Lotte Kopecky takes crushing road race victory at Belgian Championships
World Champion solos 30km to victory as Cant beats Ghekiere to silver
World champion Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) claimed a crushing victory at the Belgian Road Championships, winning by more than three minutes after attacking alone with 30km still to race.
Sanne Cant (Fenix-Deceuninck) outsprinted Justine Ghekiere (AG Insurance-Soudal) for the silver medal, 3:27 behind the unassailable Kopecky. They were the only riders to finish within four minutes of Kopecky, who cruised to her fourth national road race crown.
Kopecky began to put her stamp on proceedings with more than 50km remaining in Zottegem, attacking with intent from a reduced peloton with an effort that splintered the race still further.
Fleur Moors (Lidl-Trek) was the first to bridge across, followed soon afterwards by Cant, Ghekiere and Jesse Vandenbulcke (De Ceuster-Bonache).
Having forced the day’s key selection, Kopecky seemed to figure that she would not find allies in the front group and so she decided to press on alone with 30km remaining. She might light of the cobbles of Kruiswaterplein and Lippenhovestraat to stretch out her lead and the finale would prove a procession.
With a lap to go, Kopecky had a lead of 1:30, and she would more double that advantage before the finish. Behind, Cant used her explosiveness to attack on Lippenhovestraat, with Ghekiere the only rider to follow, but it was already apparent that they were competing for silver and bronze. Kopecky was in a class of her own, and she had time to celebrate her victory by dismounting and walking across the line with her bike held aloft.
Results
Results powered by FirstCycling
Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*
Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets
After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59
Join now for unlimited access
Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Cyclingnews is the world's leader in English-language coverage of professional cycling. Started in 1995 by University of Newcastle professor Bill Mitchell, the site was one of the first to provide breaking news and results over the internet in English. The site was purchased by Knapp Communications in 1999, and owner Gerard Knapp built it into the definitive voice of pro cycling. Since then, major publishing house Future PLC has owned the site and expanded it to include top features, news, results, photos and tech reporting. The site continues to be the most comprehensive and authoritative English voice in professional cycling.
Most Popular
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Chiara Consonni completes Canyon-SRAM 2025 roster
Italian joins Tour de France Femmes champions from UAE Team ADQ -
Indoor cycling vs Winter cycling: Which costs more?
With the huge array of choices of kit and equipment for both indoor and outdoor riding, which is potentially the better value option? -
One of my favourite winter cycling jackets is being discontinued, but it’s a mad bargain while it’s still around
The Velocio Alpha Merino Air Jacket is not long for this world, but for now it’s 30% off -
Zwift vs TrainerRoad: An indoor cycling head-to-head
Catering to different ends of the indoor cycling world, we pit Zwift vs TrainerRoad to help you decide which is best for you