SDWorx-Protime sports director Anna van der Breggen has confirmed that defending champion Demi Vollering will be their squad's main contender for Flèche Wallonne and that teammate and World Champion Lotte Kopecky will make her debut in Wednesday’s mid-week Classic as a support rider.
A seven-times winner and record holder in the Flèche Wallonne herself, Van der Breggen pointed out in a press release Tuesday that Vollering “is always good in the Flèche Wallonne and is our only leading lady in this Classic.”
“She is surrounded by a strong team that will ride full in support. Blanka Vas, Elena Cecchini and Femke Gerritse are there to sit in on any breakaways so Demi can save her strength as much as possible until the Mur.”
“We are also curious to see how Niamh Fisher-Black will fare. This is a climb that should suit her as well."
Like the men’s race, the final circuits of the 146-kilometre Flèche Wallonne Femmes have had the Cote de Cherave, which precedes the Mur de Huy, removed from the course this year—something about which Van der Breggen has very mixed feelings.
“I really regret that, because that climb made the finale doubly interesting,” she argued in the press release.
“[With the Cherave] if you didn't want to wait until the Wall [Huy], there were options there to make the difference. Now you have a descent on a wide road towards the foot of the Mur de Huy. So it is even more likely that the pure climbers will come to the top and that an elite group on the Mur will determine who wins or loses.”
Amongst her multiple triumphs, Van der Breggen recalled, there was a victory where she broke away with two other riders prior to the Mur. But that option is much less likely to succeed with only the Cote d’Ereffe - a good 17 kilometres before the foot of the Mur - preceding it on each of the two ascents.
"The final climb [Mur de Huy] makes the Flèche Wallonne different. The Mur de Huy is such a distinctive climb. Depending on what type of rider you are, you ride up it with a different approach,” Van der Breggen said.
"If your form is not at the best for tackling the hills," she added, “You can try to bluff on the Mur, but you run the risk of coming to a standstill on the steepest part. If you know you're not among the absolute best climbers, you have to try to get away before the Mur to have a chance of winning."
Van der Breggen felt that the climb being so short made it hard even for the mountain specialists, as ‘normal’ ascents last much longer and offer the choice of different strategies. On the Mur de Huy, on the other hand, everything happens in the space of just a few minutes.
"The Flèche Wallonne is different compared to the other Ardennes Classics. In the Amstel Gold Race and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, fatigue piles up. In the Flèche Wallonne you have quite a tame start, especially this year with the changes. Only in the finale does it explode, and most riders are still fairly fresh.”
She said that while SDWorx will be putting everything behind Vollering, in terms of favourites, other contenders to watch on Wednesday could well include Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-Sram) and Lidl-Trek teammates Elisa Longo-Borghini and Gaia Realini.
