“The fact that we came one and two again with the team makes this edition even more special,” said an elated Lotte Kopecky on Sunday. Not only had the Belgian star conquered the Ronde van Vlaanderen for the second successive year, but she was joined on the podium by her partner Demi Vollering, underlining Team SD Worx’ dominance this season. Kopecky had already brought the Dutch powerhouse their first UCI Women’s WorldTour Classic of the season at the end of February, in the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. Since then, three other riders have claimed major wins for Team SD Worx at the highest level of road racing.
Lotte Kopecky the Belgian icon
The 2022 Classics campaign had already launched Lotte Kopecky into a unique stardom, especially with her triumph in the Ronde van Vlaanderen with the Belgian National Champion’s jersey on her shoulders. What about 2023? The powerful Flandrien seems unstoppable, with three landmark successes in five races so far this season.
As soon as she returned to competition on the road at the end of February (she had previously taken a gold medal at the UEC European Track Championships), Kopecky left all her rivals behind to take the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, ahead of her teammate Lorena Wiebes.
In Strade Bianche, she came 2nd, narrowly edged by another teammate, Vollering. And she went on to take a very special and emotional win in Danilith Nokere Koerse, only a few days after her brother passed away.
"It seemed like we were riding with 2 today, I felt super strong", said @LotteKopecky after her impressive solo, honoring her brother by winning @NokereKoerse.
— Team SD Worx (@teamsdworx) March 15, 2023
Read the race report 👇https://t.co/dkpanRs2Y0#wesparksuccess
📸 @gettysport pic.twitter.com/Q5efNcoa5g
Kopecky is now only the second rider ever to retain her victory in the Ronde van Vlaanderen, after the Dutchwoman Mirjam Melchers did so in 2006. The Belgian star is cementing her unique place in the history of cycling.
Lorena Wiebes: the Flying Dutchwoman
After she moved from Team DSM, the squad that powered her to many early conquests, to SD Worx, which she joined this offseason for the next three years, Lorena Wiebes hasn’t slowed down one bit. She soon took her first victory with her new team, on stage 2 of the first UAE Tour, and she also quickly found her part in the Team SD Worx harmony for the Classics.
While her teammates shake the race with aggression, Wiebes remains a poison for the peloton, who are unable to get rid of her and prevent her lethal acceleration in the final sprint, with the notable exceptions of the Trofeo Alfredo Binda – Comune di Cittiglio, dominated by Shirin van Anrooij and Trek-Segafredo, and Classic Brugge-De Panne, where Pfeiffer Georgi (Team DSM) got the better of everyone.
Second behind Kopecky in the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Wiebes played the same part and finished in the same position in Danilith Nokere Koerse. She also helped Kopecky to make the difference and claim victory in Flanders. And she sprinted to glory in the Omloop van het Hageland and, at UCI Women’s WorldTour level, in the Miron Ronde van Drenthe, having now won the Dutch Classic the last three years.
Demi Vollering: the Oranje successor
At 26 years old, Demi Vollering is a well-established figure among the peloton’s best puncheurs and climbers. The iconic Anna van der Breggen had identified Vollering as her successor for the Ardennes Classics, to the point that AVDB sacrificed herself to lead Vollering to victory in the 2021 Liège-Bastogne-Liège. The young Dutch climber was also the rival who fought the hardest against Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team Women) in the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.
At the time, Vollering insisted on how much she could build from her groundbreaking performances over the climbs of France. This Classics campaign shows how far her skills and confidence can lead her.
Over the hills and white roads of Strade Bianche, she went alone with Kopecky and eventually got the better of her Belgian partner up the final climb in Sienna. She went on to win Dwars door Vlaanderen / à Travers La Flandre, on her own, and this Sunday, she raised her arms as she outsprinted the field to take 2nd at the Ronde van Vlaanderen behind Kopecky.
Marlen Reusser: the Swiss train
Marlen Reusser came late to professional cycling but quickly established herself as one of the most impressive riding machines in the peloton, a phenomenal teammate and now a spectacular winner.
The Swiss rouleur was one of the main stars of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift last year, with a solo victory highlighting her specific skills. Reusser isn’t as punchy as her Team SD Worx partners. But her raw power can grant her victory against the clock or alone against the field.
At Gent-Wevelgem in Flanders Fields, she covered the last 40km on her own and put a massive 2’42’’ between herself and the peloton. Over the hills of the Ronde van Vlaanderen, she was the last teammate to launch Kopecky towards victory. Reusser and Team SD Worx can do it all.