At the Giro d’Italia Women, 36-year-old Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) turned back the clock with her stage 4 victory on the mountain time trial from Belluno to Nevegal, beating her younger competitors by over a minute and putting the maglia rosa on her shoulders for the first time since winning the 2021 Giro overall.
Going back 11 years, in 2015, a hilly time trial between Pisano and Nebbiuno was Van der Breggen’s first Giro stage victory and a crucial part of her first Giro GC victory. Then the mountain time trial five years ago, between Fondovalle and Cascate del Toce, was her last Giro stage win until now. It saw Van der Breggen cement the GC lead on the way to her fourth Giro victory, beating her then-teammate Demi Vollering (now FDJ United-SUEZ) by 1:06 minutes.
“It was a long time ago, but I have good memories of it. I think it’s nice to show that the road to victory is not always immediate. It takes time to improve, and it was the same for me," said Van der Breggen on the stage winner’s press conference.
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"If you believe in your goals, sometimes you need to be patient. I worked hard the last two years to get back to level I am on again now. In the end, it worked out, and I think that’s why this victory is a really nice one for me.”
After a three-year stint behind the wheel of the SD Worx team car, Van der Breggen returned to the peloton. On Tuesday, she put 1:10 minutes into Vollering on the climb to Nevegal – suggesting that she was back at her earlier level relative to her former teammate and now one of the favourites to win the 2026 Giro d’Italia Women outright.
A fifth overall victory would see Van der Breggen equal the record of Fabiana Luperini, who won the race five times between 1995 and 2008.
“I will do my best to defend this jersey. It’s good that I can defend and see what’s happening. A time trial is always different than a road race, but the legs are feeling good, and my head is also good. It was nice not to be the big favourite,” said Van der Breggen.
After the disqualification of Lorena Wiebes on stage 1, the team also lost Mikayla Harvey, who did not start stage 4 due to her injuries from a crash on stage 3. This left SD Worx-Protime with Valentina Cavallar, Femke Gerritse, Elena Cecchini, and Barbara Guarischi to support Van der Breggen’s GC bid.
“From now on it will be a little bit more difficult. But I have a 100% motivated team behind me. We miss two riders, it’s really a pity that Lorena isn’t here anymore. Mickey crashed yesterday, she’s also out, which is never nice, so we also want to do it for them.
"I think it’s also a highlight for the whole team after having a hard time these last days. Stage racing is something that you do together, staff and riders,” Van der Breggen expressed trust in her teammates.
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