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From the hard-charging Spring Classics to the now-epic Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, a sure bet is to see Kasia Niewiadoma at the front of a select group near the finish line for Canyon-SRAM. She’s developed as the team leader, entering her sixth season with the long-time programme that is beginning its fourth year as a Women’s WorldTeam, with consistency and aggressive style, even if the strengths don’t register a landslide of wins, at least not yet.
In fact, Canyon-SRAM won just one race in 2022, Durango-Durango Emakumeen Saria in Spain, thanks to Pauliena Rooijakkers. At first glance, it was a huge dip from eight victories just one season ago. Lisa Klein was responsible for late-season success in 2021 with two stages and the overall at the Baloise Ladies Tour, but she moved on to Trek-Segafredo in the new year as part of a departure of five riders.
Canyon-SRAM developed over the season as a complete team even without individual accolades, which proved their metal with strong riding across the mountain stages of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift that vaulted Canyon-SRAM to the teams’ classification triumph in 2022.
Performances by Niewiadoma and second-year teammate Elise Chabbey boosted Canyon-SRAM to sixth overall in the UCI overall team standings as well as the Women’s WorldTour ranking in 2022. Niewiadoma led with her consistency in the Spring Classics, a third overall in the Women’s Tour and third on GC and in the mountains classification at the inaugural Tour de France Femmes.
The Polish all-rounder excelled per usual on steep pitches, especially when the road tips upward for a succession of ramps. She ended the 2021 season with a high and a low – a bronze medal in they road race at the UCI Road Worlds followed by a crash and DNF at the inaugural Paris-Roubaix Femmes. So to start 2022, Niewiadoma scored five top 10s on the rolling roads of the Spring Classics, including second at De Brabantse Pijl and then more team points in WorldTour races with fourth at Strade Bianche and fifth at Amstel Gold Race (a race she won in 2019).
After a pair of runner-up finishes on stages at the Women’s Tour, she leaped into third place on GC after the first two days at the Tour de France Femmes and showed off her climbing prowess on stage 3, where she animated the chasing group that caught leaders on the final climb and then ignited the uphill sprint, only to settle for sixth place. Her fight to the finish was set up by earlier attacks by…
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