Tour of Flanders 2025 for women: Lippert finishes third in Kopecky's victory
Thomas Huber
· 06.04.2025
After 2022 and 2023, Lotte Kopecky (Team SD Worx - Protime) can celebrate for the third time at the Tour of Flanders. This makes the Belgian rider the first female rider to win the Belgian classic for the third time. With 17 kilometres to go, Kopecky broke away together with Katarzyna Niewiadoma (CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto), Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) and Liane Lippert (Movistar Team). Kopecky had the fastest legs in the final sprint of the four riders. She rode the sprint confidently from the front and came out clearly ahead of Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Liane Lippert, who secured the podium places.
Strong Lippert finishes third
When first Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and then Lotte Kopecky pressed the pedals on the race-deciding climb up the Oude Kwaremont, Liane Lippert was always the first rider to seek out the rear wheel of the leaders. The German had no problems following the best riders on the long ramp and breaking away with Kopecky, Ferrand-Prévot and Niewiadoma. The quartet then defended their leading position and came onto the finishing straight as a unit.
Niewiadoma attacked early, but was unable to surprise her rivals. Kopecky then rode her sprint confidently from the front, while Ferrand-Prévot was on her rear wheel. Lippert, on the other hand, moved out from last position and tried to overtake her rivals on the left. In the end, however, she lacked Kopecky's slipstream, which Ferrand-Prévot was able to capitalise on. Kopecky was the clear winner, while Ferrand-Prévot snatched second place from Lippert by the skin of her teeth. Niewiadoma took a thankless fourth place.
"It was a crazy race right from the start. I tried to stay calm. My legs felt better and better as the race went on. When I was able to pull away with the three riders in the final, I was very confident that I could win the race." - Lotte Kopecky in the winner interview
The results of the women's Tour of Flanders 2025
Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres WE: Oudenaarde - Oudenaarde
Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres WE 2025: Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres WE, Oudenaarde - Oudenaarde
| Rnk. | Riders | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Team SD Worx - Protime | 04:24:34 |
| 2 | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | +00:00:00 |
| 3 | Movistar Team | +00:00:00 |
| 4 | CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto | +00:00:01 |
| 5 | AG Insurance - Soudal Team | +00:01:13 |
| 6 | EF Education-Oatly | +00:01:13 |
How the women's Tour of Flanders 2025 went
The conditions at the Tour of Flanders 2025 were sunny, with the start and finish of the 169-kilometre route in Oudenaarde. The race was on fire from the start. There were several crashes, including Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck), who fell but was able to continue. Simone Boilard (Uno-X Mobility) was worse off, having to abandon the race early on. After several attempts to escape, a leading group of seven riders formed for the day. Two German riders were among them: Romy Kasper (Human Powered Health) and Franziska Brauße (CERATIZIT Pro Cycling Team). From then on, the racing situation stabilised and the race became calmer. The breakaway got a maximum lead of just over seven minutes.
Longo Borghini crashes and has to retire
The race picked up speed again as it headed towards the first cobbled sectors and slip roads. And the crashes continued. This time it hit one of the top favourites: Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) slipped on a bend during a descent and crashed badly. The Italian had to leave the race. Lorena Wiebes (Team SD Worx - Protime) also sat on the seat of her trousers for a while.
The leading group lost more and more ground on the challenging cobblestone sections. In addition, Romy Kasper was struggling with mechanical problems and dropped out of the escape group. From then on, more and more riders had problems at the front: first Alison Avione (St Michel - Preference Home - Auber93 WE) dropped out, then Brausse also fell back. With 55 kilometres to go, only one rider remained at the front. It was Nicole Steigenga (AG Insurance - Soudal Team).
Peloton thins out extremely
In the meantime, the peloton had taken things seriously and not only presented the breakaway riders with a huge hurdle. Many riders in the peloton were also unable to keep up with the high pace during the tough climbs. With 40 kilometres to go, Steigenga was dropped, while only the best riders in the front of the peloton were able to hold on. The peloton was down to around 25 riders.
The finale was heralded in succession. There were attacks from Mischa Brerdewold (Team SD Worx - Protime), but Liane Lippert and Ellen van Dijk (Lidl - Trek) also tested the legs of the competition. At the Oude Kwaremont 17 kilometres before the finish, Ferrand-Prévot and then Kopecky launched the decisive attack. The two riders took Niewiadoma and Lippert with them, who were then able to break away and could no longer be caught. The quartet decided the victory among themselves. Kopecky won the women's Tour of Flanders 2025 in the final sprint, with Ferrand-Prévot and Lippert finishing on the podium.
