After a promising second place in the Amstel Gold Race last weekend, Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney was a favourite to win Wednesday's Flèche Wallonne Femmes, a feat she accomplished in 2024.
The 31-year-old was right on the wheel of eventual winner Demi Vollering (FDJ United-Suez) going up the Mur de Huy, but this time a mechanical meant that she had to push a big gear, leaving her unable to follow Vollering and having to let Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) and Paula Blasi (UAE Team ADQ) past for the remaining podium spots.
“I’m definitely not happy. I was really bummed with the last climb because I got stuck on the big chain ring. I had to just power through the climb and couldn’t shift to the small one for some reason. That was not ideal, and we didn’t come here for fourth, but c’est la vie,” said Niewiadoma-Phinney after the race.
But following an Amstel Gold Race where the Polish allrounder had to fend for herself for a long time, she took solace in a stronger team performance and looked ahead to Sunday’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
“I’m super happy with how the team rode, it was a massive step up from Amstel. That was nice to see, and I felt good. Hopefully, on Sunday, we show it even more,” concluded Niewiadoma-Phinney.
Now 36, Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) did not feature among the top favourites for the victory, but as a winner of seven consecutive editions between 2015 and 2012, she could not be discounted either and showed her experience with a fifth-place finish, surging past world champion Magdeleine Vallières (EF Education-Oatly) in the final 100 metres.
“I did better in the past,” smiled Van der Breggen when asked if she was happy with her fifth place, then went on to point out that women’s cycling is in continuous development, with the level of racing increasing every year.
“The overall level is higher, and positioning is key – you get pushed aside so often compared to before. Compared to last year, I have taken a step forward. On the Mur, Demi was simply the best today. I couldn’t go any faster and tried to pace it well. Actually, fifth place is a good result,” Van der Breggen said.
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