We start two days of Navarra Women’s Elite Classics tomorrow with a roster of Hannah Barnes, Elise Chabbey, Tiffany Cromwell, Ella Harris, Mikayla Harvey and Omer Shapira. On Thursday 13 May, riders take on Emakumen Nafarroako Klasikoa followed by Clásica Feminas De Navarra on Friday 14 May.
After working through some health issues in spring, Mikayla says she is back to full health and form ahead of one of her favourite parts of the season.
“I am looking forward to the Spanish campaign! I love the style of racing where there are more climbs and less technical aspects compared to the spring races. I enjoy suffering on the longer climbs compared to short 500m punches that you find in spring. My form is coming back and I feel in a much better shape than earlier this season.”
Mikayla continues, “These upcoming racing are about saving as much energy as possible and never giving up on the climbs. I believe the key is who can suffer for the longest. I raced a lot of these races last year. I really enjoyed them and I am glad to be familiar with some of the roads as your position at the bottom of the climbs is super important to not lose energy. Also for me knowing the descents will help with my confidence.”
The New Zealand rider will race both days of the Navarra Women’s Elite Classics, followed by GP Ciudad de Eibar on 16 May, Durango-Durango Emakumeen Bira on 18 May, and Vuelta a Burgos stage race which debuts on the Women’s World Tour calendar later in May.
“My favourite race would probably be Durango. It is a hard and punchy race where the final climbs are very difficult, and I believe this course suits me the most. Last year I crashed at the bottom of the big climb so I wasn’t able to test my legs. This year I believe I can really do some damage and create some hurt for our competitors.”
“My main goal for this campaign is to race really aggressively and show some fighting spirit with my teammates. I can’t wait to get back racing and attacking with my teammates,” says Mikayla.
Emakumen Nafarroako Klasikoa tomorrow starts at 15:30CEST. The 128km race with 8 categorised climbs covers more than 2600m of elevation. The race can be followed on Twitter with #NWEC21 with a live broadcast on Eurosport, Discovery, EITB, Navarra Televisión from 17:00CEST.
Friday’s Clásica Feminas De Navarra also has 8 climbs though totals only 1850m of elevation for the 125km course. The race starts at 15:15CEST and a live broadcast will be shown on Eurosport, Discovery, EITB, Navarra Televisión from 17:00CEST.