As a good cannibal, Marianne Vos has devoured hundreds of successes on the roads, tracks and other cycling theaters that have seen her impose her superior talent for more than 15 years. Wherever the wheels of women’s cycling have touched down in the 21st century, the Dutchwoman has triumphed. With one major exception: Roubaix and its legendary André Pétrieux velodrome.
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“Paris-Roubaix is one of the greatest races in the history of cycling“, she observes today. It’s great to be a part of that, but I saw last year that it was a really tough race and it probably will be again. It helps to know what to expect. Until last year, we only knew Paris-Roubaix on TV.“
Marianne Vos
Credit: Getty Images
A great first
Little Marianne caught the cycling virus at the age of 6, in the wake of her brother Anton. The Netherlands were then looking for a successor to Jan Raas and Hennie Kuiper, successive winners in Roubaix in 1982 and 1983. The wait oranje was to be rewarded in 2001 with the success of Servais Knaven in an edition that marked memories thanks to the rain and because of the fall of Philippe Gaumont in the gap of Arenberg.
Vos was not even 14 at the time, but his talent was starting to make a splash in his town of ‘s-Hertogenbosch (‘s-Hertogenbosch, in Dutch, a great land of cyclo-cross), before conquering the province of North Brabant, and soon the whole country, quickly followed by the whole world. But he had to wait two more decades to thrill the public fascinated by his sharp trajectories on the muddy cobblestones of Mons-en-Pévèle or the Carrefour de l’Arbre.
Upon arrival, the Cannibal could only be satisfied with her second place: “We did what we could and Lizzie Deignan led a very courageous attack (…). Overall, it was great to do Paris-Roubaix.”
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Balsamo: “An example for everyone”
A week earlier, it was already the second place that awaited him at the finish of the road world championship. The “Goat” ( (“Greatest of all time”) has more often won money there (6 times, including an incredible series of 5 2nd places between her first title, in 2006 , and the 2nd, in 2012) than gold, but she also knows how to distinguish herself in defeat.
She is not only a champion on the bike, but also a great person, very humble”, confides the current holder of the rainbow, Elisa Balsamo. Carried away by her emotions as world champion just crowned, the Italian was then chaperoned by her Dutch eldest, who notably bowed to adjust her rival’s socks and make the azzurro shine as best as possible on the Louvain podium. .
Younger than Vos by 11, Balsamo displays a dazzling smile and absolute admiration for the Batavian pioneer: “On one of my first pro races, I asked to take a picture with her. So be on the podium by her side [et même une marche au-dessus, ndlr], it’s extraordinary. I remember his incessant attacks at the Worlds when I was little… I was always impressed by his ability to win any type of race. I think she is an example for everyone in the peloton.”
The legend: 16 years after the first, Vos wins his 8th world title in cyclo-cross
The “Goat” did not wait for the “Queen”
Balsamo herself has developed great versatility which enabled her to take two medals (silver and bronze) at the last World Championships on the track, also held in Roubaix. And she was able to see her idol win a thirteenth rainbow jersey (8 in cyclo-cross, 3 on the road, 2 on the track), on the Fayetteville circuit, sixteen years after her first world title, at the age 18 years old.
It’s incredible“, had commented Vos without pouring out on the historical scope of this new triumph, which occupies a nice place alongside his two Olympic titles (on track in 2008, on road in 2012). When she takes a step back on the journey accomplished since her first laps with Anton, now a photographer specializing in cycling, the pride rises: “Through my career I can drive women’s cycling forward, become a voice for bigger events, more race days, equal treatment.”
The Dutch star did not wait for the “Queen of the Classics” to open up to women to establish herself as the “Goat” of her sport. And this “hole” in her fertile track record will not be enough to improve her legend, while the Jumbo-Visma women’s project, born around her last season, could well be the last of her career.
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