The season starts here 🏁

Opening Weekend is upon us!

Hello! Welcome to Women’s Cycling Weekly! 🚴‍♀️

It’s basically Christmas Eve, right? Opening Weekend is upon us! The WorldTour European racing season is one (1) day away from starting. Ok ok so we’ve had some races before this point but were they on cobbles? Was it Belgium? If not then I don’t want to know x

Find out everything you need to know ahead of the weekend and more below!!

Amy x

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News 📰

• Ahead of the full route announcement on Tuesday, the Vuelta Femenina organisers have announced the race will start in Torrevieja, near Alicante. The opening stage is rumoured to be a team time trial, but all will be revealed next week (watch the presentation on their social channels)

• Flanders Classics have confirmed that there will be equal prize money for the men and women at their races throughout the spring, with €400,000 to be shared out in total, starting this weekend at Omloop het Nieuwsblad.

• Route details of this year’s Tour of Scandinavia have been released - we’ve got one stage in Sweden, three in Norway and two in Denmark, including an individual time trial.

• The organisers of the Giro Donne have praised RCS Sport’s impending takeover of the race.

• Pat Lef has been talking shit on women’s cycling again.

• The UK-based circuit race series, the Tour Series, will take a hiatus for 2023 with the aim to return next year.

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Read  🗞️

• Zoe Backstedt is “open minded” ahead of starting her road season with EF Education - Tibco SVB this weekend.

• Annemiek van Vleuten says that women’s cycling should be about more than just beating her.

• Former racer Megan Chard on being the youngest DS in the WorldTour.

• Ambition, shared leadership, family atmosphere - Keys to success at FDJ-SUEZ.

• Kasia Niewiadoma: 'I aim to perform in every race I appear.'

• Artist Krysten Koehn on how cycling informs her art.

• Meet the Belgian champion who moved to Dubai to join the police cycling team.

• The fight for WWT spots is on.

• How I (Amy) became a Classics convert.

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Watch 📺

If you have a GCN+ subscription then the latest episode of their ‘World of Cycling’ show on whether the WWT is growing too quickly featuring Elynor Backstedt and Dani Christmas is v interesting!

Elena Cecchini in the spotlight.

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Listen 🎧

A rare racing pod! This time we covered UAE Tour and Valenciana as well as a preview of Opening Weekend with the wonderful Rachel Jary, staff writer at Rouleur and all-round legend 🫶

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Results 🏆

Road

Setmana Ciclista-Volta Comunitat Valenciana Fèmines

Stage 3: Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AGI)

Stage 4: Elise Uijen (DSM)

Overall:

1. Justine Ghekiere (AGI)

2. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AGI)

3. Amanda Spratt (TFS)

CX

Exact Cross Sint-Niklaas

1. Annemarie Worst

2. Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado

3. Lucinda Brand

X2O Trofee Brussels

1. Fem van Empel

2. Lucinda Brand

3. Annemarie Worst

e-Sports

e-Sports World Championships 🌈

1. Loes Adegeest

2. Zoe Langham

3. Jacqueline Godbe

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Upcoming races 📆

Road

25th February: Omloop het Nieuwsblad

• Starts 13.40 CET, finishes 17.25 CET

• Live on Eurosport/GCN+ from 16.30 CET

• Start list here

• Preview here

26th February: Omloop van het Hageland

• Starts 13.10 CET, finishes 16.25

• Live on ROBtv (with Dutch comms, but follow friend of the newsletter Lukas Knöfler for an English version)

• Start list here

28th February: Le Samyn

• Starts 12.00 CET, finishes 14.45 CET

• Live on Eurosport/GCN+ from 13.45 CET

Start list here

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Friday fun🕺

Stats!!!!

Sadhbh O'Shea @SadhbhOS

Just had a quick check and Annemiek van Vleuten's fourth place in Valencia is the first time since November 2020 that she finished lower than second in a stage race. Quite amazing.

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That’s all 👋

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Amy and Tilda x