Lotte Kopecky (Belgium) claimed her second straight world title in Zurich, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat in the Elite Women’s Road Race at the UCI Road World Championships.
The 2023 world champion looked dead and buried when she was dropped from the group of favourites on the final haul up the Zurich circuit’s main climb, but she capitalised on hesitation among the leaders, as well as some questionable Dutch tactics, to work her way back and sprint it out from a group of six.
Chloe Dygert (USA) claimed the silver medal, while bronze went to Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy), leaving the Dutch, who dominated the race, without a medal. They did, however, end up with a rainbow jersey as Puck Pieterse finished 13th as the top U23 rider to claim the world title in that category.
"It was kind of disbelief," Kopecky said of her finish line emotions, although she quickly turned her post-race interview away from herself and onto the tragic death of Swiss rider Muriel Furrer, who died after a crash in the junior women's road race.
"First of all I want to bring my condolences to the family of Muriel," Kopecky, who lost her brother last year, continued. "The minute's silence at the start, seeing the Swiss riders crying, is something you just don't want to see. It's a very hard moment for them."
Kopecky's classy comments came after a display that didn't carry quite the same aura. In fact, this was a victory plucked somehow from a ragged ride that appeared at one point beyond repair. As the rain lashed down over Zurich from start to finish, Kopecky struggled to regulate her body temperature, and the rainbow jersey looked to be heading to a new owner as she was dropped from an elite selection on the last of four full laps of the Zurich circuit.
Towards the top of the climb to Witikon, which came straight after the shorter but steeper Zurichbergstraase, Longo Borghini, Demi Vollering (Netherlands), and Lianne Lippert (Germany) powered away to an existing lead group that included Vollering's teammate, the two-time world champion Marianne Vos. Beyond the summit, Kopecky couldn't even hold the wheel of Dygert, who had also been distanced, and her race looked done and dusted. However, a meltdown in cohesion at the head of the race allowed both of them back into contention, and they went on to claim the top two steps of the podium.
Quite how the Dutch ended up empty-handed will be one of the big topics of post-race inquest, with orange jerseys dominating groups throughout the race. Despite initially chasing down their own breakaways, there did appear to be some method to the madness as Vos shot into a late four-woman break alongside Riejanne Markus to steal a minute ahead of the final lap. Vollering followed the wheels as the main group shattered on Zurichbergstraase and when when she bridged on the main climb in the company of just two others and in the absence of Kopecky, it seemed like the perfect scenario.
However, there was no cohesion up front, with Vollering's pleas to the two underdogs, Ruby Roseman-Gannon (Australia) and Justine Ghekiere (Belgium) understandably falling on deaf ears. A late kicker with 10km to go saw Vollering lay it on the line but surprisingly Kopecky had recovered and looked more than comfortable in the wheel, while Vollering only succeeded in dropping her two teammates, Vos and Markus.
The drama continued on the descent and 6km run-in, with Dygert and Roseman-Gannon initially distanced on the wet downhill, which seemed to leave a four-way fight between Kopecky, Vollering, Longo Borghini and Lippert. But the dropped duo came roaring back inside the final kilometre, with the Australian heading straight out the front before Longo Borghini opened the sprint. Kopecky immediately responded and, as Vollering faded to fifth place, the Belgian showed her earlier troubles were just a blip as she powered down the middle to claim a spectacular victory.
"For sure it was all in my head," said Kopecky. "It was a really annoying day, it was raining, not warm, but on the climbs it was warm then on the downhills you got so cold. Three laps from the end I was freezing. But I just tried to keep my head as cool as possible.
"On the steeper climb I didn't have much trouble but on the longer one for the final time, when Demi went I had some difficulties. I just tried to stay on my own pace and come back. In the end, it was a lot of mind games, and trying to use your energy at the right moment."
How it happened
The rain was already coming down as the riders gathered on the start line in Uster, huddled in their rain capes. The 154.1km route began with a 30km opening loop around Lake Greifensee, with a climb taking them onto the half-way point of the main circuit, which would be covered four times in full.
Home Swiss rider Caroline Baur sparked the day’s first breakaway, drawing Nina Berton (Luxembourg) and Sara Martín (Spain) out into a three-woman move. They led onto the main circuit and across the finish line for the first of five times but were never given much leeway and were caught on the first ascent of the circuit’s pairing of climbs, the short steep Zurichbergstraase followed by the longer, steadier haul up to Witikon.
At first they were joined by the first attackers from the bunch, which included Sarah Gigante (Australia), Julie Van de Velde (Belgium) and Thalita De Jong (Netherlands), but the race stitched back together over the top before Niamh Fisher-Black (New Zealand) sparked the first dangerous early break on the subsequent rolling plateau. She was joined by Riejanne Markus (Netherlands), Elena Hartmann (Switzerland), Justine Ghekiere (Belgium), and Mie Bjorndal Ottestad (Norway). Gigante then bridged with Urska Zigart (Slovenia), before Mischa Bredewold (Netherlands) struck out and took Franziska Koch (Germany) with her.
That made a group of 11, which completed the first full lap just 15 seconds in front of the peloton, and although that soon doubled, it was just as quickly wiped out entirely as the Dutch, despite working two riders into the break, set a fierce tempo in the bunch on the climbs and brought everything back together. Markus and Bredewold then proceeded to launch new attacks but, despite splits again on the wet descents, a reduced peloton crossed the line for the third time with 54km to go.
The race was bunched but not for long, as the pace ratcheted up by several notches on the Zurichbergstraase, where Marianne Vos contributed and soon dropped. As the Dutch assault continued onto the main climb thanks to Pauline Rooijakkers, the bunch was shredded into several groups. Up front, only 10 made the selection, with key absentees including Vos, Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland), Kristen Faulkner (USA), Grace Brown (Australia), and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Denmark).
A lull beyond the summit of the climb allowed Vos, Niewiadoma and others to return as Markus and Ghekiere attacked and gained half a minute over what was now a 17-woman main group. Again, though, the Dutch chose to push on behind their own rider, but it looked to have a good outcome as Vos launched an attack and fired across to the front alongside Australia’s Ruby Roseman-Gannon.
By the time the bell rang out to signal the final lap with 27km to go, the leading quartet with Vos had found a minute on the main group, now up to 21 riders.
On the final hike of Zurichbergstraase, Markus set the tempo up front for Vos, while the main group started to make inroads and split itself to pieces in the process. Going onto the main climb to Witikon, there were only five left there: Vollering, Kopecky, Dygert, Longo Borghini, and Lippert. There was a lull towards the top, with Vollering understandably not budging from the back, but Longo Borghini broke the stalemate with a huge attack. Vollering responded instantly and the pair shot across the gap to the leading quartet. Lippert managed to haul her way across, as Markus fell away, while Kopecky and Dygert were left floundering behind as they crested the climb with 19km to go.
There was more drama on the rolling plateau, with Vos shelled from the lead group amid accelerations from Longo Borghini, and Kopecky unable to hold Dygert’s wheel in the chase. However, hesitation up front changed the complexion once again. Vollering pleaded with everyone to work but the two underdogs, Ghekiere and Roseman-Gannon, understandably shook their heads, allowing not only Dygert to get across, but also Kopecky, Vos and Markus.
That left nine out front with one final kicker before the sharp descent to the 6.5km run-in. Vollering knew she had to use it and laid the power down, but this time Kopecky was comfortable in the wheel, and the only two casualties were her two Dutch teammates Vos and Markus, along with Ghekiere. On the descent, two more dropped as Dygert and Roseman-Gannon weren’t as confident as pace-maker Kopecky on the wet roads.
Longo Borghini launched the first big bid for gold with an attack at 5.5km to go, to which Vollering initially declined to respond before dragging it back with a longer effort. The quartet then settled down, to the point where Dygert and Roseman-Gannon came back with a kilometre to go.
The Australian looked to catch the big names off guard by heading straight out the front, but Vollering responded quickly and sat on the front until Longo Borghini opened the sprint properly. It seemed unthinkable half an hour previously, but Kopecky opened up through the middle and powered to her second straight world title.
RESULTS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ELITE WOMEN'S ROAD RACE 2024, ZURICH (154.1km)
1. Lotte Kopecky (Belgium), in 04:05:26
2. Chloe Dygert (USA)
3. Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy)
4. Liane Lippert (Germany)
5. Demi Vollering (Netherlands)
6. Ruby Roseman-Gannon (Australia)
7. Justine Ghekiere (Belgium), +1:06
8. Marianne Vos (Netherlands)
9. Riejanne Markus (Netherlands)
10. Blanka Vas (Hungary), +3:00
