2024 Ronde van Drenthe Women podium (L-R): Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek), race winner Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-ProTime) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) in third place (Image credit: Getty Images)
For a fourth year in a row Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime) celebrated taking the victory at Ronde van Drenthe after riding away from Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) on the uphill sprint on the cobbles of the VAMberg.
That makes Wiebes the record holder for the most wins in the race, with the rider having first leapt into a break of eight that looked like it could be the winning move, though when that was reeled back in the sprint trains took over. Once Wiebes launched her sprint there was no one that could rival the Dutch rider, with Balsamo the only one who looked remotely close to having a chance of latching onto the powerful acceleration.
In the end, however, Wiebes came over the line with a two second gap, making her mastery of the 158.1km race unequivocally clear.
Miron Ronde van Drenthe Women has been a fixture among the early Spring Classics for 16 editions. The northern Netherlands one-day race suits the powerful and fast finishers but not necessarily the pure sprinters. In 2024, the Women's WorldTour race takes place on March 10, straddling between two Italian Classics, Strade Bianche Donne and Trofeo Alfredo Binda.
The women’s race has been on the WorldTour since 2016. There was a men’s Ronde van Drenthe, but “rising costs, increasing regulatory pressure and safety problems” caused organisers to remove the event from the 2024 race calendar.
Dutch sprinter Lorena Wiebes (Team SD Worx) won the last three editions of the women’s race. She joined compatriot Marianne Vos as the only women to have won the race in three consecutive years, Vos doing so from 2011-2013.
The race wasn't held in 2020 due to COVID-19, but of the 16 previous editions, only five have ended in a bunch sprint. The route is not completely flat, but includes technical sections and some cobblestones, as well as the VAM mountain, which suits breakaway riders and strong finishers.
Team SD Worx was especially attentive to get Wiebes in position for a bunch sprint last year, working together on a sixth and final pass up the VAMberg climb, a route change made by organisers when the race was shortened by almost 60km due to a rare snowfall.
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Ronde van Drenthe Women 2024 route
2023 snow on VAMberg (Image credit: Bas Czerwinski/Getty Images)
This year's route is 158.1km from Beilen to Drijber, using a series of circuits over cobbled sectors and four trips and the finish line at the top of the VAMberg, which has pitches as steep as 20%.
The most decisive aspect of the route is the VAMberg, the ascent built over a former waste dump. It is a pivotal point each year, as well as what can’t be seen - the strong echelon-creating crosswinds that can strike on northern Netherland roads.
Because of the shortened route, to 94km, last year due to heavy snowfall before the race, all the planned cobblestone sectors were removed. Instead of three 14-kilometre laps with the double ascent of the VAMberg, the peloton made six passes of the steep climb. Combined with the cold temperatures, this made for a shorter but harder race.
The 2024 route tackles five local circuits of 29km each, and the peloton will also race over the Vamberg six times and then finish at the top.
It is the first time the tradition of finishing in Hoogeveen has ended.
2024 Ronde van Drenthe Contenders
Lorena Wiebes is aiming to add a fourth consecutive victory to her record at Ronde van Drenthe on Sunday. She won the two opening stages at the UAE Tour and recently won the late-race breakaway sprint at GP Oetingen. She hasn't won this many early-season races ahead of Ronde van Drenthe in previous years and said her season victories boost her confidence.
Vittoria Guazzini will lead FDJ-SUEZ after a recently winning Le Samyn des Dames and a victory at the Women's WorldTour race would be another notch in her palmares.
Audrey Cordon-Ragot (Human Powered Health) is a contender, and while she may not be a pure sprinter, she can ignite a potential breakaway.
Liv AlUla Jayco duo Alexandra Manly and Georgia Baker will be the two cards to play for the Australian outfit. Both arrive at the Spring Classics after a solid summer season of racing in Australia.
Chiara Consonni will be the sprinter-to-beat for the UAE Team ADQ. She has already secured three podiums this season, two at the UAE Tour and one at the Mallorca Challenge, but watch for her to sprint among the best at Ronde van Drenthe.
Thalita de Jong (Lotto Dstny Ladies) almost won the GP Oetingen this week but finished second to Wiebes in a five-rider sprint. De Jon had been part of an early decisive breakaway that Wiebes was forced to bridge. Wiebes said she would keep a close eye on De Jong at Ronde van Drenthe and not let her get away into a dangerous breakaway again.
