The women’s U23 and elite road race this year will close the 2023 Road World Championships in Glasgow, providing the final opportunity to scoop up the rainbow bands for another year and putting the spotlight squarely back on women’s cycling just two weeks after the finale of the Tour de France Femmes in Pau.
The 154.1km race route on Sunday, August 13, with 2,229m of vertical ascent, starts in Balloch, Loch Lomond, and makes its way over the Crow Road climb and onto the 14.3km city circuit for 6 laps in Glasgow.
The early Crow Road climb will put pressure on the field, and the repetition of the pinchy climbs on the 14.3km city circuit is likely to rule out some sprinters. However, those who are handy on the climbs should be able to hang firm. Still, the technical course also provides launching points for the breaks, so there is a wide range of riders who could potentially be chasing a spot on the podium.
Of course, the strength of the Dutch team, which includes defending champion Annemiek van Vleuten, Demi Vollering, Lorena Wiebes and Marianne Vos, is always a key factor too, but not necessarily always an impossible one to overcome. The Italians will be fighting hard to do it again, while the Belgians should also fancy their chances with Lotte Kopecky on a course like this.
As the focus switches from the battle for yellow to the rainbow chase, Cyclingnews takes a closer look at some of the key contenders for the elite and U23 women’s road race at the 2023 Glasgow World Championships.
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Contenders
After her efforts at the Tour de France Femmes, Lotte Kopecky is bound to be one of the most watched riders in the peloton and brings the form of her life into Glasgow.
In France, pretty much whatever scenario was thrown at her, she was one of the strongest, be it in a fast finish, hills, in the mountains or even during the race against the clock. That form has also carried through onto the track in Glasgow, with Kopecky claiming another world title in the Elimination Race, as she turned on her powerful sprint to capture the rainbow jersey.
Add that to her second place last year, on a course that bore some similarities to Glasgow, given the early climbs and finishing street circuit, and it is no surprise that Kopecky is a standout favourite.
She is lining up with a Belgian team…
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