“A few people need to wake up”: Lotte Kopecky (4th) sharp after offday SD Worx in Waregem, Marianne Vos wins | Cycling spring

Lotte Kopecky had to bite her tongue after Dwars door Vlaanderen. It was clear that she didn’t want to share what she really thought about how the match went. “Bwa, yes… I think… You also saw that… Yes, no…” Kopecky puffed and groaned, before concluding with a diplomatic: “I have a bit of mixed feelings about it.” about.”

Shall we tell you what went wrong: where was SD Worx located? The best team in the women’s peloton did not give up in Dwars door Vlaanderen. They missed the crucial breakaways, chased the facts and couldn’t put things right afterwards – in fact Kopecky was the only one who was more or less on par. “Some people need to wake up,” said our compatriot. A clear signal, without pointing the finger at anyone specifically.

Could that have been possible? In any case, there is a suspicion of what went wrong. You can probably look for the explanation for the off-day in the margins of the match: earlier in the day it was announced that Demi Vollering, next to Kopecky the second big star of the team, will not extend her expiring contract. Vollering reportedly has an offer of one million euros per year from Team UAE.

The SD Worx team management reacted in a somewhat tense manner. She sent out a rather vicious press release – “We have made Demi a generous offer (…) but Vollering management has not responded” – and she banned anyone within the team from commenting on the matter. That had an impact on the atmosphere on the team bus. SD Worx acted like a team under high tension: the focus was not good and the legs tied up in knots.

The rejection of every question about Vollering by sporting manager Danny Stam did not help. It meant that no one could properly explain the sporting disappointment. “But this says nothing about Sunday,” he said. “We are going to the Tour of Flanders with a lot of ambition.”

Vollering will be present again, and with Reusser and Wiebes there will even be reinforcements. Kopecky realizes that a top performance will be necessary. “We have to stand united,” she said. “Because Marianne Vos is at a very good level and Lidl-Trek is very strong across the board.”

Kopecky will also have to be top if she wants to win the Tour for a third time in a row. Because even though she was the best of the team in Waregem, she also did not drive a perfect race. She was not present at the first important selection, which meant she had to put a lot of energy into the chase. Kopecky: “One of us should have always been there. I might have been able to come along myself, but others could have taken the initiative.”

Her biggest error in judgment was when Vos and Shirin van Anrooij rode away in the final. Kopecky: “It’s my own fault that I don’t respond immediately when they leave. That’s where I lose track. I had the legs, I could have reacted, but those are choices you make. Gambled and lost.”

Conclusion: Kopecky and SD Worx are heading to the Tour with quite a lot of pressure. “It will not be an easy task, but I am not dreading it,” said Kopecky. “I have no doubts in my mind.”

Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!

Log in or create an account and never miss anything from the stars.

Yes, I want free unlimited access