This year's Tour of Britain Women has seen 29 racers from around the UK line up to race on home roads, and there have been a few standout performers during the week. One of the season's breakthrough stars, queen of the mountains Lauren Dickson, is one of them. Josie Nelson is another.
24-year-old Midlander Nelson is tackling the race for a third time and heads into Sunday's closing stage in Leamington Spa in the top 10 on GC, the home nation's best performer.
After finishing 33rd on her debut in 2021 and 20th last year, her current ninth place – should it hold – is set to be her best finish yet after a week of consistent racing.
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"The goal was a top 10 GC, and before today, I was sitting in 11th," Nelson told Cyclingnews after Saturday's hilly fourth stage through mid-Wales, the latest stop on a year which has seen her step up a level in terms of form and consistency.
"It's been nice, actually. It's taken me a while to become a consistent rider. I've been feeling really good here. I've got good form from the Tour, so I'm happy with it."
Nelson started the season strong with a second place on Willunga Hill at the Tour Down Under en route to 12th overall, later finishing seventh at the Tour Down Under One Day Race and narrowly missing out to Ally Wollaston at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race
In the summer, she raced the Giro d'Italia Women and Tour de France Femmes, taking sixth in Geneva at the latter, before starting her end-of-season run-in here.
"Consistency-wise, definitely," Nelson replied when asked if 2026 is her best season yet.
"I haven't won a race this year. I won a stage of the 2024 Tour de Normandie, so it's been a while since a win, but I'm definitely stronger in general.
"I did an altitude camp [before the Tour], which is my first time doing one of those. It went really well. I was feeling strong at the Tour. My climbing was better, which is good because it was a very hilly Tour."
Both Nelson and her team are looking for a win, with Picnic-PostNL last tasting victory at last year's Baloise Ladies Tour when Charlotte Kool sprinted to victory on the opening stage.
The team currently sits 18th in this season's UCI rankings, though the situation isn't as grim as it is for the men's team, ranked 30th in the world, with several key riders leaving next season.
"Coming into this season, we had a big turnover of new riders, so it took us a while to get into a rhythm with each other," Nelson said, noting that eight of their 15 riders are new to the team this season.
"Obviously, it's very important to have that riding chemistry. That's what brings the results, so it's taken us a while to sink into it."
Nelson's contract is up this winter, and at the time of writing, there's been no announcement on her future. So will she be sticking around for 2027 and beyond, or is she set for a move? "I prefer not to say," is all she could offer, though she was more forthcoming about her plans in the near future.
Like many other riders in Britain, including Dickson, Nelson is hoping to head to Canada next month for the Road World Championships. She raced in Zürich two years ago, but isn't sure of her selection status yet.
"I do hope to go to Worlds. They've not confirmed a final selection yet, but I do hope to do that. Then, other than that, there's not actually many more races."
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