13 Aug 2023 at 05:06
Demi Vollering and Lotte Kopecky are teammates all year round. Except Sunday. At the road race of the World Cycling Championships in Glasgow, it can just become a duel between the Dutch and the Belgian, who are the two top favorites.
In the past week, the SD Worx group app received many congratulations and smileys for Kopecky, who won two gold medals and one bronze medal at the Track Cycling World Championships. “Yes, I just reacted,” says Vollering with a smile.
As teammates, Vollering and Kopecky often kept the women’s peloton in an iron grip this season. Two weeks ago they finished first and second respectively in the Tour de France Femmes.
But on Sunday they will be competitors for a while. And on paper they are the strongest contenders for the rainbow jersey on the explosive and technical round in Glasgow city centre.
“Lotte is a teammate that I like. That always makes these kinds of competitions difficult,” says Vollering. “But that doesn’t mean I was less happy when I saw her win on track. And if she wins on Sunday, I will be happy for her too, although it would of course be very sour for me.”
The Dutch World Cup selection
Demi Vollering Annemiek van Vleuten Marianne Vos Lorena Wiebes Riejanne Markus Mischa Bredewold Shirin van Anrooij Loes Adegeest
What did Vollering and Kopecky win this year?
The 26-year-old Vollering was already the best this year in the one-day races Strade Bianche, Dwars door Vlaanderen, the Amstel Gold Race, the Walloon Arrow and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Kopecky, one year older, won Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Nokere Koerse and the Ronde van Vlaanderen.
Many cycling followers therefore think that the World Championship road race could become a duel between the SD Worx duo. “It will be very strange to have to race against Lotte. Of course we never really race against each other,” says Vollering.
“But actually I’m really looking forward to it. Lotte is a great rider. So secretly I would like to win from her. It might make me even more eager, that battle with her. And I think she also has that the other way around. I think it would be very funny if we drove ahead together on Sunday, I think I would have to laugh.”
Kopecky calls Vollering a good friend. “But on Sunday we will ride in a different shirt. Then everyone will go full for their own goal. Of course I hope to be able to become world champion. It would be the absolute crowning glory of a super year.”
Can Vollering follow Van der Poel’s example?
Voller watched most of the men’s road race on TV last Sunday. So she saw how Mathieu van der Poel took the win: with a scorching attack in the penultimate round.
“It will be difficult to release Lotte in that way, because she is also very good at those explosive and short climbs,” says the South Holland woman. “I’m not sure how I’m going to beat Lotte yet. I’ll really have to feel that in the race. In any case, I’m very lucky that we have a very good team.”
According to everyone in the Dutch camp, Vollering is the undisputed leader in Glasgow. But with defending champion Annemiek van Vleuten, triple world champion Marianne Vos and top sprinter Lorena Wiebes, national coach Loes Gunnewijk still has a few very strong assets.
“The girls will support me. It’s nice that the hierarchy is clear,” says Vollering. “But it would be stupid if we said: we only have one plan and that is plan-Demi. We should definitely use our super strong block.”
The World Championship road race for women starts on Sunday at 13:00 Dutch time in Loch Lomond. The finish of the 154-kilometer race is around 5 p.m. in Glasgow.
Daan de Ridder is a cycling reporter
Daan reports the ‘Super World Cup’ cycling for NU.nl from Glasgow. Read more stories from Dan here.
2023-08-13 03:06:13
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