Simac Ladies Tour 2023

Simac Ladies Tour Results

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Stage 5: New world champion Lotte Kopecky secures overall title

Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx) won the 2023 Simac Ladies Tour, as the new world champion placed third in the final stage 5 after leading out her teammate Lorena Wiebes to the stage victory.

Stage 4: SD Worx go 1-2 with Lotte Kopecky and Lorena Wiebes on Cauberg

In another display of dominance, SD Worx finished first and second on stage 4 at the Simac Ladies Tour, with Lotte Koepcky taking the win ahead of Lorena Wiebes. Kopecky, the reigning world champion, maintained her overall race lead heading into the finale stage 5 on Sunday.

Stage 3: Charlotte Kool takes sprint win on stage 3

Charlotte Kool (dsm-firmenich) proved quickest on stage 3, beating Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx) in the sprint. Lotte Kopecky held onto the race lead with a two-second advantage over Riejanne Markus (Jumbo-Visma) with Wiebes third at seven seconds.

Stage 2: Lotte Kopecky fastest in stage 2 time trial, takes race lead

Lotte Kopecky (Team SD Worx) was the fastest in the stage 2 time trial and has take the overall leader's jersey at the Simac Ladies Tour. Belgian Champion in the time trial, Kopecky covered the 7.2-kilometre individual time trial with a winning time of 8:49 and an average speed of 47.4kph.

Lotte Kopecky (Team SD Worx) won stage 2 of the Simac Ladies Tour, a 7.2-kilometre individual time trial in the Belgian city of Leuven and took the GC lead.

Stage 1: Elisa Balsamo pips Wiebes in stage 1 sprint

Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) was the fastest to the line to win the stage 1 sprint ahead of Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx) in Gennep. It was her first win since returning to the peloton following a lengthy recovery from the injuries she sustained in a crash in May. Prologue winner Charlotte Kool (Team dsm-firmenich) finished third and maintained her lead in the overall classification.

Prologue: Charlotte Kool fastest in 2.4km opener

Charlotte Kool (Team dsm-firmenich) won the prologue of the Simac Ladies Tour, covering the 2.4 kilometres through Ede in 3:04 minutes and taking the first leader's jersey.

Simac Ladies Tour overview

Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Simac Ladies Tour, formerly called the Holland Ladies Tour and the Boels Ladies Tour, will be held from September 5-10 in the Netherlands.

The race shifted between a 2.1 and a 2.2 level event on the women's calendar for much of that time until it joined the Women's WorldTour in 2017, where it has proven one of the best late-season stage races for all but the 2020 season when it was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Former winners include Leontien van Moorsel, Petra Rosner, Kristin Armstrong, Annemiek van Vleuten, Lorena Wiebes, to name a few, while Marianne Vos has won the overall title four times.

Join Cyclingnews' coverage of the 2023 Simac Ladies Tour with race reports, results, photo galleries, news and race analysis.

Simac Ladies Tour Route

The Simac Ladies Tour 2023 route covers 580.2 kilometres across six days of racing. There are two races against the clock and four road race days.

The Prologue winner will wear the first leader's jersey on Tuesday, September 5. Riders will cover a 2.4-kilometre time trial in the city centre of Ede. The route and distance are the same as in 2021, when Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma), put on the leader's jersey.

Stage 1 is a 139.6km route that begins in Gennep and heads north for two large laps of 62.7km. Riders return to the same town in the province of Limburg using one 16.2km circuit to the finish line.

The individual time trial on stage 2 is a flat 7.1km, with a start-finish on Bondgenotenlaan in Leuven.

Stage 3 follows a route of 149km from Emmeloord to Lelystad. Once in the capital of the province of Flevoland, the peloton will complete a 60.4km circuit with a finish at Museumweg.

Stage 4 then takes the peloton around Valkenburg, where the route starts at Landal Castle and finishes on the Cauberg. There are 130 kilometres through the southernmost part of the countryside of South Limberg, then culminates with two final rounds with the Cauberg, Geulhemmerberg and Bemelerberg.

Stage 5 begins on the Zijpendaalseweg in Arnhem for the longest day of the six, 150.5km, which covers a series of loops. First up are seven circuits of the Emmapiramide and the Posbank, followed by five loops through Arnhem with the Zijpendaalseweg and the Apeldoornsweg. The fast finish sets up on the Zijpendaalseweg.

Simac Ladies Tour 2023 Contenders

Lorena Wiebes will lead the SD Worx team as she aims to defend her title won last year. Not the only overall contender on her team, also watch out for Demi Vollering and new world champion Lotte Kopecky to make their mark on stage wins and in the GC standings.

The Simac Ladies Tour marks the final race for Annemiek van Vleuten before retirement. She initially planned to stop racing following the World Championships but decided to continue for two final races at the Tour of Scandinavia, which she won, and on home soil at the Simac Ladies Tour. 

Anna Henderson will lead the Jumbo-Visma team, especially in the absence of Marianne Vos, who has ended her season early after iliac artery surgery. Henderson is in prime form and more than capable of taking on the GC leadership role and stage opportunities.

Kasia Niewiadoma and Maike van der Duin will lead the Canyon-SRAM team in the hunt for stage wins and the overall standings, while Maggie Coles-Lyster will be one to watch for the Israel Premier Tech Roland team.

Shirin van Anrooij arrives in top form, having just won the overall title at the first Tour de l'Avenir Femmes. Lidl-Trek also start with Lucinda Brand and Elisa Balsamo, for a powerful team.

Pfeiffer Georgi and Charlotte Kool will lead a powerful Team dsm-firmenich, while other teams showcase sprinters such as Ruby Roseman-Gannon (Team Jayco AlUla), Chiara Consonni (UAE Team ADQ) will be lighting up the finals.

Simac Ladies Tour 2023 Schedule

Simac Ladies Tour start list