Women's World Championship Road Race 2024 History
The Women’s World Championship Road Race is the pinnacle one-day race of the season. On usually one of the toughest courses of the entire season, the World Championships sees a lot put on the line to win the rainbow jersey. Teams are split into nations rather than the trade teams we see for nearly all of the road season and that brings a whole new level of issues as some teams work better than others and have a clearer definite leader for the race. The Dutch famously struggle in this area, with a host of stars picked, only to then struggle to take on roles they’re not used to. That has helped different riders win in recent years with Lotte Kopecky winning on the streets of Glasgow last year and Elisa Balsamo in Flanders in 2021.
The Women’s World Championship Road Race was first held in 1958 and won by Elsy Jacobs of Luxembourg, whose name would later be used for the Festival Elsy Jacobs races in her home country. The early races were dominated by Belgians with Yvonne Reynders winning 4 titles. British interest was also high with legend Beryl Burton winning 2 titles to go with her host of domestic records and national championships. The 1970s were dominated by a single rider by Anna Konkina of the USSR and Keetie Hage both won 2 titles in that era. It’s only really once Jeannie Longo got started in 1985 that the next major rider dynasty started. Longo won 4 World Championships on the trot between 1985-1989. She would also add another one in 1995 to set the record of 5 victories.
The Marianne Vos era has been the longest in the history of the race but hasn’t always resulted in success. Vos has victories in 2006, 2012 & 2013 and an amazing but probably unwanted record of 6 2nd places – an incredible 5 of those were in a row between 2007-2011. That means that for 8 seasons, Marianne Vos finished either 1st or 2nd in the World Championships. She would take that 6th and so far final 2nd place in 2021, sprinting for the line but not fast enough to overtake Balsamo. As Vos stopped winning, Annemiek van Vleuten and Anna van der Breggen took over, both Dutch stars won 2 titles each as their internal battle for dominance captured the attention of fans. If Lotte Kopecky retains her rainbow jersey this year, we will firmly be in another Belgian era.
Previous Winners
2023
Lotte Kopecky
2022
Annemiek van Vleuten
2021
Elisa Balsamo
Women's World Championship Road Race 2024 Profile
TV Coverage
Saturday 28th September 2024
Live on Discovery+/Eurosport/Max & Flo (US) & BBC Online
11:15-16:15
All times in BST
Twitter: #Zurich2024
Startlist: FirstCycling
Women's World Championship Road Race 2024 Contenders
Lotte Kopecky is the big favourite once again to retain her world champion stripes for another year. She measured up well to her favourite status in Glasgow, picking the right moment to attack and go clear to take her maiden World Championship title on the road. She’s had another huge season, winning the likes of Strade Bianche, Paris Roubaix and the European Championships TT as she has shown continued development in her climbing throughout. That bodes well here as her trade team teammate Demi Vollering will be set to push her all the way. The TT this week was a relatively rare low point as she was slower than a few weeks before in the European Championships but that can be a one-off blip on the TT bike. She also will have all of the Belgian team working unquestionably for her.
The Dutch are super strong again and claim to have their leadership issues settled – Demi Vollering is the unquestioned leader this year. That should work out fine unless there’s a group finish and Marianne Vos is there. That’s about the only time they may pivot to another rider unless someone does something very special. It’s been a bit of a weird year for Demi Vollering who has won plenty – like the Vuelta Femenina, Itzulia, Burgos and Suisse – but missed out in her races during the Classics and the Tour de France Femmes. A first World Championship title would go a long way to making this year a success when she looks back on it. There’s just a feeling that Kopecky can beat her in more ways than Demi can beat Lotte. Thalita de Jong also replaces Shirin van Anrooij in the line-up for the Dutch and whilst she’s had a strong year will have to play a supporting role here.
Italy don’t come here as the biggest favourites but they are more than capable of taking a win if the cards fall the right way. We’ve seen Elisa Longo Borghini able to hold off Lotte Kopecky this year at the Giro d’Italia Women, with the Italian winning her home race for the first time as the Belgian talked up only chances of stage wins whilst seriously challenging the GC. Longo Borghini has won the Tour of Flanders as well this year, so a trifecta of a GT, Monument and Worlds is possible here in Zurich. It will require a really special day for her to come out on top as she will need to clear Kopecky to beat her in the sprint on paper. If there is a group which comes to the line together then Elisa Balsamo will fancy her chances. She won the likes of Trofeo Alfredo Binda which requires a solid amount of climbing before a sprint to the line this year, along with the Classic Brugge-De Panne, a much flatter affair. her season has been disrupted by crashes and injuries and it might’ve needed to be a perfect year for Balsamo to really challenge for a win here. The climbs probably aren’t tough enough for Gaia Realini and her sprint is non-existent (although she did once beat Van Vleuten in a sprint-a-deux). It feels more likely that Realini will support Longo Borghini here.
Kasia Niewiadoma has spent the year wearing the rainbow bands, but only on the gravel after taking that title at the end of last season. She would love to take the road rainbows too in a season where she became the Tour de France Femmes winner and originally got the no-win monkey off her back by winning at Flèche Wallonne in the Spring. Traditionally, we’ve seen Tour de France winners have a bit of a downturn in form around this point of the season having secured their big goal with the biggest form peak of the season. Niewiadoma may be gearing up to retain her gravel title though but hasn’t raced since winning the yellow jersey.
The French feel out of the medal hunt but on a good day with a bit of luck, it could just about be possible. Juliette Labous has been going consistently well, with a recent 6th in GC at the Tour de Romandie Féminin followed up with 9th in the Worlds Time Trial last weekend. We know she climbs well but maybe is missing the punch required to excel on the climbs here. Cédrine Kerbaol is climbing better than ever and her win at the Tour de France Femmes is a sign that there is more to come from the Ceratizit-WNT rider. She was 9th at the Tour de Romandie herself and could be used as a solid attacking option here. I kinda see Evita Muzic as having the biggest potential for the best result for the team. She was quiet in Romandie after finishing 4th in GC at the Tour de France Femmes but was 9th at the recent St Feuillien Grand Prix de Wallonie on a course that probably wasn’t tough enough for her.
Mavi Garcia is always an interesting one but her lack of sprint probably takes her out of medal contention on the flat finish here. We see the Spanish rider often attacking but rarely distancing riders, instead, she will regularly take position on the front of the bunch and power it along at the speed she wants to go at on climbs. The very best can ride away but it’s enough to keep most riders behind her for the tough sections. 6th at the Olympics, that would be a good result for her again here.
The Australian team is an interesting one to try and pick a leader from. Grace Brown already has a pair of World Championship titles in the back this week after winning the individual time trial and mixed relay events. Whether those events leave her with fatigue or not will dictate what she does here. At her best, a performance like her Liege Bastogne Liege winning ride would make her a contender but it’s a tough ask with all of the World’s best here. Sarah Gigante may get a nod instead, but if the weather is bad, she’s potentially likely to be riding near the back of the bunch and miss the winning move if it does go away. Her form is good though, with 7th in GC at the Tour de France Femmes and 11th at the Tour de Romandie too. Ruby Roseman-Gannon is also an interesting wildcard if the race doesn’t break up. She sprinted in the rain to beat the SD Worx riders at the Tour of Britain Women this year but has had bad luck seemingly ever since.
Christina Schweinberger has become one of the best one-day racers in the peloton in the last 18 months but seems to have targeted the time trials towards the end of this season rather than the road race. She was 10th in the rain at the Olympics, 3rd in the European TT and then 6th in the TT here. Meanwhile, she hasn’t finished in the top-10 of a road stage since June’s Thüringen Ladies Tour back in June.
For the home Swiss riders, this will be a great chance to get a major result on their own roads. Elise Chabbey is the bigger name but has had to reset her objectives a little bit after some bad luck late on this season has seen her have to pull out of the Giro and Tour but her peak is high. She was starting to come back at the Tour de Romandie but probably isn’t quite at the 100% needed to sneak onto the podium. I can see Noemi Rüegg quietly challenging for that spot though. She’s had the best season of her young career, getting plenty of good results on tough courses and has a decent kick for the line as well at the end of a tough day. Rüegg can certainly finish in the top-10 and is a nice dark horse for a surprise podium finisher.
American Kristen Faulkner took some time out after her Olympics wins and the Tour de France Femmes, so we’ve got no indicator of where her form is in the last month. If she’s managed to keep some of that form peak then she will be a contender, especially if it rains and the race becomes all about single riders rather than a bunch. It would require some luck and surely she’d be marked but a long ranger is certainly possible.
Anna Henderson is probably the best shout for Great Britain at this year’s World Championships. She’s been focusing on the time trial recently but we’ve seen her do well in all sorts of conditions and races. Her best road racing came around the time of the national championships in June, which was off the back of finishing 2nd in GC at the Tour of Britain where she didn’t quite take a stage win by finishing 2nd on Stage 2.
Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig is a big name here who would ordinarily suit the circuit but her season has been interrupted by injuries this year so doesn’t quite have the body of work to back up her usual strength this year. The Dane would normally be a threat on the punchy climbs here like she was when making the podium in Glasgow last season. Teammate Emma Norsgaard would be useful if a group came to the line together and she can certainly be strong in a Classics-style race. I think the likes of Kopecky and Vollering will feel like they can drop her though so maybe a top-10 could be the best shout for her.
Germany’s Liane Lippert has been in a similar boat to Uttrup Ludwig but because her interruption was earlier, she’s now starting to come into form right at the end of the year. The German took a pair of 3rd places in the Tour de France Femmes and a stage win at the Giro too. She was 3rd at the Classic Lorient Agglomération and a stage threat at the Tour de Romandie Féminin. She’s probably out of the conversation a little bit but could very well end up on the podium here.
For Hungary, their star rider Blanka Vas has a bit of a habit of being a championship rider. She has finished 4th in the Worlds and Olympics before, was 8th at the flattish European Championships a couple of weeks ago and also took a Tour de France Femmes stage win too this year. She can certainly be a threat and will have a fast enough finish to challenge whichever group she finishes in.
Ingvild Gåskjenn is also going to be a decent shout for a top-10 here. The Norwegian has pulled out some great results this season, starting with 3rd at the Amstel Gold Race. She’s shown that she’s targeting this race after finishing 5th at the European Championships as well. Similar to someone like Noemi Rüegg, she’s got enough climbing legs to get over the worst of the challenges whilst still having a fast finish.
Photo Credit: Getty U23 Women's World Championship Road Race Contenders
The U23 Women’s World Championships is a race within a race for the final time this year, from 2025 it will be separated out finally. For now, the likes of Puck Pieterse and Marie Schreiber are going to be interesting shouts as all-rounders. Pieterse may have to work for Demi Vollering’s chances in the main race however, one of the main reasons the race within a race doesn’t really work. Schreiber meanwhile, will be free to race actively for the U23 competition, probably with help from Christine Majerus too.
Marion Bunel may get a freerer role in the France team with no major challenger for the overall but there are members on her team who might be eyeing up a medal and will need help from the Tour de l’Avenir GC winner. Antonia Niedermaier is in a similar boat, as Liane Lippert may need her support but Niedermaier could double up with her U23 Time Trial gold medal.
Neve Bradbury we know is a really strong climber and if things pan out for her, could be a solid way for Australia to get something from this race. A lot of eyes will be on Grace Brown but after winning the TT and Mixed Relay this week, might be set up to support others instead due to having more tired legs. The wildcard will be the Afghan rider, Fariba Hashimi. She has looked strong, didn’t empty herself in the time trial and will be the undoubted leader for her country too. It would be a huge moment for cycling and Afghan women if Hashimi was able to take the U23 rainbow jersey.
Those who remember the year Alice Towers won the British national title also can’t rule her out by looking at the weather forecast. She won that title in 2022 on an awful day in Castle Douglas where the rain bucketed it down. As some bigger names struggled in the conditions, the then 19-year-old was able to ride away solo for the win. That could come in handy again here. Solbjørk Minke Anderson is also a nice outsider option for Denmark. She’s been strong this year, with 5th in GC at the Volta a Catalunya probably her best result. The tough climbs can suit her but she also hasn’t raced since the Giro in mid-July.
Top 3 Prediction
- Lotte Kopecky
- Demi Vollering
- Elisa Longo Borghini
