Cant beats Vos at Krawatencross; Helen Wyman third

Beating the World Champion must feel great. When that World Champion is Marianne Vos, and you also beat the European Champion Helen Wyman, it must feel absolutely fantastic - which explains Belgian Champion Sanne Cant's delight as she took the top step of the podium following Saturday's BPost Bank Trofee Krawatencross race at Lille. The victory was sweetened yet further due to the Belgian having been fourth  at last weekend's World Championships where Vos won and Wyman was third - and by the fact that Vos won this very race for the last two years, beating Cant (3rd 2012, 2nd 2013) on both occasions. Wyman, who is British Champion for the eighth time this season as well as European Champion for the second time, seemed unable to match Cant and Vos as the race progressed and left the pair fighting a private battle all of their own, each rider refusing to back down all the way to the final approach to the finish. With the race looking certain to end in a sprint the majority of fans will have been expecting Vos to add yet another victory to her spectacular palmares despite Cant's skill on a sandy parcours such as this, but then the Dutch superstar's foot slipped from the pedal. She probably lost no more than a fraction of a second, but it was enough: Cant noticed and attacked hard, taking the tiny advantage that was she needed to triumph. Wyman will also be pleased with her result: she's never stood on the podium at this race before. The only other British rider was Nikki Harris, who took fourth place. Although Wyman still leads the series overall, her advantage is now just 31" to Cant (Harris is third at +1'11"). The final round, taking place at Oostmalle on the 23rd of February, promises therefore to be one of the season highlights. Helen Wyman's race report Video: Cant wins Krawatencross Krawatencross Full Result 1  Sanne Cant (Enertherm - Bkcp)  BEL 2  Marianne Vos (Rabobank Women Team)  NED 3  Helen Wyman (Kona)  GBR 4  Nikki Harris (Telenet Fidea Cycling Team Young NPI)  GBR 5  Loes Sels (Young Telenet Fidea)  BEL 6  Sophie De Boer (Kdl Cycling Team)  NED 7  Yara Kastelijn (Rtc Buitenlust)  NED 8  Ellen Van Loy (Young Telenet-Fidea)  BEL 9  Pavla Havlikova (Young Telenet - Fidea)  CZE 10  Githa Michiels (Toka Print Mtb Team)  BEL 11 Karen Verhestraeten (Sengers Ladies Cycling Team) BEL 12 Reza Ravenstijn-Hormes NED 13 Jolien Verschueren (Dncs/pro 2012 Cycling Team) BEL 14 Esmee Oosterman (Wrv DE Peddelaars) NED 15 Laura Verdonschot (Vzw Lotto - Ladiescycling) BEL 16 Maud Kaptheyns NED 17 Katrien Thijs (UP Cycling Team) BEL 18 Hilde Quintens BEL 19 Lotte Eikelenboom (Drc De Mol) NED 20 Kim Banga NED 21 Christine Vardaros (Baboco - Revor Cycling Team) USA 22 Shana Maes BEL 23 Ilona Meter (Rcp Stevens) NED 24 Nele Van Maldeghem BEL 25 Suzie Godart LUX 26 Suzanne Verhoeven NED 27 Gertie Willems BEL 28 Meg De Bruyne BEL 29 Lena Bischoff-Stein 30 Nathalie Nijns BEL 31 Tine Verdeyen BEL 32 Lene Vrijsen BEL 33 Mara Schwager GER 34 Caren Commissaris (UP Cycling Team) BEL 35 Valerie Boonen BEL 36 Laura Krans NED 37 Anja Geldhof BEL 38 Brenda Kaczmarczyk BEL 39 Yenthe Boons BEL 40 Jessika Timmermans BEL 41 Cindy Diericx BEL 42 Britta Werners GER 43 Caitlyn La Haye BEL 44 Sandra Sintobin BEL

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Tour Languedoc Roussillon 2013

17-22.05.2013
France, 6-stage Road Race, 639.4km
UCI 2.2

16.05.2013 - reports state that the Tour Languedoc Roussillon has been cancelled.

The news broke one day before the race was due to start, with several teams already there and others en route to the event...

Marijn de Vries ‏@marijnfietst

Is this for real?? We're on our way right now!

Martine Bras ‏@martinebras

Wat een schandaal! Lanquedoc organisatie laat op het laatste moment de koers niet door gaan. Alle ploegen zijn er al! UCI doe hier iets aan! (What a scandal! Lanquedoc organisers cancel the race at the last minute. All teams are already there! UCI do something about this!)

...While there has not yet been any official announcement nor reason given, rumours suggest that local police have prevented the race going ahead. There are also suggestions that bad weather may be to blame, with another race at Nice having been shortened for this reason.

With only a month to go before the race was due to start in 2012, organisers of the Tour Languedoc Roussillon, who had hoped their event would develop into a replacement for the defunct women's Grand Tour the Tour de l'Aude, announced that a combination of factors had left them with no option but to cancel the race - but promised to do all they could to bring it back for 2013.

They seem to have been successful in doing so - the race is listed on the UCI calendar as taking place on the above dates, as well appearing on team programmes. However, three days before it was due to get underway, the link on the UCI website was dead and no official website could be found. In these days when the majority of cycling fans, especially women's cycling fans due to the difficulty in finding information on the sport via any other means, rely almost entirely on the Internet to keep us up to date, this may prove to be a serious oversight: if fans can't get info on the race, they don't go to see the race - and if fans don't go to see a race, existing and potential sponsors aren't going to be interested. This race offers one of the most beautiful routes in cycling with rolling hills, mountains and stunning coastline; it'd be a terrible shame of it were to vanish simply because someone decided to save a few Euros by not having a website.

Fortunately, Velofocus has managed to track down some more details and has some interactive maps in addition to stage profiles. Click here to see them.

Knokke-Heist - Bredene 2013

04.05.2013 Official Site
Belgium, 1-day Road Race (Lotto Cycling Cup), 112.8km
UCI 1.2

Official race Twitter

2012 victor Liesbet de Vocht, pictured
at the 2012 Olympics

Last year, of the 129 riders to begin the Knokke-Heist - Bredene, 38 finished 8'15" after winner Liesbet de Vocht (click here for an excellent gallery of photos by Krist Vanmelle and here for video of the race) after spending much of the race simply trying to survive absolutely atrocious weather, with a powerful and bitterly cold wind blasting in straight off the North Sea bringing heavy, driving rain with it, and the total domination of the race by Rabobank, de Vocht's team, which got four riders into the top ten (results here). Throw in some cobbles - this is West Flanders - and you've got a seriously tough race.

Chances are the weather will be, at best, only marginally better - the parcours follows a similar route with a 52.3km main section running from Knokke-Heist and inland via Bruges then along the coast to the first of five laps of a 12.1km circuit, leaving the riders at the mercy of the wind all the way. This wasn't the only race in which Rabo seemed almost without challengers in 2012 and they remain one of the most well-drilled outfits in cycling, a troop of riders who bring their specialist skills and strengths together to form one of the most effective teams women's cycling has ever seen. However, other teams have been working long and hard to put themselves into a position from which they can take Rabo on and win. So, while horrible weather seems virtually certain, the outcome of the 2013 edition is anything but.

Parcours
This is not a hilly race - in fact, with the highest point anywhere along the route being just 11m above sea level and several points below sea level, the climbers will stay at home and let the cobbles specialists and sprinters have a day in the spotlight. With much of the parcours running through open, arable land, there is very little shelter from the wind: if it's blowing in from the North Sea, the peloton will be driven through the first few kilometres by a tailwind, but as soon as they turn south-west they'll have to deal with potentially very powerful crosswinds for most of the section leading to Houtave, then a headwind to Wenduine and an even stronger crosswind along the coast past De Haan to the finish of the main parcours.

Main parcours altimetry - click to enlarge

Main section - click to enlarge

The race begins on Krommedijk (Krommedijkstraat in the race book, Krommedijk on maps) as it passes under the railway in Knokke-Heist, then progresses between the Laguna Beach lake to the left and tennis courts to the right. It's a wide, smooth road that ought to see a good fast start; however, the available road surface narrows considerably at the left turn onto Westkappellestraat 460m ahead, which may well lead to some pushing and shoving as the riders fight to find and then hold their positions in the pack or, as a small group may attempt, to get a few metres' lead ready to try their luck at an early break. If anyone gets stuck at the back, there's plenty of space and time along long, straight Westkappellestraat just around the corner, but with the first riders through the corner likely to make good use of the probable tailwind on this stretch by cranking up the speed, it'll be hard work to get back to the front.

Westkappellestraat forks after 2.25km; the riders keep right and need to avoid a raised traffic-calming device in the middle of the road. 1.55km ahead is another right on a brickwork section by a white house with a red roof - bollards on the edge of the road present a hazard and the route bends to the left a third of a kilometre ahead, then arrives at a junction 190m later. Having turned right and continued for 150m, they arrive at another junction and turn right again to join Dudzelestraat, a smooth fast road that leads for 2.76km to a roundabout and then onward for another 0.8km, crossing the picturesque Leopold's Canal just before the road forks. Riders keep right again, joining the Havenrandweg Zuid and reaching another roundabout 0.48km later before continuing for 3.58km to Dudzeelse Brug crossing the Boudewijnkanaal. Like the last bridge, the road remains wide and should cause no problems; as the race leaves it behind, the riders have covered 13.3km from the start line.

After the bridge, the peloton stays left and crosses a motorway flyover before coming to a junction with the main Zeelaan road, a technical section with several raised islands and concrete blocks lining the road. The race turns right here, but the riders get to enjoy the benefits of a major road for just 230m before turning left onto Stationsweg, this junction being made tight by another traffic island where the two roads meet. Stationsweg is much narrower than Zeelaan and any rider who wants to remain at the front of the pack will need to make sure she's one of the first through the corner - or, as sprinters are capable of doing, elbow her way through. 0.38km from the junction is a level crossing with two sets of tracks, the road between the them being made of wood and extremely slippery when wet; the road then continues for 0.65km - along the side of the road is a narrow footpath, separated from traffic by a strip that, towards the end, turns from grass to some very rough-looking cobbles. The section ends at a junction where the riders turn right for the Blankenbergsesteenweg, at which point they are 15.5km from the start line.

Blankenbergsesteenweg is smooth, wide, fast and runs NNW for 1.2km, making it a good stretch for riders to bridge to a lead group if one has got away by this stage or for the peloton to catch them. Their time on it ends with an easy left turn at the Kruiskalsijde bar, after which they continue for 1.35km along the fast but for much of its length very exposed Nieuwesteenweg before turning left on smooth and regularly-sized cobble to take Blankenbergsedijk Zuid south-east (hence a possible tailwind) for 2km ending at a crossroads and a tight right-hand turn for Blauwe Torenstraat. The crossroads marks 20km since the race began, after it Blauwe Torenstraat runs north-west through exposed country where the race may face strong headwinds for 1.46km ending with a tight left onto the narrow Heerweg, promising more crosswinds for the following 0.6km to the next left turn onto Brouwerijstraat - the turn isn't especially tight, but a rider who took it too fast and lost control might easily end up in the ditch running along the fields either side of the road. The road forks after 0.22km with the riders keeping right to take Klinkestraat as it winds its way over the next 2.56km, passing farms - always bringing the need for caution as farm vehicles frequently damage road surfaces and leave various slippery substances on the asphalt - and becoming Zuienkerkestraat at some point roughly halfway along. This section is narrow but flat and heads south-west, meaning that a tailwind is likely here; if a break has not yet been successful in escaping the peloton, this may well be the ideal place for one to do so in the hope of getting away so as to be able to enter the circuit with a healthy and potentially race-winning advantage - we can expect to see determined and repeated attacks by the lesser-known riders and teams here, aided by the fact that with the narrowness of the road the top teams might not be able to get chasers through to the front of the peloton in order to go after them.

Zuienkerkestraat ends with an easy left onto the Oostendse Steenweg followed immediately by a more difficult right onto the Ossenstraat - a combination of factors including narrowness and poor-quality road surface (which in places exposes the old cobbles below the asphalt) makes this a dangerous corner. After 0.54km, at a junction, Ossenstraat becomes Molenweg and leaves the riders at the mercy of the crosswinds for the next 2km to the left turn onto Mareweg: the junction between the two is made interesting by an unusual hazard - a tiny chapel, narrower than a large car, standing right in the middle of the road as though dropped there by a passing giant. Mareweg then continues for 1.85km, taking in some tight bends and passing more farms on the way to the next junction (30km from the start) where the riders will turn right to take the Oosternieuwweg-Zuid, a wide and mostly straight road that will carry them north for 3.95km, where a simple left takes them 4.4km to Wenduine on the coast - a fast section if the weather's calm, a long slog in the more probable headwind.

At Wenduine, the parcours turns left over a pedestrian crossing and takes Ringlaan heading west. This being an urban area, the road is the best quality since Westkappelle and - an even more welcome prospect for the riders - is sheltered from the wind by the surrounding buildings; however, at just 0.48km in length, it doesn't provide much of a window of opportunity for breaks to be caught or to escape. It ends where it crosses the Leopold II-Laan, becoming the very exposed coastal Koninklijkebaan running south-west along the sand dunes and through De Haan for 6.65km to a wide left turn onto the Vosseslag road by a flyover, at which point the race is just shy of 45km from the start line and dips back inland for the last section of the main parcours. Vosseslag is straight, in parts downhill and heads roughly south for most of the next 2.12km; a combination that, now that the entry into the circuit is only a few kilometres away, will generate some high speeds even if the expected tailwind isn't blowing, perhaps enabling a lead group to build up a good advantage that, provided they can work together to combat the wind during the five laps to come, could even win them the race. Over the last third of a kilometre before the next junction Vosseslag becomes Dorspstraat, then an easy right takes a road that the race book calls Zuid-Oostwijk and maps call Duiveketestraat; it's exposed to crosswinds for the next 1.6km where it ends at a crossroads and the riders turn right onto what definitely is Zuid-Oostwijk. After another 1.1km fighting the headwind, the race turns onto Batterijstraat for a short 0.29km section, then takes an easy left onto Koerslaan leading for 1.17km into Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe-ter-Duine, a town contiguous with Bredene-an-Zee. At the end of Koerslaan riders turn left on regularly-sized cobbles before following Kapelstraat for the remaining 1,150m to the finish line located by No.133, a bar called De Nieuwe Artiesten.

Circuit - click to enlarge

Upon first reaching it, the race isn't over: the riders still have to complete five laps of the 12.1km circuit, adding up to another 60.5km of racing - and with numerous tight corners, fast straights and plenty more wind, just about anything could still happen.

Having continued for 0.91km from the finish line, the riders come to an intersection between Kappellestraat and Koninklijkebaan, turning right  on regular, brick-shaped cobbles and then right again to head north-east, following the road for 3.8km to a right turn onto Vosseslag where they'll repeat the same parcours as earlier to return to the finish line. With the coastal sections being so exposed to crosswinds, it's likely that most teams will want to remain together and form echelons; keeping the peloton together right into the final lap before trying to get their sprinters into place for a bunch finish.

Circuit profile - click to enlarge

Starters
To be confirmed

Weather
More information closer to race day

How to follow the race
Here's an idea that might appeal to some British fans: why not actually go to see the race? Belgium is far closer to the United Kingdom than many people realise and the race takes place within walking distance of the ferry terminal at Zeebrugge. Sailing as a foot passenger or with a bike from Hull on P&O on the 3rd of May and returning after the race on the 4th would cost £203. Calais to the finish line is only 84.9km, an easy distance on a bike and one that could be very simply tailored to visit some other famous cycling towns such as De Panne and Koksijde - sailing from Dover to Calais on the 2nd of May and returning on the 6th (thus leaving time to ride to and from the race), again with P&O, can cost as little as £19.50. If you go by bike rather than by car you can be certain of a warm welcome from the cycling-obsessed Belgians; if time is of the essence the Eurostar can get you to France in no time at all and driving the remaining distance to the race won't take much longer.

If you can't get to the race, following it is limited to Twitter - however, the good news is that the Lotto Cup has recently launched an official Twitter account, promising updates from and information on all the six races that make up the series. At the time of writing, they have only 79 followers - add yourself to the list and show more race organisers that Twitter is a great way to keep fans informed and that they need to follow the Cup's example.

Karl Lima (manager of the Hitec Products-UCK team) and Richard Steege (Boels-Dolmans mechanic) are both passionate fans of women's cycling and provide regular, informed updates from the races in which their teams take part. Bart Hazen (photographer and journalist) and Anton Vos (brother of Marianne) may also be at the race and are both worth following.

Gracia Orlova 2013

24-28.04.2013 Official Site
Czech Republic, 5-stage Road Race (+ prologue), 413.9km
UCI 2.2

2012 winner Evelyn Stevens

For the sixth stage race of the season (yes, six already!), the peloton stays within Europe and remains at a similar latitude to the Belgian and Dutch races of the last few weeks but heads to the east for one of only two non-National Championship visits to the Czech Republic. Now in its 27th edition, the race was - as you'd expect - dominated by East European and Russian riders in the early years with Angela Ranft (East Germany) winning in 1987 and 1989, Radka Kinclova (Czechoslovakia) in 1988 and 1990, Ildiko Paclova (Czechoslovakia) in 1991, Valentina Gerasimova (Russia) in 1992, Rasa Polikeviciute (Lithuania) in 1993 and Goulnara Fatkulina (Russia) in 1994.

Hanka Kupfernagel (born in East Germany before Reunification) won the first of three consecutive victories in 1995, then in 1998 the race was won by a rider from the West for the first time - the Swiss Marcia Vouets-Eicher. Kupfernagel won again in 1999 and 2000 and remains the most successful rider in this race to the present day, East German-born Judith Arndt won in 2001, 2005, 2006 and 2007, making her the second most successful rider; while another Swiss - Nicole Brändli - won in 2003 and 2004. Marianne Vos is of course among the winners, having recorded the fastest overall times in 2008 and again in 2010; Trixi Worrack, another rider born in East Germany before Reunification, won in 2009. Russians dominated in 2011 with Tatiana Antoshina, Natalia Boyarskaya and Svetlana Bobnenkova taking first, second and third, then in 2012 Evelyn Stevens became the first American winner. British riders have come third twice - Nicole Cooke in 2010 and Sharon Laws in 2012.

The race this year consists of a 2.2km individual time trial prologue, a 105.1km road race, a 26km individual time trial, a 58km road race, a 122,4km road race and a 100.2km road race on a circuit; further details can be found below. For those fans who like to get a really in-depth feel of what the riders face, the good news is that the Gracia Orlova organisers provide what are very possibly the best maps offered by any UCI race - highly detailed and interactive with zoom and other functions, they're comparable to large-scale British Ordnance Survey maps and, although in Czech, are easy to understand. You can find links to them here.

Parcours

Prologue (24.04.2013)

Interactive map here

A short individual time trial of only 2.2km, the prologue takes place in Havířov located in the east of the Republic, only 12km from the Polish border and less than 40km from Slovakia. There's not much in the way of climbing - that 3m ramp at the beginning of the altimetry profile turns out to be only a gentle rise on the road and shouldn't prevent fast starts, but the 12m climb over the final 1km to the finish line will sap the strength of riders who put too much into the first half.

The corners may turn out to be far more daunting. The first is a left into the car parking area; though not tight it's lined with trees on both sides and, if conditions are wet and windy, could be slippery. The second is the left back out of the car park; it also isn't tight, but the road surface isn't in great condition (this may have been improved by race day, of course). The third is the right-hand U-turn at the end of the road where the riders turn back the way they came.

Prologue altimetry - click to enlarge

Prologue Top Three
1 Ellen van Dijk (Specialized-Lululemon)
2 Lisa Brennauer (Specialised-Lululemon)
3 Alexandra Burchenkova (RusVelo)
Time splits and further details to be confirmed

Stage 1 (25.04.2013)

Interactive map here

A 105.1km road race, Stage 1 takes in very different terrain to the Prologue with some big hills in the latter half - nothing like as big as the mountains of Stages 3 and 4, but taste of what lies ahead. After setting out from Dětmarovice the riders travel 18.1km south to Havirov, then swing east to encircle the lake to the south-east of the city. There are plenty of small climbs, some steep but rising no more than 50m or so, along this section.

At 45km, the peloton begins the day's big climb; ascending 260m in 23km gives an average gradient of only a little over 1% but the profile reveals numerous steeper sections, especially towards the highest point at around 510m above sea level - more daunting for the climbing specialists, who in many cases dislike descending, is the road on the other side: it drops 175m in 5km, average gradient -3.5% and steeper in places. Another climb of around 100m begins at 70km, this time with an average gradient of 3.3% - the profile reveals that this one too has steeper sections, with one looking to be something of a wall; the descent is, the climbers will be relieved to see, far less steep than the previous climb.

Stage 1 - click to enlarge

At the bottom of the descent, some 85km from the start, a flatter section with hills no higher than 50m begins and lasts for 17km. This is a good opportunity for climbers to even things up with any heavier riders who might have gained an advantage on those two descents and dangerous ground for sprinters, who'll need to expend energy they'd rather save for the last few kilometres where the day's final climb is waiting. Ascending  100m in 2km, the average gradient is 5% and makes it very likely that this stage will go to a climber - but not without a fight.

Stage 2 (26.04.2013)

Taking place in the morning with the first riders starting out at 9:30, Stage 2 is a 26km "out-and-back" individual time trial - but one with a difference: the riders travel from Havirov to Ostava, return to Havirov and then repeat the journey, making it an "out-and-back-and-out-and-back" time trial.

Havirov, a new town built largely since the end of the Second World War to house mining workers and their families, is but for a few fields contiguous with neighbouring towns Senov, Radvanice a Bartovice and (much larger) Ostrava. The riders would never be able to tell from what they can see along the dual carriageway Route 11 road that forms the entirety of this stage, however, because due to a ridge of low hills running alongside the road very little other than an occasional and very typically Soviet-era concrete towerblock and a handful of modern industrial units little or nothing can be seen of the towns (to British fans, the similarity between this part of the Czech Republic and the more boring bits along the M25 motorway are striking).

Stage 2 - click to enlarge

What is obvious is that although this isn't a flat parcours - there are humps rather than hills, but a couple of sections reach a gradient near 6% - it's a fast one: the road is smooth and in very good condition with only a sweeping bend between the turning points. The lightning-quick time trial specialists are going to light this one up and set some blisteringly fast times; given the right weather conditions, we may see some of them complete the stage in around 30'.

Stage 3 (26.04.2013)

Interactive map here

The time trial specialists had everything their own way this morning, but this afternoon the race is being handed over to the climbers - after 30km with only a couple of small hills, the second half of Stage 3 starts to climb and doesn't stop until it reaches finish line 800m above sea level. In other words, this is a stage for the climbers.

The race sets out once again from Orlova, this time beginning in the north of the town and heading north briefly before turning south-east towards the same lakes seen in Stage 1, then turns south at Stonava and south-west at Albrechtice. It passes Lakes Terlicko and Zermanice before progressing south via Dobra and Nosovice, where the terrain begins to climb more steeply; at Raskovice, with 12.4km to go, the race enters the mountains with the finish line located at the Visalaje ski resort.

Stage 3 - click to enlarge

Stage 4 (27.04.2013)

Like mountains? Then you'll like this stage because, over the course of its 120km, it features four of them - one reaching 1000m with a 6% gradient climb of 600m over 10km to get there, one reaching 800m with a 5.3% climb of 425m in 8km, one to 900m with another 6% climb over 4km before it flattens out slightly over the last kilometre to the summit and a final climb to 550m with a leg-busting 12.5% section over the last kiloemtre to the top. Then there's another very steep, short climb to the finish line, just in case anyone found the rest of the parcours a bit too easy.

Stage 4 - click to enlarge

Stage 5 (28.04.2013)

Interactive map here

The Stage 5 route, winding through Orlova, is only 16.7km long and climbs no higher than 270m above sea level. However, that route must be completed six times, giving a total distance of 100.2km, and the altimetry profile reveals that some of the climbs are very steep indeed - it is very much not an easy day to finish off the race. With the last of these coming in the run-up to the finish line, the race is not likely to end with a bunch sprint.

Stage 6 - click to enlarge

Starters
Riders' numbers have not been published; it's likely that they'll be assigned in this order (since it corresponds with the organisers' start list), with Cramo Go:Green being assigned 1-6, S.C. Michela Fanini-ROX being assigned 10-15, RusVelo 20-25 and so on.


Cramo Go:Green 
Madelene Olsson
Jessica Kihlbom
Isabelle Söderberg
Hanna Nilsson
Martina Thomasson
Mirella Ehrin

S.C. Michela Fanini-ROX
Edwige Pitel
Liisi Rist
Katia Barazna
Mireia Elpelde
Gloria Boldrini
Lara Vieceli

RusVelo
Aizhan Japarova
Aleksandra Burchenkova
Maria Mishina
Elena Bocharnikova
Yulia Blinduk
Anastasiya Chulkova

Faren-Let´s Go Finland 
Marta Bastianelli
Elena Cecchini
Christel Ferrier Bruneau
Fabiana Luperini
Sara Mustonen
Patricia Schwager

Bigla Cycling
Emma Pooley
Andrea Graus
Katarina Hranaiova
Emilie Aubry
Sandra Weiss
Verena Eberhardt

Pacific Toruñ
Katarzyna Niewiadoma
Paulina BrzeŸna-Bentkowska
Monika BrzeŸna
Katarzyna Wilkos
Natalia Franczek

Specialized-Lululemon
Lisa Brennauer
Katie Colclough
Loren Rowney
Evelyn Stevens
Ellen van Dijk
Trixi Worrack

Koga-Central Rhede 
Esther Fennel
Martina Zwick
Elena Eggl
Ronja Köckerling
Lena Köckerling
Christina Koep

Ukraine National Team
Anna Nahirna
Olena Sharha
Ielizaveta Oshurkova
Viktoriia Vologdina
Yevgeniya Vysotska
Ivanna Borovychenko

Peugeot-Start Lublin
Olga Wasiuk
Monika Krawczyk
Kinga Urbaœ
Ksenia Tuhal
Paula Gorycka

E.Leclerc-Klub Polet
Polona Batagelj
Ursa Pintar
Alenka Novak
Ajda Opeka
Urska Kalan
Spela Kern

Ouribike CC Ouriquense
Jutta Stienen
Rute Costa
Andrea Buchel
Aurore Brahier
Joana Patricio
Rita Vigario

Russia National Team
Tatiana Antoshina
Natalia Boyarskaya
Anna Potokina
Marina Likhanova
Alexandra Chekina
Svetlana Stolbova

Team Futurumshop.nl 
Mieke Kroger
Sarah Lena Hofmann
Laura van der Kamp
Anouska Koster
Janine van der Meer
Mascha Pijnenborg

Maxx-Solar
Luisa Beck
Theres Klein
Lisa Fischer
Marie-Therese Ludwig
Reta Trotman
Melanie Wotsch

Norway National Team
Thea Thorsen
Emilie Moberg
Ingrid Lorvik
Elina Brustad
Tina Andreassen
Hildegunn Hovdenak

Squadra Scappatella 
Daniela Gass
Daniela Pintarelli
Christina Perchtold
Sarah Rijkes
Elisabeth Reiner
Claudia Schlager

CK Epic Dohòany
Zuzana Vojtášová
Lívia Hanesová
Monika Kadlecová
Katarína Miškovská
Eszter Dosi
Barbara Benko

Lithuanian National Team
Silvija Latozaite
Egle Poskaite
Kristina Norvaisaite
Milda Jankauskaite
Zavinita Titenyte
Rasa Pocyte

Czech Republic National Team
Denisa Bartošová
Nikola Hlubinková
Lucie Záleská
Martina Rùžièková
Pavlína Šulcová
Martina Sábliková

Czech Mixed Team
Pavla Havlíková
Tereza Trefná
Irena Berková
Lucie Macíková
Veronika Bláhová
Hana Koláøová

Pasta Zara-Cogeas 
Giada Borgato
Rossella Callovi
Inga Cilvinaite
Edita Janeliunaite
Silvija Latozaite
Martina Rùžièková

Poland National Team
Karolina Garczyñska
Paulina Guz
Natalila Milenik
Malgorzata Ziemiñska
Daria Fabiszak
Monika Zur

Team Stuttgart
Martina Ritter
Annabell Öschger
Heike Noever
Ellen Janssen
Gunda Häubler
Elena Büchler

Polish Regional Team
Eugenia Bujak
Edyta Jasiñska
Malgorzata Wojtyra
Natalia Rutkowska
Sabina Napieralska
Katarzyna Kirchenstein

BePink
Alena Amialiusik
Malgorzata Wojtyra
Petra Zrimsek
Dalia Muccioli
Silvia Valsecchi
Daniela Levi

How to follow the race
TV coverage is, of course, not available, leaving Twitter looking the best bet once again.

Weather
It's looking as though the Gracia Orlova is going to treat the riders to the best weather they've seen in any European race so far this season with the temperature rising to 20C for the Prologue, 22C for Stage 1 and then as high as 25C all the way to the end of Stage 4 before Stage 5 drops to a cooler 17C - which will be welcome to some of the riders. With the exception of Saturday which might see some light showers, rain isn't forecast at any time during the race. Wind speeds for the Prologue and Stage 1 will be no greater than 8kph, having little effect on the race, while Stages 2 and 3 may experience gusts of up to 18kph from the south - with much of Stage 3 heading south, this may slow things down especially on the climb. Stage 4 will be much windier with gusts from the west as high as 26kph, while the cooler conditions during Stage 5 will bring a more comfortable north-easterly no stronger than 7kph.

As is always the case, the weather can change rapidly and without warning in mountainous regions, especially at altitude. Spectators at the race should ensure they have adequate clothing for all eventualities and be aware that it can be many degrees colder at the summit of a mountain than at sea level.

Dwars door de Westhoek 2013

21.04.2013 Official Site
Belgium, One-day Road Race, 125.08km
UCI 1.1

Though not one of the better-known races outside Belgium, the Dwars door de Westhoek is a race full of interest: it takes place in a fascinating region full of history and, with numerous sharp corners, technical sections, tough climbs and - the Dwars' speciality - fast and dangerous descents along its compact 125.08km parcours, it's an easy-to-watch introduction to the fast and thrilling character of Flemish racing.

The first and second editions, in 2010 and 2011, were won by the Belgians Liesbeth de Vocht and Grace Verbeke, then the Dutch rider Kim de Baat took the honours in 2012. With 18 UCI teams, twelve clubs teams and national teams taking part, the 2013 edition promised to be another fine battle between the Belgians, the Dutch and the rest and generated a noticeably greater buzz on Twitter, suggesting that this is a race that's going to grow and get better in the coming years.

The Race
(Parcours guide below)
Being as far as they are from the finish line, the climbs select a group from which the eventual winner will be drawn in the Dwars door de Westhoek rather than allow any one rider to build up an insurmountable lead (had it have been otherwise, with the climbs making up more of the parcours or simply nearer to the finish, there's a good chance that Senger's Maaike Polspoel would have taken the top step on the podium - the 24-year-old Belgian looked by far the strongest whenever the road pointed skywards). This year, they did it in cruel fashion by taking fifty riders out of contentention altogether, leaving only two-thirds of the starters to deal with the final rolling 80km.

With unusually good weather, the attacks started the minute the hills had been left behind but these appeared to be attempts by the teams to test the water and put a little more pressure onto rival outfits' sprinters rather than genuine attempts to get riders out in front and none of them came to anything. By the time the last of the four finishing laps began, a bunch sprint still looked the most likely outcome - then Megan Guarnier (Rabobank) exploded out of the pack with what looked like enough strength to take victory. However, with the flat terrain and straight, fast sections left on the final approach, the other teams knew that they could work together to bring her down and did so, catching her with 4km to go.

2013 winner Jolien d'Hoore

With all the remaining riders still together and a fast, cobbled straight to the finish, the stage had been set for a chaotic blast to the line and several riders elected to sit back and ride it out rather than risk a last attack, among them Vera Koedooder (Sengers) who, though she's the sort of rider capable of creating a path through the pack and accelerating to a race-winning pace that allows her wheels to skip over the cobbles, was undoubtedly feeling the effects of her victorious efforts at the Omloop van Borsele, and Lauren Kitchen who, like other members of her Wiggle-Honda team, has been suffering an allergic reaction brought on by the dusty conditions encountered at the Belgian Classics this season. Pauline Ferrand-Prevot (Rabobank), meanwhile, fancied her chances and laid down the power, looking for a moment as though she might win solo; however, Jolien d'Hoore (Lotto-Belisol) and Martine Bras (Boels-Dolmans) were instantly on her case and turned out to have sufficient strength to overpower her, leaving her to take third place while they took first and second.

Top Ten
1 Jolien D'HOORE (Lotto-Belisol)
2 Martine BRAS (Boels-Dolmans)
3 Pauline FERRAND-PREVOT (Rabobank-Liv/Giant)
4 Ine BEYEN (Topsport Vlaanderen-Bioracer)
5 Katarzyne PAWLOWSKA (GSD Gestion-Kallisto)
6 Lucy GARNER (Argos-Shimano)
7 Christelle FERRIER-BRUNEAU (Faren-Let's Go Finland)
8 Elena KUCHINSKAYA (RusVelo)
9 Annette EDMONDSON (Orica-AIS)
10 Loren ROWNEY (Specialized-Lululemon)
Full result

Video credit: CyclingFlash

Video credit: Mr Kittekat

Parcours

Click to enlarge

Looking at Boezinge today, it's difficult to believe that less than a century ago it was almost completely destroyed: lying just to the north of Ieper (better-known to English-speakers as Ypres) it was heavily shelled by both sides during the First World War - there are no fewer than nine British military cemeteries within the town's environs with 5,003 graves, and there are more in the town churchyard. The inhabitants stayed during the First Battle of Ypres but fled during the Second Battle; when the conflict ended, they returned to find virtually nothing was left and had to build wooden huts to live in while they rebuilt the town.

The race begins at the marketplace by the church, which was turned to rubble by shelling, with the riders first heading NNE along the Katspel for 80m until they reach the first left turn - because this is Flanders and the Flemish like their races punishing, this first section is cobbled. Around the corner, on Boezingestraat, the central part of the road is tarmac but there are more cobbles on the right. The road continues SE for 1.34km to a crossroads with Reningsestraat, marking the end of the neutralised section and the beginning of racing just past a row of cottages on the left; a wide right-hand bend just ahead leads into Tuinwijk and Elverdinge, home to an impressive chateau (or kasteel, as they're known in Flemish), where the riders take a wide left-hand bend past a Dexia bank and find themselves on Steenstraat. 75m ahead, at a crossroads, the road becomes D'Ennetieresplein; 160m later a left turn leads onto Sint-Livinusstraat, then 85m after that another right turn carries the race onto Vlamertingsestraat, with a small climb up to and through the wooded section, then a small descent. Just past the woods, on the right, is Vermuelen's Molen - at 29m, the tallest windmill in West Flanders, offering such good views of the surrounding landscape that it was put into use as an observation tower by the Nazis during the Second World War. The mill has been without its sails since 1909, when it was converted to run on electrical power.

Main route profile - click to enlarge

Vlamertingsestraat isn't wide, but the good surface and long straights interspersed by occasional sweeping bends are likely to generate the highest speeds seen so far in the race, making it the ideal place for the peloton to catch and swallow up any early breakaway groups; however, it's also very exposed and wind could create problems. Once in Vlamertinge the road becomes Guido Gezellestraat, then Hugo Verriesstraat after a crossroads as it begins an uncomplicated journey to Reningelst. Bellestraat starts after a level crossing and continues south out of the town with the riders going straight ahead at a roundabout and onto a fast, straight section of 4km to Ouderdom, 10.19km from the start, then another 1.5km to Reningelst - where an annual cycling festival is held. As the riders arrive at the town, a tight right corner leads onto Zevekotestraat; the road surface is covered in tarmac but, in places, it's worn away to reveal the old cobbles beneath - some of which look more than capable of causing punctures. Opposite the church, 340m ahead, is a far less technical left onto Heuvellandsweg, a wide and fast road that will carry the race for 2km to Poperingestraat, becoming Westouterstraat towards the end.

Poperingstraat is also wide and fast, presenting no challenges on the way into Westouter (where the international Edvald Boasson Hagen fanclub is based, incidentally); in the centre of town, just past the AXA bank on the right and before the church on the left, the surface changes from tarmac to cobbles. Reasonably smooth at first, they become rougher after the road forks and the riders keep left for Schomminkelstraat (with the suddenly much narrower route having the potential to cause problems if the entire peloton tries to get down it at once), but the tarmac starts again only a few metres ahead past the patisserie. Schomminkelstraat then passes out of town and into the countryside; it's flat for the first 0.4km, then the race begins climbing Schomminkelberg for the first time, gaining more than 65m over the last 1.1km - an average gradient of 4.4% that reaches 14% at the steepest section. The first riders to the top win the first GPM points of the race - under the name Rodeberg West, the climb is more familiar as one of those in the Gent-Wevelgem race, as is the Rodeberg itself, which continues to climb to 138m above sea level just around the left turn onto Rodebergstraat. Though the road beyond the junction is wide and smooth, it's a challenging climb in its own right and reaches 11% before the woods at the top.

Vermeulen's Molen, the tallest windmill in
West Flanders

Whatever fears Schomminkelberg holds for the sprinters, the Rodeberg descent has greater terrors for the climbers who, being small and lacking the weight needed to control a bike on a fast descent, tend to dislike sharp declines: the 0.9km to the sharp right turn leading onto Dikkebusstraat is even steeper than the ascent, with one part rated -17.6%. If a climber got away on the way up, she could see her advantage turn rapidly into a big disadvantage as heavier riders plunge away. Any rider could see their chance at finishing the race vanish if she fails to brake in time for the corner - not only is it tight, there is plenty of street furniture to hit as the route turns toward Loker, where another cobbled section begins by the church; the cobbles continue after the left turn onto Kemmelbergweg, then end at the right turn onto Godtschalkstraat, a narrow but smooth road running for 1.35km to another right onto Koenraadstraat, 20.6km from the start. Narrow and rough, Koenraadstraat is little more than a farm track; riders stay on it for a kilometre until they reach the smoother two-lane Lettingstraat, then turn left to begin climbing the Monteberg - another hill familiar to fans from Gent-Wevelgem; the average gradient is 7%, the maximum is 13%, just like Schomminkelberg, there are some very steep sections on the descent.

At Kemmel, a left turn leads onto Reningelstraat, a fast 5.8km road ending at a left turn onto Vlamtingerseweg at Reninghelst; 0.2km later the riders arrive back at the right turn onto Zevekotestraat, following the same route as earler via Heuvellandseweg and back to Schomminkelberg and Monteberg. After climbing Monteberg for the second time 41.2km from the start, they turn right on Lettingstraat, heading along Smijterstraat. Just over 820m in length, Smijterstraat's maximum gradient is -6.8%; steep but not excessively so. However, "straat" is somewhat misleading - from the entrance opposite the cafe at the top of Monteberg, it looks more like a narrow footpath than a road, and just a few metres away it drops so suddenly away that it becomes invisible. While the surface is good, the prospect of tackling it among a large pack of riders all travelling at speed is enough to strike fear into the hearts of even the bravest descender, and there are thick, thorny hedges along the first part - a crash caused by a puncture here could send the entire peloton into chaos. It ends with a tight right turn onto Kruisabelestraat, a much wider road where riders who found themselves pushed to the back on Smijterstraat have a chance to fight their way back to the front of the pack. A very tight - but, due to the width of the roads, not especially technical - left carries the race onto Dranouterstraat, 3.5km of smooth, straight tarmac leading to Nieuwkerk and a sharp left onto Seulestraat, which becomes Nieuwkerkstraat after a few metres and remains so for 3km to Wulvergem where an easy right turn finds Dorpstraat some 50km from the start.

Dorpstraat becomes Mesenstraat just outside Wuvlergem, with two small climbs en route for Mesen. The race turns left at a sharp corner on the outskirts of the town, made more dangerous due to the possibility of diesel spillages from trucks visiting the depot just over the road, then progresses along Kruisstraat for 1.85km before coming to an easy right onto Wulvergemstraat, a straight and fast road to Wijtschate. At the end of the road, left leads onto Sint-Medardusplein, a wide urban route with cobbles at the edges of a tarmac central section. Once the riders have left the town behind, the road becomes known as Vierstraat and, after crossing the N331 road, passes through an industrial area. 1.74km from the crossroads is a left turn onto Hallebaststraat; a right turn at another crossroads 0.75km ahead is a right turn leading over Dikkebussweg and into the tiny village of Hallebast where the road becomes Ouderdomseweg. At the end of an unchallenging 1.95km stretch the race turns right onto Vlamertingeseweg; this soon becomes Bellestraat and reverses the same route as earlier to lead into Vlamertinge and over the level crossing (marking 70km from the start), then continues past Vermuelen's Molen into Elverdinge and Tuinwijk before taking Boezingestraat to a point 450m past the official start where a sharp right leads onto the narrow Hynderickstraat - another potentially dangerous spot if too many riders try to take the corner at the same time. A left 1.3km ahead finds Kapellestraat, which continues for 0.9km into Boezinge and a left turn onto Diksmuidseweg and arrives at back at the cobbled start of the neutralised zone after 976m, 78.68km from the start.

Local circuit map - click to enlarge

At the start line, the riders begin the first of four laps of an 11.6km local circuit continue straight ahead for 540m to a left turn onto Ravestraat, following it through countryside for 1.95km to a T-junction with Steenstraat. At the junction they turn left, taking Steenstraat for 3.7km back to Elverdinge where another left leads back onto the Boezingestraat through Tuinwijk, then via the official start and the right turn onto Hynderickstraat to return to the start of the neutral zone in Boezinge. There are numerous good places from which to watch the race along the circuit.

Local circuit altimetry profile - click to enlarge

Trofeo Alfredo Binda-Comune di Cittiglio 2013

UCI Trofeo Binda highlights

24.03.2013 Official Site
Italy, One-day World Cup Road Race, 120.5km
UCI CDM

Binda wins Stage 1, Giro d'Italia 1927

Born on the 11th of August in 1902, Alfredo Binda combined excellence in one-day classics and the mountains of the stage races to become the Giro d'Italia's first star; his record of 41 stage wins not being beaten until 2003, some seventeen years after his death at the age of 83 and almost seven decades since his professional career came to an end. This race is named in his honour because he was born in Cittiglio and died there, on the 19th of July 1986.

The Trofeo Binda is one of the oldest women's races on the calendar, having first been held in 1974 when the Italian Giuseppina Micheloni was victorious; Belgian Nicole van den Broek won the following year, then Italians won every year through until 1996 after which the race was not held for two years. Frenchwoman Fany Lecourtois won in 1999, then Fabiania Luperini (who had also won in 1994) became the last Italian to win with her victory in 2000. Since then, it's been won by riders from a wide range of nations with the British doing especially well - Nicole Cooke won in 2005 and 2007, Emma Pooley in 2008 and 2011. However, as is the case in so many races, the Dutch superstar Marianne Vos has been enormously successful in recent years, dominating in much the same way that Binda dominated the Giro - she won in 2009, 2010 and 2012, now sharing the record for most wins with Maria Canins (1984, 1990, 1992). Canins, who enjoyed an extraordinarily long career (and not only in cycling; she was also National Cross Country Skiing Champion fifteen times), was 42 when she won for the final time; Vos will be near her 26th birthday when the race was run this year and there is every reason to expect her to break the record sooner or later - but it wasn't to be in 2013.

Altimetry profile - click to enlarge

We've had some Belgian and Dutch races with their typically short but painfully steep climbs already this season, but the Trofeo is the first of the mountainous European races - in it, riders face a long climb to the tiny and extremely beautiful mountain village Brinzio at 510m above sea level during the initial 62km, then four ascents of the 450m climb to Orino, the birthplace in 1905 of Battista Visconti who was third behind winner Binda on Stage 11 at the 1928 Giro, in the four 17.3km laps that finish the race. The road climbs still higher on the way out of Brinzio; the total climbing in the race is therefore greater than 2,310m - equal, give or take a few metres, to the famous Livigno Pass in Switzerland. However, the parcours includes a little bit of everything and doesn't favour any one type of rider, making it the perfect territory for an epic battle in which the outcome is far from certain.

The Parcours

Parcours map - click to enlarge

The main section/circuits format is increasingly popular in women's cycling as it both saves expenses for organisers (which can then be spent on advertising, website coverage and so on) and makes it easier for fans to see the race: rather than having to wait for a few moments' excitement as the peloton goes by - not such a problem in men's cycling, which attracts large numbers of devoted fans - spectators can pick a spot on the circuit and see the race go by several times, which is exactly what sponsors want to happen if they're going to put money into an event. This race is split into a main section of 62km and four circuits of 17.3km, all of them starting and ending at Cittiglio.

As the race set out from the Piazzale Alfredo Binda, nothing was certain except one thing - the cold, windy, wet and slippery conditions were likely to ensure a large number of riders abandoned or failed to finish in the permitted time.  The riders first took in a neutralised 6km stretch to Laveno-Mombello on the banks of Lago Maggiore where the racing got underway on the Via XXV Aprile. Much of this section was downhill, causing speeds sufficiently high to spread the peloton along the road in a long, thin ribbon and prevent early breaks as the race headed for the small climbs in the first 13.8km to Cuveglio.

After Cuveglio, the parcours headed mostly downhill for 14.6km and onto the first intermediate sprint at Luino, 28.4km into the race. The following 8.1km to Grantola is mostly flat, not really favouring any one type of rider and ending at the second intermediate sprint - thus far, the terrain had been an evenly-balanced mixture, meaning that neither climbers, sprinters nor all-rounders had yet had opportunity to gain an upper hand, with the pack still sailing along at a rate too high for breaks. It wasn't until the beginning of the first climb, 37km from the start, that a group got away - Shara Gillow (Orica-AIS), Ashleigh Moolman (Lotto-Belisol), Karol-Ann Canuel (Vienne Futuroscope) and Jessie Daams (Boels-Dolmans) put 50" between themselves and the peloton before rival teams decided they were too strong to be allowed to control the race and sent out chasers.

The road continued to climb for 9.6km after Cunardo, taking in a narrow cobbled road at Bedero Valcuvia after 43.9km, then reached the highest point of the race at Castello Cabiaglio 50.8km from the start and 507m above sea level; it's downhill for the next 11.2km to Cittiglio and the end of the main section. Now the riders headed east from Cittiglio, instead of west as they did earlier on the main section, and immediately began climbing the 0.6km to Brenta and on for the next 1.6km to Casalzuigno. The chasers had worked hard and successfully brought back the break by the time the the race turned right for the SP45 to Cuvio, begiining the climbs of 64m in 0.8km to Commachio (average gradient 8%) and then 106m in 2.2km to Orino (average gradient 4.8%) where the first riders to arrive collected GPM points. It had been expected that the climbers would attempt to take control here, but instead they stayed with the group and preserved energy for the last section of the race; then another group escaped. Elisa Longo Borghini (Hitec-UCK) went off after them, caught them and then rode straight past on her own, making a solo break. Amanda Spratt (Orica-AIS) gave chase, but the Italian had found a reserve of strength the other riders lacked and extended her lead as the finish line approached, even proving too fast for Emma Johansson (Orica-AIS) and Ellen van Dijk (Specialized-Lululemon). The 21-year-old, winner of the Youth category at the Giro Donne in 2012, was alone with a comfortable advantage of 1'44" as she crossed the line to become the first Italian since 2000 to win this race, much to the delight of local fans - a splendid victory in what promises to become a glittering career.

A superb win for Elisa Longo Borghini

Johannson and van Dijk took second and third, crossing the line together 1'44" after Longo Borghini. Spratt had persisted in her efforts and took a very respectable fourth place at 1'51" before the main group led by Chantal Blaak (+2'21") arrived with Marianne Vos (Rabo) looking rather out of place in sixth - but the World Champion retains overall lead in the World Cup standings with 99 points after two competitions. Johansson is second with 85 points, van Dijk is third, also with 85 points. Longo Borghini moves into fourth place with 75 points.

Out of 160 starters, 94 did not finish.

Results

1 Elisa Longo Borghini (Ita) Hitec Products-UCK 3h12'16" 
2 Emma Johansson (Swe) Orica-AIS +01'44" 
3 Eleonora Van Dijk (Ned) Specialized-Lululemon  
4 Amanda Spratt (Aus) Orica-AIS +01'51" 
5 Chantal Blaak (Ned) TIBCO-To The Top +02'21" 
6 Marianne Vos (Ned) Rabobank Liv/Giant  
7 Annemiek Van Vleuten (Ned) Rabobank Liv/Giant  
8 Rossella Ratto (Ita) Hitec Products-UCK  
9 Anna Van Der Breggen (Ned) Sengers    
10 Carmen Small (USA) Specialized-Lululemon  
11 Loes Gunnewijk (Ned) Orica-AIS  
12 Lisa Brennauer (Ger) Specialized-Lululemon  
13 Lauren Kitchen (Aus) Wiggle-Honda  
14 Marijn De Vries (Ned) Lotto-Belisol  
15 Christel Ferrier-Bruneau (Fra) Faren-Let's Go Finland Team  
16 Tiffany Cromwell (Aus) Orica-AIS  
17 Alena Amialiusik (Blr) BePink  
18 Adrie Visser (Ned) Boels-Dolmans    
19 Lucie Pader (Fra) France  
20 Inga Cilvinaite (Ltu) Pasta Zara-Cogeas  
21 Ana Bianca Schnitzmeier (Ger) Wiggle-Honda  
22 Jessie Daams (Bel) Boels-Dolmans    
23 Ashleigh Moolman (RSA) Lotto Belisol  
24 Tatiana Antoshina (Rus) MCipollini-Giordana  
25 Megan Guarnier (USA) Rabobank Liv/Giant  
26 Alexandra Burchenkova (Rus) RusVelo  
27 Tatiana Guderzo (Ita) MCipollini Giordana  
28 Trixi Worrack (Ger) Specialized-Lululemon  
29 Karol-Ann Canuel (Can) Vienne Futuroscope  
30 Tetyana Ryabchenko (Ukr) Chirio Forno d'Asolo +02'28" 
31 Georgia Williams (NZl) BePink  
32 Claudia Hausler (Ger) TIBCO-To The Top  
33 Alizee Brien (Can) GSD Gestion-Kallisto  
34 Fabiana Luperini (Ita) Faren-Let's Go Finland +02'32"  
35 Maaike Polspoel (Bel) Sengers   +03'08"  
36 Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Pol) Poland  
37 Pauline Ferrand Prevot (Fra) Rabobank Liv/Giant +03'12"  
38 Shara Gillow (Aus) Orica-AIS +03'38" 
39 Katarzyna Wilkos (Pol) Poland +04'07"  
40 Monika Brzezna (Pol) Poland  
41 Paulina Brzezna-Bentkowska (Pol) Poland  
42 Francesca Cauz (Ita) Top Girls Fassa Bortolo +04'18"  
43 Emily Collins (NZl) Wiggle-Honda +05'07" 
44 Mayuko Hagiwara (Jpn) Wiggle-Honda  
45 Barbara Guarischi (Ita) Vaiano Fondriest +05'17" 
46 Agne Silinyte (Ltu) Pasta Zara-Cogeas  
47 Rozanne Slik (Ned) Netherlands  
48 Liisi Rist (Est) S.C. Michela Fanini-Rox  
49 Ursa Pintar (Slo) Slovenia  
50 Katazina Sosna (Ltu) Vaiano Fondriest  
51 Joanne Hogan (Aus) Bizkaia-Durango +05'22"  
52 Alexia Muffat (Fra) France +05'23"
53 Rossella Callovi (Ita) Pasta Zara-Cogeas +05'29" 
54 Martina Ruzickova (Cze) Pasta Zara-Cogeas  
55 Willeke Knol (Ned) Argos-Shimano  
56 Christine Majerus (Lux) Sengers  
57 Elodie Hegoburu (Fra) France +05'37"  
58 Amelie Rivat (Fra) Vienne Futuroscope  
59 Sophie De Baer (Ned) Netherlands  
60 Valentina Carretta (Ita) MCipollini-Giordana +05'40"  
61 Anna Sanchis Chafer (Spa) Bizkaia-Durango  
62 Simona Frapporti (Ita) BePink  
63 Gracie Elvin (Aus) Orica-AIS  
64 Julia Soek (Ned) Sengers +05'59"  
65 Noemi Cantele (Ita) BePink +06'08"  
66 Aizhan Zhaparova (Rus) RusVelo +06'20" 
DNF Lucinda Brand (Ned) Rabobank Liv/Giant  
DNF Roxane Knetemann (Ned) Rabobank Liv/Giant  
DNF Katie Colclough (GBr) Specialized-Lululemon  
DNF Cecilie Gotaas Johnsen (Nor) Hitec Products-UCK  
DNF Rachel Neylan (Aus) Hitec Products-UCK  
DNF Emilia Fahlin (Swe) Hitec Products-UCK  
DNF Giada Borgato (Ita) Pasta Zara-Cogeas  
DNF Silvija Latozaite (Ltu) Pasta Zara-Cogeas  
DNF Elizabeth Armitstead (GBr) Boels-Dolmans  
DNF Martine Bras (Ned) Boels-Dolmans    
DNF Marieke Van Wanroij (Ned) Boels-Dolmans  
DNF Emma Trott (GBr) Boels-Dolmans  
DNF Elena Kuchinskaya (Rus) RusVelo  
DNF Maria Mishina (Rus) RusVelo  
DNF Elena Bocharnikova (Rus) RusVelo  
DNF Kozonchuk Oxana (Rus) RusVelo  
DNF Sara Grifi (Ita) MCipollini-Giordana  
DNF Valentina Scandolara (Ita) MCipollini-Giordana  
DNF Marta Tagliaferro (Ita) MCipollini-Giordana  
DNF Silvia Valsecchi (Ita) BePink  
DNF Dalia Muccioli (Ita) BePink  
DNF Ella Michal (Isr) Lotto-Belisol  
DNF Carlee Taylor (Aus) Lotto-Belisol  
DNF Celine Van Severen (Bel) Lotto-Belisol  
DNF Charlotte Becker (Ger) Argos-Shimano  
DNF Lucy Gerner (GBr) Argos-Shimano  
DNF Elke Gebhardt (Ger) Argos-Shimano  
DNF Giorgia Bronzini (Ita) Wiggle-Honda  
DNF Beatrice Bartelloni (Ita) Wiggle-Honda  
DNF Evelyn Arys (Bel) Sengers  
DNF Sofie De Vuyst (Bel) Sengers  
DNF Jasmin Glaesser (Can) TIBCO-To The Top  
DNF Rushlee Buchanan (NZl) TIBCO-To The Top  
DNF Shelley Olds (USA) TIBCO-To The Top  
DNF Samantha Schneider (USA) TIBCO-To The Top  
DNF Marta Bastianelli (Ita) Faren-Let's Go Finland  
DNF Elena Cecchini (Ita) Faren-Let's Go Finland  
DNF Sara Mustonen (Swe) Faren-Let's Go Finland    
DNF Patricia Schwager (Swi) Faren-Let's Go Finland  
DNF Edwige Pitel (Fra) S.C. Michela Fanini-Rox  
DNF Katsiaryna Barazna (Blr) S.C. Michela Fanini-Rox  
DNF Mireia Epelde Bikendi (Spa) S.C. Michela Fanini-Rox  
DNF Gloria Boldrini (Ita) S.C. Michela Fanini-Rox  
DNF Azzurra D'Intino (Ita) S.C. Michela Fanini-Rox  
DNF Anna Trevisi (Ita) Vaiano Fondriest  
DNF Valentina Bastianelli (Ita) Vaiano Fondriest  
DNF Alessandra D'Ettore (Ita) Vaiano Fondriest  
DNF Aleksandra Sosenko (Ltu) Vaiano Fondriest  
DNF Sarah Lena Hofmann (Ger) Team Polaris  
DNF Mascha Pijnenborg (Ned) Team Polaris  
DNF Janine Van Der Meer (Ned) Team Polaris  
DNF Aurore Verhoeven (Fra) Team Polaris  
DNF Katarzyna Pawlowska (Pol) GSD Gestion-Kallisto  
DNF Mayra Del Rocio Rocha (Mex) GSD Gestion-Kallisto  
DNF Lina Kristin Schink (Ger) GSD Gestion-Kallisto  
DNF Charlene Delev (Ger) GSD Gestion-Kallisto  
DNF Jessica Allen (Aus) Vienne Futuroscope  
DNF Oriane Chaumet (Fra) Vienne Futuroscope  
DNF Audrey Cordon (Fra) Vienne Futuroscope  
DNF Manon Souyris (Fra) Vienne Futuroscope  
DNF Lilibeth Chacon Garcia (Ven) Bizkaia-Durango  
DNF Dorleta Eskamendi Gil (Spa) Bizkaia-Durango  
DNF Mayalen Noriega (Spa) Bizkaia-Durango  
DNF Ane Santesteban Gozales (Spa) Bizkaia-Durango  
DNF Daniela Gass (Ger) Squadra Scappatella  
DNF Larissa Ratkic (Aut) Squadra Scappatella  
DNF Christina Perchtold (Aut) Squadra Scappatella  
DNF Julia Hilber (Aut) Squadra Scappatella  
DNF Elena Berlato (Ita) Top Girls Fassa Bortolo  
DNF Jennifer Fiori (Ita) Top Girls Fassa Bortolo  
DNF Irene Bitto (Ita) Top Girls Fassa Bortolo  
DNF Francesca Stefani (Ita) Top Girls Fassa Bortolo  
DNF Elena Valentini - Top Girls Fassa Bortolo  
DNF Marina Lari (Ita) Servetto Footon  
DNF Maria Cristina Nisi (Ita) Servetto Footon  
DNF Corinna Defile' (Ita) Servetto Footon  
DNF Veronica Cornolti (Ita) Servetto Footon  
DNF Simona Bortolotti (Ita) Servetto Footon  
DNF Roberta Tasca (Ita) Servetto Footon  
DNF Uenia Fernandes Da Souza (Bra) Chirio Forno d'Asolo  
DNF Egle Zablockyte (Ltu) Chirio Forno d'Asolo  
DNF Elena Sitsko (Blr) Chirio Forno d'Asolo  
DNF Julia Martisova (Rus) Chirio Forno d'Asolo  
DNF Jessica Uebelhart (Swi) Chirio Forno d'Asolo  
DNF Charlotte Lenting (Ned) Netherlands  
DNF Winanda Spoor (Ned) Netherlands  
DNF Melanie Bravard (Fra) France  
DNF Eva Mottet (Fra) France  
DNF Ludivine Loze (Fra) France  
DNF Polona Batagelj (Slo) Slovenia  
DNF Alenka Novak (Slo) Slovenia  
DNF Ajda Opeka (Slo) Slovenia  
DNF Spela Kern (Slo) Slovenia  
DNF Urska Kalan (Slo) Slovenia