The 2022 Women ‘s Tournament marks the sole top-tier event held in June and the double-headers Giro d’Italia Donne and Tour de France Femmes in July.
The six-day race held from June 6-11 in the UK.
Defending champion Demi Vollering (SD Worx) will not participate in this year’s race and World Champion Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo) action-packed week of pro bike racing.
Cyclingnews The 2022 Women’s Tour.
Kasia Niewiadoma is one of two former overall winners on the starting line at this Kat race, along with Coryn Labecki (Jumbo-Visma), and she will undoubtedly aim to add another title to her palmares. The Polish all-rounder is perfectly suited to the event’s pitchy terrain that, this year, includes a summit finish at Black Mountain.
The last time Niewiadoma won the Women’s Tour was back in 2017 when she secured a solo win on stage 1 and held the leader’s jersey for the remaining four stages. There were no significant ascents in the year but her breakaway racing style and team support is what led to her overall success.
She opened up about her struggle through ‘uncomfortable feelings’ during a winless spring campaign this year, but has told Cyclingnews that there are more opportunities for success this season. Another win at the Women’s Tour would be a marked achievement and it would most certainly add confidence to Niewiadoma ahead of races like the Tour de France Femmes.
Nothing short of exceptional in the sprints, Lorena Wiebes enters the Women’s Tournament fresh off three back-to-back stage wins at RideLondon Classique where she also secured the overall title. Team DSM will aim to continue their dominance in the UK during the opening stages of the Women’s Tour.
The Dutch woman and with a lead out that includes Charlotte Kool, Leah Kirchmann, Megan Jastrab, Wiebes will be the sprinter-to-beat in the flatter stages.
Pfeiffer Georgi, who will likely be the team’s GC hopes for the hillier stages 3, 4, and 5.
“After a successful three days at the RideLondon Classique, we continue our block of racing in the UK at the Women’s Tour. In the harder stages, we look for our options to get into the breakaway and on the attack, looking to ride the open race as we look at the best and the best. mountain-top finish, “said team’s director, Albert Timmer.
One of the largest race in the UK, Anna Henderson will fly the jams of Jumbo-Visma at her Women’s Race home race. RideLondon Classique and prepared to give another strong performance during the next six days of racing.
Although Henderson has been racing professionally since 2019, this will be his first ever participation in the Women’s Tour.
“This is the second race in ten days in my home country. This spring, I stayed in the Netherlands and Belgium for most part; now I will be in familiar surroundings for a few weeks. It is very special to race here. I know my family and friends are around to support me. The British crowd is also very vocal. They cheer very loudly for ‘their’ riders. It’ll give me energy, ”Henderson said.
“In the Netherlands and Belgium the roads are generally straight and quite wide. Here, the course is more winding and narrow. That suits me. The hills do not scare me either, although I have less steep climbs – than from the first and fifth. We’ll see how it goes. In any case, I feel fit and looking forward to it. That’s a good basis for a nice race. ”
Henderson will be joined by former overall winner Labecki, who will be vying for stage wins, as well as Riejanne Markus, Teuntje Beekhuis, Karlijn Swinkels and Romy Kasper.
In her final year of racing before retirement, Ashleigh Moolman Passing is still top notch, while working for teammates, securing top-10 results at many Spring Classics and Itzulia Women.
Stage racing is another area of strength for Moolman Pass, who has won the overall title at the former Emakumeen Bira in 2017 and has placed on the podium in many top-tier stage races. Watch for the Womens Tournament at the Women’s Tour, as well as the overall victory.
The triumph atop the Monte Matajur at the Giro Donne last year was spectacular, at a race where Anna van der Breggen worked.
Capturing the overall victory on the Women’s WorldTour would be an exceptional way to end a sparkling career.
Grace Brown (FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope)
Grace Brown will be the go-to contender for FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope, from Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig and Marta Cavalli take a well-deserved rest. The Australian has had some strong results through the Classics and opened her stage racing season with a 19th overall at Vuelta and Burgos.
Watch for her to come into form this month ahead of July, as most riders aim to target one or both of the Giro Donne and the Tour de France Femmes.
The Women’s Tour route is punchy and perfect for a rider like Brown, who thrives in breakaways and aggressive racing tactics. Although there is no time trial for her, the mountain ranks are just not enough, but not enough, to suit the climbers in the race.
After sparking a Spring Classics campaign that included a Paris-Roubaix Femmes, it’s time for Elisa Longo Borghini to turn her attention to the stage racing season. She hasn’t raced since the Ardnennes Classics and the Women’s Tour will, in many ways, be the opener for the Italian Champion to test her legs against different terrain over six days.
She’ll undoubtedly be the team’s GC contender, but they also field riders for every stage. Arguably the strongest team on paper, Trek-Segafredo will field Lauretta Hanson, Chloe Hosking for the sprints, Audrey Cordon-Ragot, Ellen van Dijk and Elynor Backstedt for the breakaways.
The Women’s Tour offers a rider like Longo Borghini the opportunity to test her legs, race aggressively while still focusing on the hillier GC-deciding stages.
A revelation of the late-spring racing season, Veronica Ewers captivated the cycling world with a stage win and a second overall place at the Elsy Jacobs Festival.
She continued with strong performances in the series of Spanish one-day races; second at Emakumeen Nafarroako, and victory at Navarra Women’s Elite Classics, and second again at Durango-Durango Emakumeen Saria.
In the stage races she finished 10th at Itzulia Women, and while she had less impressive results at Vuelta and Burgos and RideLondon, watch out for her own at the Women’s Tour.
EF Education-TIBCO-SVB will have a strong team that also includes Omer Shapira and Krista Doebel-Hickok, for a team that should do well on the hilly terrain.
While Demi Voller was dominating Itzulia Women and Lorena Wiebes was doing the same at RideLondon, Alexandra Manly was doing something similar to the Lotto Thüringen Ladies Tour.
The Australian won four stages and the overall title at the six-day race, while BikeExchange-Jayco collectively won all but one stage.
When you’re good, you’re good, and it makes perfect sense for the team to support Manly at the Women’s Tour while she’s on great form.
“Across the team we had a really good month in May and we are all feeling confident ahead of the Women’s Tour next week,” Manly said. “It’s a WorldTour event and a notoriously hard week of racing, but we’re all ready and eager to race together again. I think we’re really excited to try and carry the momentum we have from our May race block into this tour. ”
The team will also include Kristen Faulkner, third at the Itzulia Women, Arianna Fidanza, Teniel Campbell, Georgia Williams and Nina Kessler.