Marianne Vos to miss Milan-Sanremo due to father’s illness

Vos had already chosen to skip the cyclo-cross season earlier this winter, in part because of her father’s illness. In January, she spoke openly to NOS about the difficult period she and her family had been going through. “It also had to do with health issues in the family, with my father being in hospital. That becomes the main thing you focus on. You want to be there for him. Sometimes it was really about finding time to train, and also trying to find a bit of relaxation somewhere. But the bike is also something that gives you direction: looking ahead, the cycling season was also a point on the horizon.”

Vos was still able to begin her road season at Strade Bianche in early March. She immediately showed strong form there and only cracked on the steep final climb into Siena, eventually finishing seventh. A week later, she was again competitive in Trofeo Alfredo Binda, where she came home in sixth place.

For understandable private reasons, Vos is now taking a step back and will not race Milan-Sanremo. On her debut in the one-day race last year, she sprinted to an impressive second place, with only Lorena Wiebes proving faster on the day.

Without Vos, Canadian rider Sarah Van Dam becomes Visma | Lease a Bike’s main card to play in La Primavera. The team newcomer is especially known as an explosive rider who performs well on rolling terrain. Visma also still have two strong options in climber Femke de Vries and powerful rouleur Lieke Nooijen. Rosita Reijnhout comes into the selection in place of Vos, while the rest of the squad is made up of Daniek Hengeveld and Margaux Vigié.