teammates when needed.
Best Classics riders: Mathieu van der Poel, Lotte Kopecky
Mathieu van der Poel helped his teammate Philipsen to victory at Milan-San Remo before going on an impressive run that included winning both the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
Lotte Kopecky attacked the Classics after winning the UAE Tour. Despite narrowly missing out on Omloop het Nieuwsblad to Marianne Vos, she powered to victory at Strade Bianche and Nokere Koerse.
The Belgian would come close at Trofeo Alfredo Binda, Dwars door Vlaanderen and the Tour of Flanders, but she bounced back at Paris-Roubaix to make it a double rainbow weekend, taking the win out of a six-woman group in a velodrome sprint.
Best Men’s Climb: Col du Galibier
Stage 4 of the men’s Tour de France featured three categorised climbs over 139.6km in the Alps. The Col du Galibier was the final test towards Valloire, with the summit hitting just under 20km from the finish line.
What remained of the breakaway had been swallowed up on the way to the summit. A UAE Team Emirates and Visma-Lease a Bike-led peloton knew the maillot jaune would be up for grabs with leader Richard Carapaz suffering.
Pogačar attacked in the last kilometre, initially drawing out Vingegaard with Evenepoel behind, but no one could catch up with him. It was his 12th Tour stage win and he reclaimed the yellow jersey, flying into the lead by 45sec ahead of Evenepoel. He would stay in yellow for the remainder of the race.
Best Women’s Climb: Alpe d’Huez
The 150km Stage 8 of the Tour de France Femmes was the last day of racing and produced one of the most memorable fights of the season. Departing Le Grand-Bornand, riders would face a fierce second half to the stage with the Col du Glandon preceding the summit finish on Alpe d’Huez.
It was here on the final ascent of the race that the yellow jersey would be decided. And what a moment it was…
Best moment: Kasia Niewiadoma wins Tour de France Femmes by four seconds
Niewiadoma wore the maillot jaune after Stage 5 of the Tour de France Femmes. Vollering, who had been in the lead since winning Stage 3’s individual time-trial in Rotterdam, had been caught up in a crash and left racing to save time. For the most part, Vollering was teammateless. It was a mixed bag for SD Worx-Protime who, while looking rather unprofessional, still won the stage with Blanka Vas.
Niewiadoma had finished second to rise up the standings, 1min 19sec ahead of Vollering. She would maintain this gap through a hilly Stage 6 and mountainous Stage 7 for one last test up Alpe d’Huez. Vollering kicked away on the Col du Glandon, aware she had to throw everything at Niewiadoma, who starting slipping backwards.
As Vollering arrived at the foot of the Alpe, her advantage stood at 45 seconds on the road. She was closing the gap to yellow, slowly but surely. Halfway up the 13.8km climb, Niewiadoma was over a minute down. Vollering started the day 1min 15sec behind. It was almost in reach. She won the stage and collapsed on the ground exhausted. All she had to do was wait. Into shot Niewiadoma came, sprinting and gritting her teeth with the Tour de France Femmes on the line.
Niewiadoma won the Tour by just four seconds. You voted this your best moment of the season, beating Pogačar’s Triple Crown and even holding off Mark Cavendish’s 35th Tour de France stage victory.
We agree. What a ride it’s been. Bring on 2025.
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