Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx - Protime) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) pulled away from the competition eleven kilometres before the finish on the 137-kilometre route with start and finish in Siena and rode ahead in pairs. In the final kilometre, it was the Belgian who won the race with a spirited attack.
Kopecky keeps a low profile for a long time
From a leading group of over 20 riders, the co-favourites Demi Vollering and Katarzyna Niewiadoma in particular repeatedly stepped up the pace and tried to pull away from the competition. As a result, the leading group became thinner and thinner. However, Lotte Kopecky rarely had trouble keeping up with the leaders. Eleven kilometres before the finish, it was the Belgian who, together with Longo Borghini, made a breakaway, while the other rivals had to let go. The Italian then had to keep up the pace again and again - Kopecky then took advantage of this in the final kilometre. By stepping up the pace, she left Longo Borghini standing almost playfully and took the victory with superiority.
"I didn't have my best day today and suffered a lot. I felt tired." - Lotte Kopecky in the winner's interview about her form on the day
Women's Strade Bianche 2024 - Results: Top 10
- Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx - Protime) 3:55:43
- Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) +0:04
- Demi Vollering (SD Worx - Protime) +0:26
- Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM Racing) +0:26
- Shirin van Anrooij (Lidl-Trek) +0:40
- Kristen Faulkner (EF Education-Cannondale) +0:41
- Riejanne Markus (Visma | Lease a Bike) +1:01
- Elise Chabbey (Canyon//SRAM Racing) +1:54
- Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) +1:54
- Evita Muzic (FDJ-Suez) +1:54
"I felt confident and waited a bit before I started. I think it was a good moment." - Lotte Kopecky in the winner's interview about her decisive increase in pace
How the women's Strade Bianche 2024 went
The pace in the race was fast, so that potential breakaways had problems pulling away. In the peloton, it was not only the SD Worx - Protime team that set the pace, Fenix-Deceuninck and Uno-X Mobility also showed up at the front at times and ensured high speeds.
With 55 kilometres to go, there was an attack from the peloton, which meant that eleven riders made their escape: Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx - Protime), Elizabeth Deignan (Lidl-Trek) and Neve Bradbury (Canyon//SRAM Racing) were among the prominent members of the leading group.
Favourites react to dangerous breakaway group
It didn't take long for Lotte Kopecky to react to the breakaway: 43 kilometres before the finish she came out of the peloton on a climb, forming a chasing group of around ten riders around the favourites Demi Vollering (SD Worx - Protime), Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM Racing), Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck), Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Lotte Kopecky.
Bredewold then crashed on a descent 38 kilometres from the finish, after which the leading group split up. From then on, Amber Kraak (FDJ-Suez), Riejanne Markus (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Alena Amialiusik (UAE Team ADQ) rode three abreast at the front. The remaining riders in the former leading group were subsequently caught by the chasers. A short time later, the three leaders were also caught by the chasers.
Kopecky and Longo Borghini set themselves apart
Katarzyna Niewiadoma stepped up the pace 12 kilometres before the finish, so that Longo Borghini, Kopecky, Vollering and Niewiadoma then rode to the front. Shortly afterwards, it was Lotte Kopecky who was then able to break away with Elisa Longo Borghini after a two-up attack. Her two rivals had to let go and paid tribute for their previous attacks.
Kopecky won the race in the final kilometre, while Longo Borghini had to settle for second place. In the final sprint for third place, Vollering crossed the finish line just ahead of Niewiadoma.
