The first Grand Tour of the season has concluded, with Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) securing the general title on Sunday in Valdesquí. Comunidad de Madrid.
Her dominant performances within the late mountain phases of the eight-day race led to her profitable the 2024 La Vuelta Femenina and including a second Grand Tour title to her achievements after securing the victory ultimately 12 months’s Tour de France Femmes.
It was an action-packed eight days of racing that kicked off with a workforce time trial on April 28 in Valencia and concluded on Sunday, May 5, within the mountains situated on the outskirts of Madrid.
While a number of crashes affected the opening phases of the occasion, the peloton tackled a variety of routes alongside the eight days, every little thing from punchy terrain to flat programs and mountain finishes, which led to a number of new faces, together with breakaway specialists, sprinters, and climbers, on the winner’s step of the podiums.
Cyclingnews seems on the key takeaways from this 12 months’s La Vuelta Femenina.
Vollering’s first win of the season
There was loads of dialogue about Demi Vollering’s kind in the course of the Spring Classics as a result of she hadn’t secured a victory earlier than beginning La Vuelta Femenina, largely compared to final 12 months, when she had already added 5 wins below he belt by this level of the season.
The Dutch Champion admitted to a slower begin this 12 months but in addition talked about larger targets later within the season, comparable to defending her title on the Tour de France Femmes in August.
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Vollering took 4 podiums in the course of the Classics, and though her kind might have fallen wanting a victory on the punchy climbs of these one-day races, she appears to be precisely the place it must be for the longer mountain ascents of the Grand Tours.
She had loads of competitors on the three main mountain phases of La Vuelta Femenina however in the end outpowered her nearest rivals, Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Deceuninck) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) at Alto del Fuerte Rapitán, and Évita Muzic (FDJ-SUEZ), who additionally gained atop La Laguna Negra, and Riejanne Markus (Visma-Lease a Bike) at Valdesquí. Comunidad de Madrid.
Her profitable margin of 1:49 over runner-up Markus and a couple of minutes over Longo Borghini confirmed how effectively ready she was for this stage race and a great indication of the trajectory of her kind heading into stage racing season.
This might have been Vollering’s first peak of the season, however look ahead to her kind to proceed to enhance throughout the following set of WorldTour races at Itzulia Women, Vuelta a Burgos, earlier than ramping it up once more for the Tour de France Femmes.
“It’s a great begin, and I hope I can do another very nice stage races, in fact,” Vollering mentioned. “I’m wanting ahead to the remainder of the season.”
US, Canada, New Zealand present power
Canadian Alison Jackson and American Kristen Faulkner, each racing for EF Education-Cannondale, put North America on the map at La Vuelta Femenina after they each secured stage wins in the course of the eight-day race.
Jackson stormed to victory on the second stage, profitable a diminished bunch dash into Moncófar and performing her trademark victory dance on the end line surrounded by her teammates in celebration of their success. Two days later, Faulkner took a second victory for the American squad with a solo win in Zaragoza.
“It’s been such a great week,” Faulkner mentioned. “I’m so happy with how the workforce carried out. Not solely did everybody do their job on a regular basis, however we walked away with two stage wins, a number of prime tens, a second place. Kim [Cadzow] did rather well within the mountains. She’s actually coming alongside as a rider and as a climber. I’m tremendous excited for the remainder of the season.”
EF Education-Cannondale is of their first season as a Continental outfit and has capitalised off of their invites to the key races, making certain each one counts. With a stable roster and a ‘considering exterior the field’ mentality, the workforce have gained ten races this season, greater than a few of the top-tier WorldTour groups.
In the general classification, New Zealand was additionally a presence with EF Education-Cannondale’s Kim Cadzow ending within the prime 10 on mountaintop finishes Alto del Fuerte Rapitán and at La Laguna Negra and ending tenth general in her GC debut.
Cadzow’s efficiency offers New Zealand one other contender alongside SD Worx-Protime’s Niamh Fisher-Black, who completed seventh general and Ella Wylie, who was not on the Vuelta however completed seventh general on the Tour Down Under.
“The Vuelta has been fairly superb,” Cadzow mentioned. “I really feel like I’ve had a little bit of a curler coaster whereas being right here, but it surely’s been superb for my first grand tour. The workforce has placed on in all probability essentially the most superb efficiency we might have ever imagined. I feel we’re all going to go residence comfortable.”
Markus, Muzic, Kastelijn on the rise
Several riders toed the beginning line of La Vuelta Femenina as outright contenders within the race for the maillot rojo and lived as much as these GC expectations. Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime) gained the general title, Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) completed on the rostrum in third, and Juliette Labous (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL) confirmed promising stage racing kind to complete fourth place general.
There have been additionally some nice surprises who raced their approach into the GC standings, all riders with the power and talent to complete on the prime of the general classification however who may not all the time have the chance to take action.
Visma-Lease a Bike began with a runner-up efficiency within the workforce time trial and went on to win two phases and the factors jersey with Marianne Vos, who additionally wore the chief’s jersey after stage 4. However, it was Riejanne Markus who bided her time because the race performed out for the general classification. After ending fourth general final 12 months, her regular efficiency on the mountain phases and a powerful finale noticed her soar forward of Longo Borghini and end runner-up behind Vollering on the rostrum on this version.
Evita Muzic has come into her kind this season, and her fourth place at Flèche Wallonne meant she got here into the Vuelta in prime kind. Even so, it was her excellent efficiency on stage 6, the place she beat Vollering atop La Laguna Negra, that turned heads and put her in rivalry for a prime GC end result. She went on to complete second behind Vollering on the finale stage 8 to Valdesquí. Comunidad de Madrid, however solifide her fifth place within the general.
Fenix-Deceuninck have been turning heads since final season’s performances on the Tour de France Femmes, and so they carried their workforce success into this Vuelta, too, with Yara Kastelijn ending on the rostrum at Alto del Fuerte Rapitán and La Laguna Negra. She ended up eighth general, simply forward of her teammate Pauliena Rooijakkers in ninth.
Spanish riders achieve top-tier expertise
The degree of races throughout Spain is steadily rising with the addition of top-tier races, La Vuelta Femenina, Itzulia Women, and Vuelta a Burgos, together with a number of lower-level one-day and stage races on the worldwide calendar over current years.
Movistar lined up as the one top-tier workforce registered in Spain, however having adjusted their objectives for the reason that retirement of Annemiek van Vleuten on the finish of final 12 months. Also on the beginning line have been Spain’s solely two Continental groups; Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi and Eneicat-CMTeam, each in search of alternatives to realize expertise in top-tier racing on residence soil.
Although the nation’s competing riders might not have constantly positioned among the many prime 10 within the phases finishes or common classification, they took alternatives all through the eight-day race that catered to their strengths in dash finishes, breakaways, combativity awards, that are all essential for constructing expertise within the race in addition to gaining visibility as a nation.
Sheyla Gutiérrez (Movistar) was the highest-placed stage finisher, fifth on stage 4 into Zaragoza, as a part of a chase group behind Kristen Faulkner. In the general classification, Spanish Champion Mavi García (Liv AlUla Jayco) was the highest-placed finisher, twentieth. That wouldn’t have been her greatest efficiency, however she can even be taking a look at stronger ends in the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France.
Mireia Benito (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) was some of the energetic riders of the occasion, racing right into a prolonged 111km solo breakaway on stage 3 and ending the occasion because the winner of the tremendous combativity prize.
“Our workforce is making large steps, and I’m immensely happy with our collective effort. I’m actually wanting ahead to the upcoming races and the alternatives they maintain. It’s really gratifying to face on the rostrum as soon as once more, particularly receiving the Super Combativity Prize in La Vuelta Femenina. It boosts my confidence, additionally as a result of it’s not straightforward to get into the breakaways. So I’m very pleased with the prize.” mentioned Benito.
Vuelta units the tone for Itzulia, Burgos
Spain affords an abundance of racing in the course of the season, starting with spring occasions comparable to the brand new trio of races on the Challenge Femenina Mallorca, Costa de Almeria, Vuelta CV Feminas, Setmana Valenciana, and Clasica de Almeria and Vuelta Extremadura Féminas.
The rising progress of La Vuelta Femenina shifting to the May spot on the calendar and rising seven days in 2023 after which eight days this 12 months with main mountain finishes in each editions has lived as much as its top-tier expectations.
The occasion now units the tone as the primary Grand Tour of the season and leads straight into the following two Women’s WorldTour races, additionally in Spain, on the Itzulia Women held from May 10-12 and Vuelta a Burgos held from May 16-19.
Many of the highest common classification contenders will stay in Spain to compete within the following two occasions, making a high-quality month of mountainous stage racing that may seemingly embody Itzulia defending champion Marlen Reusser and Burgos defending champion Demi Vollering, each SD Worx-Protime, together with different riders to observe; Juliette Labous (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL), Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM), Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal) and Evita Muzic (FDJ-SUEZ).