After seven consecutive years of Anna van der Breggen’s dominance, La Flèche Wallonne Femmes finally welcomed a new winner last year with Marta Cavalli reigning supreme atop the Mur de Huy. In 2023 the race takes place on April 19 and Cavalli will be back to defend her title. However, with the Italian rider lacking form so far this season after recovering from her crash at the Tour de France Femmes last year, there is a chance that someone else will take the Queen of the Huy crown on Wednesday, and plenty of riders are in with a chance of victory.
With three ascents of the Mur de Huy to contend with throughout the race, Flèche Wallonne Femmes stands as one of the toughest one-day races on the calendar. It is extremely well-suited to the punchy climbers in the women’s peloton, including the likes of Demi Vollering, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig and Kasia Niewiadoma. Previous editions all point to a nail-biting finish on the steep gradients of the Mur de Huy and this year the margins between the strongest puncheurs of the peloton seem narrower than ever. With this in mind, we can expect an exciting and dramatic race with a variety of teams fighting for the win.
Route
The route for Flèche Wallonne Femmes spans 127.3 kilometres and includes eight crucial, steep climbs. The women’s peloton will first complete one large lap of 58 kilometres before two laps of a shorter 36 kilometre circuit which includes the same trio of climbs seen in the men’s event. The first ascent of the day, the 2.2km Côte de Bohissau comes after just 40km of racing and it is likely that we will see a breakaway establish itself in these early opening stages.
The first ascent of the Mur de Huy comes 17 kilometres later, giving the riders a taste of what is to come when the race finishes on the same climb in just over 70 kilometres time. In the first 400 metres of the Mur de Huy, the gradient kicks up to more than 10%, only dropping to 6% when the riders enter the final 100 metres. Next up is the Côte d’Ereffe, which spans for 2.1 kilometres climb at an average gradient of 5%, then the the Côte de Cherave which starts hard with a gradient of 8.5% in the first kilometre, before it levels into a false flat to the summit. Riders will then repeat this trio of climbs for the second time before what we expect to be an explosive finale on the final ascent of the Mur de Huy.
Contenders
Demi Vollering
SD Worx has been the team to beat in the women’s peloton in 2023 with 11…