The Women’s edition of the Clasica de Almeria is still relatively new on the calendar. Only 2 previous editions are in the books, with strangely for a Spanish race, some solid North American dominance so far. The American team Cynisca Cycling has won both runnings of the race so far, with victory in 2023 coming from Canadian Emilie Fortin and then last year saw Lauren Stephens outsprinting Yulia Biriukova (photo below). The parcours is similar to that we’ve seen in the recent Setmana Ciclista Valenciana, with a flat early part of the race punctuated with a serious climb in the middle part before a chase to the finish line to see if it can regroup or reward attackers.
The two categorised climbs in the middle of the race will certainly draw attention. The Alto de Rio Chico is given a 3rd Cat designation and comes after 70km of racing, with the 2nd Cat listed Alto Aljibe de la Cruz the tougher test. The Rio Chico almost rolls straight into the next climb, giving a solid 20km block of steady uphill hiding that gradually dials up the difficulty. The summit of the Alto Aljibe de la Cruz comes just after 90km of racing, leaving the best part of 40km to race and stay clear if it’s used as an attacking point. The only later part of note is a small bump with about 15km to go that may be the last launching point for riders hoping to stop a group sprint. Once on the local city circuit, there won’t be much chance of breaking up the bunch.
The time gaps tend to be small for attackers. Fortin won by 16 seconds in 2023 and the combo of Stephens and Biriukova were just 9 seconds ahead of a small group which had 3 of Biriukova’s teammates in it. Cynisca Cycling are here again to try and make it 3 wins in a row but it’s going to be tough with plenty of Women’s WorldTour representation this year.
Photo Credit: Carlos Barba/SprintCyclingAgencyWhich teams are racing at Women’s Clasica de Almeria 2025?
- BePink-Imatra-Bongioanni
- Cantabria Rio Miera
- Ceratizit Pro Cycling
- Cofidis Women
- Cynisca Cycling
- EF Education-Oatly
- Eneicat-CM
- FDJ-Suez
- Human Powered Health
- Laboral Kutxa-Fundacion Euskadi
- Liv AlUla Jayco Continental
- Prolongo-Al Andalus
- Team Coop-Repsol
- Team Farto-Kiroot
- UAE Team ADQ
- Uno-X Mobility
- UPV
What does the Women’s Clasica de Almeria race profile look like?
Where can I watch the Women’s Clasica de Almeria 2025 race?
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the 2025 Women’s Clasica de Almeria will be shown live anywhere.
The race takes place between 12:00-15:15 GMT on Sunday 23rd February 2025.
Who are the main riders to watch?
- Thalita de Jong
- Cédrine Kerbaol
- Daria Pikulik
- Kristen Faulkner
- Ally Wollaston
- Dominika Wlodarczyk
- Silvia Zanardi
- Letizia Borghesi
- Yurani Blanco
- Linda Zanetti
- Catalina Soto Campos
- Tereza Neumanova
- Caroline Andersson
- Lotta Henttala
- Yulia Biriukova
- Petra Zsanko
- Arianna Fidanza
- Marie Le Net
- Lucinda Stewart
- India Grangier
- Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset
- Nicole Steinmetz
- Heidi Franz
