Preview European Cycling Championships - women 2025 | Ten Dam faces another puzzle to solve with dominant Dutch team
Women's CyclingThursday, 02 October 2025 at 12:33
For several years now, the Netherlands has struggled to translate its dominance across the board into victories at the highest level in women's cycling. Think of the World Championships, the Olympic Games, the Tour de France Femmes... However, at the European Cycling Championships, TeamNL has been extremely dominant for years. In nine editions, only once did a Dutch cyclist not win. Will it happen again on Saturday? IDLProCycling.com offers a detailed preview.
Practical information European Cycling Championship 2025 - women
- Saturday, Oct. 4, Guilherand-Granges (France)
- Participants
- Classification: European Championship
In this article
- Latest winners
- Parcous, weather and times
- Favorites
- TV information
Latest winners of European Cycling Championship 2025 - women
2024 Lorena Wiebes
2023 Mischa Bredewold
2022 Lorena Wiebes
2021 Ellen van Dijk
2020 Annemiek van Vleuten
2019 Amy Pieters
2018 Marta Bastianelli
2017 Marianne Vos
2016 Anna van der Breggen
2023 Mischa Bredewold
2022 Lorena Wiebes
2021 Ellen van Dijk
2020 Annemiek van Vleuten
2019 Amy Pieters
2018 Marta Bastianelli
2017 Marianne Vos
2016 Anna van der Breggen
European Cycling Championship 2025 - women: Course, weather and times
The organizers of the European Cycling Championships have mapped out various courses. This was already the case for the time trials, and the road races will also be completed in different forms each time. For example, the women will also start from Privas and tackle the Col du Moulin á Vent (4.0 kilometers at 5.1 percent) right from the start. After that, it is another 40 kilometers to the first finish line.
That's where the similarities end, because while the men start three large laps after 47.5 kilometers, the women already complete one lap of the men's final circuit. This includes the Montée de Costebelle and Val d'Enfer (1.6 kilometers at 9.7 percent). After passing the finish line, we will cross the Saint-Romain-de-Lerps (7.0 kilometers at 7.2 percent) once.
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Where the men will go over the Saint-Romain-de-Lerps three times, the women will do it once, followed by one more lap of the final circuit. That means two more times Val d'Enfer, before we finish flat after a fast descent. So it's a different dynamic, with the Saint-Romain-de-Lerps closer to the finish. Who will dare to attack here, 37 kilometers from the finish, and cross the line first after 116.1 kilometers?
Weather
While it will be windy on Sunday during the men's race, Saturday is expected to be much less windy and warmer. The temperature is expected to rise to around 22 degrees Celsius, and with a wind force of 2 from the east-northeast, we anticipate no strong winds. It will be windier at the finish, but in Guilherand-Granges it will also be 25 degrees Celsius.
While it will be windy on Sunday during the men's race, Saturday is expected to be much less windy and warmer. The temperature is expected to rise to around 22 degrees Celsius, and with a wind force of 2 from the east-northeast, we anticipate no strong winds. It will be windier at the finish, but in Guilherand-Granges it will also be 25 degrees Celsius.
Times
Start: 02:00 PM local time (08:00 AM EDT)
Finish: around 05.00 PM local time (11:00 AM EDT)
Start: 02:00 PM local time (08:00 AM EDT)
Finish: around 05.00 PM local time (11:00 AM EDT)
Favorites European Cycling Championship 2025 - women
The list of participants is not yet official, so this section is subject to change.
As with the men, we can look forward to a very strong field of participants on Saturday, including many women who have come directly from the World Championships in Rwanda. We consider the Netherlands to be the top favorite, based solely on past results. But who will come out on top on Saturday?
There are plenty of favorites. From the World Championships, Demi Vollering, Anna van der Breggen, Riejanne Markus, and Shirin van Anrooij are the most interesting names. But Mischa Bredewold, the 2023 European champion, is also joining them. In September, she won two stages in the Tour Cycliste Féminin International, in... the Ardèche! Pauline Rooijakkers, Femke Gerritse, and Femke de Vries will also be there.
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Demi Vollering (right)
The Netherlands basically performed well in Rwanda, but lacked the top legs in the grueling conditions. This was also true for some of the other top favorites. Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (France), Marlen Reusser (Switzerland), Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland), and Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy) were unable to hold their own. Ferrand-Prévot is ill and has withdrawn, while Reusser and Longo Borghini are out.
But that's not all. France also has cards to play, such as Marion Bunel, Juliette Labous, Cédrine Kerbaol, and Évita Muzic. Try making a choice... The Swiss also have a surplus, with Elise Chabbey at the start alongside Reusser. Germany has three excellent choices in Liane Lippert, Antonia Niedermaier, and Ricarda Bauernfeind.
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Marlen Reusser
Are we done yet? No, because Spain has Mavi Garcia, the surprise number three in the World Championships, in its ranks, and we should definitely mention Silvia Persico for Italy. The British could still surprise us with Anna Henderson. And can Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig take revenge with a good European Championship after her physical misfortune before the World Championships?
Who are the favorites for the European Cycling Championship 2025 - women, according to IDLProCycling.com?
Top favorites: Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy) and Mischa Bredewold (Netherlands)
Outsiders: Demi Vollering, Anna van der Breggen (Netherlands), Marlen Reusser (Switzerland), Marion Bunel (France) and Liane Lippert (Germany)
Long shots: Riejanne Markus, Shirin van Anrooij (Netherlands), Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland), Elise Chabbey (Switzerland), Anna Henderson (Great Britain), Ricarda Bauernfeind, Antonia Niedermaier (Germany), Cedrine Kerbaol, Juliette Labous, (France), Silvia Persico (Italy) and Mavi Garcia (Spain)
Outsiders: Demi Vollering, Anna van der Breggen (Netherlands), Marlen Reusser (Switzerland), Marion Bunel (France) and Liane Lippert (Germany)
Long shots: Riejanne Markus, Shirin van Anrooij (Netherlands), Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland), Elise Chabbey (Switzerland), Anna Henderson (Great Britain), Ricarda Bauernfeind, Antonia Niedermaier (Germany), Cedrine Kerbaol, Juliette Labous, (France), Silvia Persico (Italy) and Mavi Garcia (Spain)
TV broadcast European Cycling Championship 2025 - women
The NOS will be broadcasting live on TV and via an online stream on the NPO. In Belgium, Sporza will be available via the VRT from 1:50 PM local time. The European Championships will only be available online via Eurosport on Saturday, but will be broadcast from the start at 1:50 PM local time via HBO Max.
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Latest Comments
- What the data doesn't show is how much of an effect drafting had for evenepoel. Pogacar went with del toro at 100km whilst Evenepoel was still in the bunch. Despite the bike changes he still had a lot of assistance getting back to the bunch. Pogacar then rode 60km solo whilst evenepoel rode with Healy/Skjelmose until going solo in thd last 10-15km. Thats ~20% less power / energy requirements for 45-50km. Apples and oranges...kevpt30-09-2025
- 👏👏Bea24-09-2025
- Agreed! As we all know now, Juan Ayuso will be on another team. But it was sweet to see him win the stages at La Vuelta. I do love the drama of cycling admittedly but its clear to see the talent of winners of stages in a Grand Tourryhw2814fq921-09-2025
- Pogacar has no competition he has won everything, I cant imagine even being him in that position!! Crazy. I am sure he has some back up plan for how he wants to spend his retirement years at age 30 onward. Does he like beer? Plenty of innovation in brewing. And you don't have to be super social. Chapeau/Cheers whatever you like Tadej you will do.ryhw2814fq921-09-2025
- Plus its confirmed that the Philadelphia Cycling Classic up the Manayunk Wall is back for 2026! hooray for thatryhw2814fq918-09-2025
- This is a dumb question but still why doesn't the UCI consider a grand tour in the USA in the future. We have the desolate/scary back roads in Pennsylvania and Virginia, just like in France with loads of rural land and hills. Plus the Rocky Mountains in Colorado and the Cascade/Olympic Mountains in Washington State. I'm sure it'll never happen but honestly people in PA/NJ/NY/VT/NH would love it. We are already sports fans, what is another sport to learn. I am forever optimistic about cycling in the US.ryhw2814fq918-09-2025
- Zonneveld makes some excellent points.The sponsorship model is broken and companies like Verizon who have multi billion dollar with a B ad budgets need to be involved again.
Brucegel17-09-2025 - Roger Vlaeminck says Mads is not a good rider? Where is the headline saying you don't even have to be a good rider to win the World Road Championship says Roger Vlaeminck, who never won it!!? Perhaps his aging mind needs to think about what the heck he's saying.packfiller7103-09-2025
- Wow, there is so much criticism of the UAE XRG riders. Why so much criticism is being leveled solely at the riders is baffling. The UAE XRG management deserves a good amount of the criticism aimed at the team, as a whole. They have not managed the talent they have at all. They failed miserably to properly handle young Isaac del Toro on that penultimate day of the Giro. And they have not handled Juan Ayuso well either. If they didn't have Tadej Pogacar in their roster, we might not be talking about them as winners, at all. So many think that Ayuso has shown that he is not a "team" player at all. Does anybody think that he might be thinking about his own future at this point? That he might want to feel like the team has his back, when they load the pressure onto him? And Joao is not a team leader. That burden might be laid on him by the management, but they need to properly support that assignment, not make it a contentious situation, within the team. And then how management has conducted themselves throughout this parting of ways between themselves and Ayuso has been totally indiscreet. And yet people want to pile onto Ayuso when he tells the truth about the manner that this is all soap opera is developing. He wants out. He shouldn't be getting so much negative criticism for that. It's a situation that has soured. Yes he has a contract, but he is not the first, nor will he be the last that wants to get out of a relationship that just isn't working anymore. And DeCauwer seems to have very vague reasons for criticizing Almeida. He does realize that Jonas is the second best Grand Tour rider of this current generation, so it should be no shame that Joao is behind him in the standings. Riders are giving their all in an extremely difficult sport that stretches them, often beyond their limits. Now many are wanting to send them to Behavioral School as well? The criticism ought to mellow out, or it ought to simply be ignored, as nothing more than blah, blah, blah, not worth the headlines it gets
reemmo002-09-2025 - In 5yrs, Pogi will be a top Twitch streamer living on baked goods while Urska is still racing.Veganpotter11-08-2025
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