Milan-San Remo Women 2026

Lotte Kopecky holds off Noemi Rüegg for sprint victory on Via Roma / As it happened

Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) surged from a late breakaway group and won the 2026 Milan-San Remo Women. She held off Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Oatly) in the closing 100 metres, while Eleonora Cmilla Gasparrini (UAE Team Emirates) finished third.

A group of five broke free after the Poggio and held the gap to the line, with Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) fourth in the final sprint effort, and Dominika Włodarczyk (UAE Team Emirates) trailing four seconds later in fifth. Defending champion Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) led the chase group for sixth place.

Milan-San Remo Women 2026 preview

Milan-San Remo Women is this weekend – here's everything you need to know about the women's Monument.

The race will unfortunately be without last year's runner-up Marianne Vos, who dropped out on Friday due to illness. That news follows Elisa Longo Borghini pulling out for the same reason.

The women's Milan-San Remo is only in its second edition in 2026, and as such, there's still a lot of unknowns about how the race can or will go. Last year's inaugural edition was won in a reduced sprint and there were relatively few major attacks over the Cipressa or Poggio, but were the big names apprehensive on the first go? Will they go harder, sooner this time?

It's hard to predict, that's for certain. Riders like Elisa Longo Borghini have said they're expecting a more explosive race, but the tailwind forecast could keep speeds high and play into the hands of the sprinters – and therefore, most likely, Lorena Wiebes.

There's also the interesting question of Lotte Kopecky, who would in theory support Wiebes, but hinted pre-race about wanting some more freedom for herself. Is she planning a solo attack? And then there's Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney, runner-up already twice this year and searching for a big Classics victory. She'd probably have to go solo onto the Via Roma to do that on Saturday.

There are lots of other contenders and potential attackers to think about, too – this week, Jackie Tyson went in depth with her analysis of the favourites for Milan-San Remo 2026, and the different ways the race might pan out.

Features Editor Matilda Price has also been looking at some of the questions ahead of Milan-San Remo and the next big Classics, such as who the dominant team is, and where the next breakout performance might come from.

On Saturday itself, we'll have live text coverage from flag to finish, a full race report and results, plus news and analysis with contributor Stephen Farrand on the ground. Ready to tune in? Find out how to watch Milan-San Remo 2026 with our useful guide.

Scroll on for the start list and route, plus all our latest stories on the race.

Milan-San Remo Women 2026 start list

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Milan-San Remo Women 2026 route

See the full 2026 Milan-San Remo Women route, which starts in Genova and covers 156km along the coast to San Remo.

The finale takes in the Tre Capi climbs (Capo Mele, Capo Cervo, Capo Berta) then the Cipressa and the Poggio.

Milan-San Remo Women history

A women's version of Milan-San Remo dubbed La Primavera Rosa was held from 1999 to 2005, following the final 118km of the men's race and including two of its most emblematic ascents, the Cipressa and Poggio.

Other winners of the previous Milan-San Remo Women included inaugural champion Sara Felloni, Diana Ziliute, Susan Ljungskog, Mirjam Mechers and Zoulfia Zabirova.

The revived Milan-San Remo Women in 2025 instantly became the fourth of the five Monuments for the women's peloton - alongside the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix Femmes and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

One of the biggest complications for the event's return was a date clash with Trofeo Alfredo Binda, which moved forward one weekend. In 2026, Binda will be held on March 15.

There are now three back-to-back one-day races on the Women's WorldTour in Italy with Strade Bianche on March 8, Trofeo Alfredo Binda on March 15 and Milan-San Remo on Saturday March 21.

Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) won the 2025 Milan-San Remo Women, crossing the line first in the sprint of a small group ahead of Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike), with Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Oatly) finishing third.

Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma-Lease a Bike) initially finished fourth on the day but was later relegated to 12th place.

After a hectic descent from the Poggio, Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) attacked right away and got a sizeable gap at first until Wiebes' teammate, world champion Lotte Kopecky went all-out in the chase, making the catch just metres from the line for Wiebes to take the sprint victory.

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