
Demi Vollering won the women’s world road race championship in Montreal on Sunday after a dramatic sprint finish, capping a season that already included victories at the Tour de France Femmes, Giro Donne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the Tour of Flanders.
The 29-year-old Dutch rider triumphed in the longest edition of the race, outpacing Poland’s Kasia Niewiadoma in the final 200 meters after the pair had traded attacks on the final lap. Vollering’s decisive acceleration left Niewiadoma, who appeared to suffer from cramp, unable to respond. Italy’s Elisa Longo Borghini, another of the Tour de France Femmes podium finishers, completed the leading trio in the uphill sprint.
The race was defined by its brutal 13.4km circuit, featuring steep climbs like the Voie Camillien-Houde, which thinned the peloton. Defending champion Magdeleine Vallieres of Canada and Spain’s Paula Blasi were among the high-profile abandonments after crashes, with Vallieres withdrawing with 60km remaining. Great Britain’s Flora Perkins and Tour of Britain winner Kim Le Court also crashed in the same downhill incident.
Vollering had launched a solo attack with 40km to go, only to be reeled in with less than 20km remaining. “There were so many moments when I thought I’d taken off too early,” she said. “When they came back to me I was like, ‘Oh shit — this is still not over.’ But never give up until the finish line.”
She later praised her team’s effort, stating, “I worked so hard towards this goal and it takes guts to truly believe. I’m so proud of everybody from the team. They rode the whole race from the front.”
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