World Rankings – Women’s Elite: Vollering almost twice as good as the competition

Behind Vollering, who won the ranking by a clear margin, Kasia Niewiadoma and Paula Blasi finished in second and third place respectively. Whilst the leader scored 9,330 points, the Polish competitor behind her scored 5,660. The gaps further down the field are considerably smaller. Last year, Vollering was separated from second-placed Lorena Wiebes by just 300 points. This time, Wiebes finished in fifth place.

Franziska Koch finished in tenth place with 3,278.67 points. She is the first German woman since Liane Lippert in 2023 to be ranked among the top ten women at the end of the season.

Points system reform at the UCI

However, comparisons with previous years should be treated with caution. This is particularly true of the absolute points total, which Vollering has achieved this year, significantly exceeding Lotte Kopecky’s previous all-time best of 6,389 points set last year. The reason for this is the UCI’s points reform introduced this season, which now aligns with the men’s system. Until 2025, 400 points were awarded for victory in every WorldTour race, regardless of whether it was a stage race or a one-day race, and regardless of whether it was the Tour de France Femmes or the Classic Lorient Agglomération.

Since this season, however, a victory in the Tour is worth significantly more – a whopping 1,300 points. The new points allocation is no longer based solely on the race’s category, but also on its prestige. The overall victory in the Giro and the Vuelta is worth 1,100 points, whilst the most important one-day races, such as Paris–Roubaix or Liège–Bastogne–Liège, are worth 800.

What can certainly be seen from the rolling 52-week ranking is that Vollering, who is topping the world rankings at the end of the year for the third time – as was also the case in 2023 – by far the most successful woman in the peloton was. Her victories in the Tour and the Giro alone – including stage wins in both stage races, which also yield a substantial haul of 210 and 180 points respectively – as well as her wins at Liège, the Tour of Flanders and the World Championships (worth 900 points) would have secured her the top spot. And there were others as well.

Niewiadoma, who also had a strong season but often finished second behind Vollering, managed to secure just one victory during the calendar year – even though that one came on Mont Ventoux in the Tour no matter how impressive it was. However, second place is worth significantly fewer points, which ultimately explains the large gap between him and Vollering in the world rankings.

​World rankings for elite women at the end of the 2026 season

1. Demi Vollering (FDJ United – SUEZ), 9,330 points
2. Kasia Niewiadoma (CANYON//SRAM), 5,660 points
3. Paula Blasi (UAE Team L’IMAD), 5201.33 points
4. Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team L’IMAD), 5,109.33 points
5. Lorena Wiebes (Team SD Worx – Protime), 4,935 points
6. Anna van der Breggen (Team SD Worx - Protime), 4,054 points
7. Lotte Kopecky (Team SD Worx - Protime), 3,690 points
8. Marlen Reusser (Movistar Team), 3,669.67 points
9. Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech), 3,424 points
10. Franziska Koch (FDJ United – SUEZ), 3,278.67 points