Mischa Bredewald won the European title on VAM Mountain, while Lotte Kopecky was third

Saturday, September 23, 2023 at 5:11 p.m

Misha Breedold was crowned European Road Champion in her country. The Dutch rider broke away from the elite group on the last lap and barely managed to hold on at the last VAM mountain. Lorena Whipps completed the party for the Netherlands with a quick run to the silver medal. Lottie Kopecky came in third place.

The Women’s European Championship kicked off in Maple. After the riders left there, they headed via Havelti, Vldir and Dwingelo towards Belén. Then he went via Wijster and Drijber to the first pass of the VAM mountain. This climb – a two-stage rocket consisting of the Atirupad (about 500m at 6%) and Mount Vampad (about 200m at 12%) – also led to the local circuit. After the first crossing of the line, there were still five local laps of 13.7 kilometres.

A messy start
The start of the match was very chaotic. Part of the competition convoy took the wrong track, meaning the riders had to stop again immediately after the starting shot. After some delay, the race finally started. Things moved quickly in the opening hour, but although there was still a fair amount of wind, it didn’t create any real fans. However, things moved too quickly for some riders. In addition, there have been a number of falls due to wet road surfaces in Drenthe.

We haven’t seen an early flight yet. There were some attempts, but no one really got the space. Eventually, Emilia Vahlen (Sweden) managed to open a gap, but before the final round, she was brought back. So we started with a large platoon on VAM Mountain. Germany took the lead initially, after which Lotte Kubicki briefly moved on. However, the Belgian has not withdrawn yet.

Netherlands in pursuit
On the first full lap (of a total of five laps), several riders tried to escape. The Netherlands was also very active with Mischa Bredewald, Regan Markus and Louis Adegest. However, they were not in a good mood when Soroya Paladin (Italy), Elise Xabi (Switzerland) and Jelena Irić (Serbia) pulled out on the VAM mountain at the end of the lap. The Dutch had to give chase.

Shirin van Anrooij, Markus, Adegest and eventually Florty McCaig, who had to go back first after a puncture, settled at the head of the peloton and tried to close the gap. Three laps before the end, they came within seventeen seconds and the situation seemed to be corrected, but then the gap increased again. After a round, the Dutch women caught the trio. With thirty kilometers to go, everything can be done again.

Just before the start of the penultimate lap, Katarzyna Niyadoma accelerated on the Vampad Mountain. This caused some separation, but most of the riders were able to come back after that. From the big peloton we then saw several attacks on the flat part of the course. First a group of seven people set off, including Regan Marcus, then a group including Demi Fullering and Marilyn Rosser. At the foot of VAM Mountain, everything came back together.

The group including Markus – Photo: Cor Vos

Breedold Solo
Reusser was first to start on the Atteropad and made good progress. Elisa Balsamo and Georgi Pfeiffer made the jump, with favorites Demi Vollering and Lottie Kopecky farther away. In Dak van Drenthe, Fullering ascertained that the elite group was linked to the Samoans, Georgi and Roeser. And also Lorena Whipps. She did not have to be afraid of Balsamo in the sprint, because the Italian crashed on the descent of Dak van Drenthe.

But it is not yet certain that it will be a fast race, because there are still a few attempts to pull away. Marilyn attacked Rosser, among others. Holland had three assistants to Loebes, Vollering, Regan Markus and Mischa Bredewald. The latter clearly still had something in her legs, because she dashed away from the group at the perfect moment. Things came to a standstill, partly due to sabotage by the Dutch women. Bredewold soon took a good lead.

Photo: Cor Foss

Will you succeed?
The gap increased to half a minute, but due to Rosser’s acceleration, the gap quickly closed. However, Demi Wohlring was at the wheel of the Swiss, who of course did not take charge. That’s why Rosser didn’t give everything and saw Emma Norsgaard pass by. The Dane went alone in search of Bredewold, who started the Atteropad 11 seconds behind. The danger did not come from Norsgard, but rather back to the pursuers.

These stalkers, with Demi Fullering ahead of Lorena Whipps, came close. On the Mountvam Road, Lotte Kopecky and Lorena Wiebes in particular arrived very quickly. But Bredewold narrowly held on and secured the biggest victory of her career. Outgoing champion Wipes was second and Kopecky third.