Hard work at training camps in May appear to have paid off for Annemiek van Vleuten (the Netherlands) and Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland). Both have just become National Champions – Annemiek in the time trial, and Kasia in both the time trial and road race. They look forward to wearing their national jerseys for the next year.
To tell the truth, I hate time trials! And I hate time trial training. I think a lot of us have a love-hate relationship with time trialling. You have to push yourself over the limit and it really hurts. The best is when you can get into a flow, which is what happened to me at the nationals, but that is not always possible.
But having the red white and blue national jersey will make waking up for time trial training a lot easier. It is a huge motivation to be wearing that jersey. The National Championships were really important for me this year and that’s why I chose not to race the Aviva Womens Tour, so I could taper.
It was a 30km time trial and, as I said above, I was in a flow for the first 15km and couldn’t feel my legs. I could see that I was riding at more than 50km/h and I thought it wasn’t possible. Then I heard I was more than a minute up at the half-way mark. I was struggling a bit more in the second half but I gave it everything I had. I realised I could become National Champion so I didn’t take any risks in the corners. And I still finished with a lead of 1m41 over the silver medallist Chantal Blaak. My average speed was 48.2km/h which would have put me in fourth place in the Men Under-23 competition. That shows that women’s cycling is getting more and more professional. The level is higher and we are getting closer to the men. I’m proud of that. At 33 years old I’m discovering what I’m good at!
It’s not often you get to win, and it was very important to me to enjoy the moment, which I certainly did with family and friends. There was only one day between the time trial and the road race so it was difficult to refocus.
The road race was flat and not at all technical, whereas I prefer racing in the hills where I can make a difference. This race was a team game and I was alone so I was at a disadvantage. But I still gave it my all and I enjoyed racing, knowing that I already had a national jersey in my pocket.
Now it’s 100% focus on Rio. I am training in Trepalle in Italy, at 2300m altitude. There is only one hotel here and nothing to do except train, eat, sleep and rest. Mentally it is important to have this quiet time with no stress and plenty of good books to read.
I know I’m in good shape but I want to get into even better shape. I’m experienced and I know what I have to do. The test will be the Internationale Thüringen Rundfahrt der Frauen in Germany from July 15 to 21…
I have hoped and dreamed of becoming National Champion. I used to look at the girls wearing the Polish national jersey and it looked so nice. Now I get to wear it for a whole year – in the time trial and the road race!
I thought I could do well in the time trial but you never know in the road race. Anything can happen. The course was pretty hard and I attacked on the first climb. For 100km there were just two of us. It was one of the hardest races I’ve ever done, but from the start I felt very strong. I felt that I could do what I wanted on the climbs. It was a breakaway of just two but I kept telling myself that I was here to win, not to come second.
In the road race you have the advantage of being able to see the other contenders, their facial expressions and whether they are suffering. In the time trial you’re alone and you have to be careful not to go too full-on at the beginning.
Winning the road race was a lot more emotional for me than the time trial. My family and supporters were there making a lot of noise. I could hear them on the course during the race.
It’s so good to see the results after my training camp in Sierra Nevada. It was all worth it, and I can feel I can suffer longer. It’s still really painful but I can cope with it better.
My first race after training camp was the Giro del Trentino Alto Adige – Südtirol, in Italy, where I won the first stage and the overall. Then I knew that I was in good shape.
After three wins, I am at home in Poland this week recovering from all the racing and travelling. It’s so good to be back home. Dad is building me a special wardrobe for my national jerseys! And I get to spend time with my brand new nephew who was born on June 18, the day I won the first stage of the Giro del Trentino. He is just so cute.
I will do some short, intensive training this week but not too much because on Friday (July 1st) is the start of the 10-day Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile. It is one of my biggest goals and I think it is for a lot of the girls. We know we have a hard course in Rio and everyone wants to see how they are on the climbs.
My aim is to be in the top three of the General Classification. And it would be so nice to win a stage in my Polish national jersey.