Every season produces its stars, its breakthrough riders, and its reliable performers, but it also leaves behind a group that never quite found their rhythm. Some endured crashes or surgery, others lost form at the wrong moment, and a few simply had seasons that never aligned with their true level.
A reset in 2026 is not about criticism. It is about recognising that things went wrong, understanding why, and foregrounding the reasons to expect a strong rebound. Here are the riders who most clearly fit that profile.
Lotte Kopecky – a stop-start season that never fully settled
On paper, a third Tour of Flanders victory suggests another dominant year, yet 2025 was the most uneasy and disrupted chapter of Lotte Kopecky’s peak. A lingering knee problem meant she skipped early-season markers like Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Strade Bianche. Just as the rhythm began returning, she suffered back pain, and later a crash in September left her with a fractured vertebra.
Her GC hopes at the Tour de France Femmes dissolved early, and she later admitted to mental fatigue, frustration with training metrics, and a need to simplify her ambitions. Choosing to skip both road and track Worlds was a clear sign that the year had taken a toll.
The encouraging part is that Kopecky has already reframed her 2026. She wants to strip away unnecessary pressure, avoid a Tour GC bid, and return to what she does best: racing instinctively and winning Classics. If she gets through winter without the injuries and setbacks that plagued 2025, she is perfectly placed for a full-scale return to dominance.
Photo Credit: Chris AuldNeve Bradbury – an interrupted year for a rising GC star
Neve Bradbury entered 2025 off the back of a spectacular 2024, a season where she revealed herself as one of the brightest young climbers in the peloton. Expectations rose accordingly. Instead, 2025 was defined by illness, crashes, and withdrawals at precisely the moments she most needed continuity.
Her early season was disrupted by sickness, and at La Vuelta Femenina, she lost time in a crash despite avoiding major injury. A mid-season health issue forced her to withdraw from the World Championships road race, and across the spring and summer, she never quite rediscovered the seamless power that made her a Grand Tour contender the previous year.
What matters is the foundation beneath the noise. Bradbury is still young, still a proven stage winner, still a capable GC rider, and still developing. A winter of uninterrupted training should be enough to put her back on a trajectory towards top-ten Grand Tour riding in 2026.
Shirin van Anrooij – rebuilding after a year defined by surgery
Shirin van Anrooij’s 2025 story was less about racing and more about recovery. After more than a year of unexplained power loss and discomfort in her left leg, she finally received a diagnosis of iliac artery endofibrosis and underwent surgery. Physically, it was the only solution; psychologically, it allowed her to understand why her sensations had been so inconsistent and frustrating.
The surgery meant she missed her cyclocross campaign and started the road season on a significant delay. Instead of building form, she was rebuilding basic power and coordination.
The hopeful outlook for 2026 comes from the clarity surgery brings. Many riders have successfully returned to their best following the same procedure. Van Anrooij has the advantage of youth, natural versatility, and a team fully invested in her long-term ceiling. If she gets a clean base period this winter, she will be positioned to deliver the season she was meant to have this year.
Photo Credit: GettyKristen Faulkner – a year wiped out by illness and injury
Kristen Faulkner’s 2025 could hardly have been more unlucky. Pre-Tour illness left her bedridden for days at the exact moment when she needed to sharpen her race form. She still started the race, only to be caught in crashes that left her riding in severe pain and with almost no training in her legs. Battles to make time cuts replaced any GC ambitions.
Later assessment revealed cartilage damage in her shoulder, and surgery became unavoidable. Her season ended early, with recovery and rebuilding taking precedence.
The path to a reset in 2026 is clear. Faulkner is a proven time triallist, a Grand Tour stage winner, and one of the strongest diesel-engined climbers in the peloton when healthy. With the shoulder repaired and the illness behind her, she has every chance to bounce back sharply once training continuity returns.
Anniina Ahtosalo – a tough season
Anniina Ahtosalo’s 2025 was not disastrous, but it lacked the upward trajectory many expected after her breakout 2024. Domestically, she was superb again, taking both Finnish national titles and a European U23 time trial medal. Internationally, she remained incredibly fast but never quite made the decisive jump from the regular podium finisher she was in 2024 to a winner and often struggled to even make the top-10 in 2025.
This kind of season is common for riders making the grade from consistent 1.1-level success to the significantly more complex WorldTour sprints. She showed glimpses of her potential, including strong rides at the UAE Tour Women and in several flat-stage battles, but her lead-outs and positioning were not consistently aligned with her speed.
Her prospects for 2026 look bright. With her 4th year of WorldTour experience behind her and clear data on where positioning can improve, she is fully capable of turning close calls into wins. The raw power is there; the next step is converting that power into repeatable, predictable results.
Photo Credit: GettySofie van Rooijen – momentum without stability
Sofie van Rooijen’s 2025 season was a mix of slow-burn development and sudden breakthrough. Early in the year, she often found herself in support roles, adjusting to new sprint trains and learning the patterns of WorldTour racing. But the season’s conclusion showed what happens when everything aligns: her first WorldTour win and second overall at the Tour of Chongming Island.
The overall picture, though, still reflects a rider in transition. She entered 2025 with huge expectations after a prolific 2024 but needed time to settle into a bigger team, new race environments, and more complex lead-out structures.
The key for 2026 is continuity. Van Rooijen now knows she can win at this level, has the trust of her team, and has learned the positioning required to sprint against the very best. A full winter of stability should allow her to translate that single breakthrough into a season of regular contention.
Photo Credit: Sprint Cycling AgencyRuby Roseman-Gannon – high workload, low headline returns
Ruby Roseman-Gannon spent much of 2025 racing at a consistently high level, but her results rarely reflected the volume of work she did. Often deployed as a key domestique for Liv AlUla Jayco, she contributed to team tactics without enjoying many clear leadership moments of her own.
Her solid climbing and sprinting blend makes her a natural option for reduced group finishes, yet she frequently found herself covering moves rather than contesting headlines. A season of heavy graft can easily mask individual talent.
A 2026 reset is about refining objectives. With a slightly more selective programme and designated leadership in chosen races, Roseman-Gannon is more than capable of returning to the sharp end of results sheets. Her skill set remains versatile enough to shine across multiple race types once the team shifts some emphasis back towards her.
Thalita de Jong – determined to turn the corner
Few riders have had careers as repeatedly disrupted as Thalita de Jong’s. Her 2025 season added another series of hurdles: a heavy crash at Trofeo Alfredo Binda caused a broken collarbone, and when she returned, she encountered a troubling muscle issue that defied quick diagnosis. The uncertainty alone was draining, and she openly admitted the challenge of dealing with so many medical setbacks.
But her perseverance remains exceptional. De Jong continues to train, seek solutions, and believes that her best racing is still ahead of her. If the muscle issue is resolved – and recent assessments suggest progress – 2026 could be the first uninterrupted year she has enjoyed in a long time.
Her natural power, especially on rolling courses and aggressive one-day races, is still evident whenever she gets a clean run of form. Stability, more than anything, is the ingredient that can transform her fortunes.
A difficult year does not erase talent. Each of these riders has shown a level of ability that far exceeds what their 2025 results reflect. For every one of them, the ingredients for a rebound are already visible: clearer health, better preparation, stronger tactical roles, or simply the chance to start again without the weight of an interrupted season.
Resets do not define whether a rider is declining. They define how quickly they learn, adapt, and re-emerge. And based on everything we know about this group, 2026 offers real potential for resurgence.
