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2025-10-11T11:27:06.004Z
Quinty Ton (Netherlands) has made a move off the front of the bunch and is now solo.
2025-10-11T11:26:02.924Z
Much of the route today cuts through the farmland of Zuid-Limburg.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
2025-10-11T11:24:14.672Z
After sitting back in the bunch up to now, Tiffany Cromwell (Australia) has now moved up towards the front, as has Paula Blasi (Spain).
2025-10-11T11:22:23.789Z
60km to go
2025-10-11T11:20:02.292Z
More riders have been dropped. There are 70 left in contact with the front of the race. Nutt (GBr), Seal (Can) and Kamasheva (Ger) are in a small group just off the back trying to chase back on.
2025-10-11T11:18:16.690Z
It’s now Quinty Ton leading things at the front for the Netherlands.
2025-10-11T11:07:11.094Z
Two hours-in, the riders have been travelling at an average speed of 32.1km/h
2025-10-11T11:06:22.466Z
Defending champion Marianne Vos and her Dutch team appear to be well in control of things so far
(Image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
2025-10-11T11:04:17.987Z
A crash for one of the British riders off the back
(Image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
2025-10-11T11:00:21.330Z
Madeleine Nutt (GBr) and Nathalie Eklund (Swe) are among those distanced for the moment. The pace has ebbed and flowed so far today, so they and others may have a chance to get back on.
2025-10-11T10:59:11.268Z
70km to go
2025-10-11T10:57:34.433Z
Wiebes has moved to the front of the group now, with Silvia Persico on her wheel.
2025-10-11T10:54:41.591Z
Our reporter on the ground in Maastricht, Jackie Tyson, has been speaking to veteran gravel racer Jasper Ockeloen who wants to see more top-level gravel racers take part in the UCI Worlds.
(Image credit: Future)
2025-10-11T10:51:27.090Z
The final rider in the bunch at the moment is Brazil’s Tamirez Radatz, who is one of the South American nation’s strongest road racers. She is competing in her first gravel World Championships.
2025-10-11T10:48:46.357Z
Among the riders dropped is Belgium’s Fauve Bastiaenssen who was 15th at the 3RIDES Gravel Race in Germany earlier this season.
2025-10-11T10:47:35.846Z
The small splits caused by that section of hills have now come back together. However, several riders have dropped off the back of the group, which now numbers 82.
2025-10-11T10:43:36.105Z
80km to go
2025-10-11T10:38:51.550Z
Schreurs has put in a real shift today so far. She’s still working on the front alongside Van Anrooij and Rijnbeek.
2025-10-11T10:36:15.952Z
Belgium’s Martha Truyen, who races for Fenix-Deceuninck on the road, is a decent bet for a top-10 placing today
(Image credit: Getty Images)
2025-10-11T10:32:53.450Z
Maud Rijnbeek and Shirin Van Anrooij have now taken up the pace-making at the front of the bunch for the Dutch team.
2025-10-11T10:31:57.765Z
That section of hills has stretched things out a bit and there are several small splits in the bunch.
2025-10-11T10:28:28.904Z
There are a couple of riders less than a minute off the back who could get back on if the pace continues as it is. They are Signe Andersen (Denmark) and Oliwia Majewska (Poland).
2025-10-11T10:26:44.947Z
That section of climbing is done. It’s now an undulating portion of the race. Expect the selection to be made later on.
2025-10-11T10:22:28.955Z
It’s tight for space on these narrow, winding gravel sections. Julia Kopecky, Marianne Vos and Rosa Klöser jostle for position on a right-hand bend.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
2025-10-11T10:20:07.572Z
The Dutch are still dominating the front of the bunch. 14 of their riders are in the first 20 positions currently, with Schreurs still tapping away in the wind.
2025-10-11T10:18:24.553Z
90km to go
2025-10-11T10:12:52.690Z
The bunch are now taking on a section with four short, steep climbs in quick succession. They will return to this part of the course on the second lap with around 50km to go.
2025-10-11T10:10:19.825Z
Marianne Vos is sitting further back in the group currently, as is young road star Paula Blasi (Spain). It will be fascinating to see how the new under-23 European women’s road race champion gets on today.
2025-10-11T10:06:46.040Z
Lorena Wiebes has been 3rd and 5th in her previous Gravel Worlds appearances. Can she improve on that today?
2025-10-11T09:59:50.085Z
After almost an hour of racing, there are still 86 riders left in the bunch. Latvian rider Kitija Siltumena is chasing back on though.
2025-10-11T09:58:31.364Z
100km to go
2025-10-11T09:57:38.042Z
Australian contender Nicole Frain is currently on the front of the group alongside Julia Kopecky. The riders are now on the flat section of road before the next hilly part.
2025-10-11T09:55:19.341Z
It’s been a controlled start to the race. The average speed so far is around 32km per hour.
2025-10-11T09:52:12.562Z
It’s a Dutch shut-out at the front of the bunch, with just Czechia’s Julia Kopecky joining them at the head of affairs. You can also see some riders being distanced on this climb.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
2025-10-11T09:49:38.670Z
The riders have taken on a series of short hills in this opening 25km. Soon, they will descend into a flat portion before the next challenging section.
2025-10-11T09:46:13.787Z
Rosa Klöser and Nicole Frain lead the bunch with a flotilla of Dutch riders just behind.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
2025-10-11T09:43:01.214Z
The front group is down to 86 riders, with all the favourites still ensconced in the peloton
2025-10-11T09:41:45.787Z
110km to go
2025-10-11T09:40:26.634Z
This is the fourth edition of the UCI Gravel World Championships. The three previous winners of the women’s elite race were Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (2022), Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (2023) and Vos (2024) – the Dutchwoman is the only former champion at the race this year.
2025-10-11T09:34:22.235Z
The peloton is already stretched out on the opening, narrow sections
(Image credit: Getty Images)
2025-10-11T09:30:41.625Z
Another view of the start in Beek around 30 minutes ago.
2025-10-11T09:28:24.751Z
The riders have already taken on the opening paved climb of the Adsteeg (700m @ 5%). They only race this climb on this opening lap.
2025-10-11T09:26:22.716Z
The group is already thinning. The likes of Sofia Schugar (USA), Viktoria Dehler (Germany) and Violette Irakoze Neza (Rwanda) are dropped for now.
2025-10-11T09:25:04.496Z
Reigning champion Marianne Vos is sitting back in the group in around 15th place, with several team-mates for company.
2025-10-11T09:23:59.221Z
120km to go
With the first road section of the race nearly complete, Germany’s Rosa Klöser is now stretching things out at the front, with Wiebes and Silvia Persico on her wheel.
2025-10-11T09:22:23.503Z
If you’re a road fan and you’re trying to get your head around the course today, think of the Amstel Gold Race. The race is taking place in the same region of the Netherlands, Limburg, and features a similar series of leg-sapping short climbs.
2025-10-11T09:20:06.330Z
Björg Hákonardóttir of Iceland is one of the first riders to be tailed off the back of the group in the opening portion of the race
2025-10-11T09:17:17.650Z
The riders are currently on paved roads, the gravel doesn’t begin until the Adsteeg climb in a few kilometres.
2025-10-11T09:15:16.284Z
The bunch is all together in the opening kilometres, but the Dutch are already showing their strength, with Wiebes, Femke Markus and Geertjie Schreurs taking up the first three positions, as Klöser sits just behind.
2025-10-11T09:12:57.075Z
Early positioning is crucial on the gravel. Thanks to their placing in the UCI Gravel Series and other criteria, these riders had the fortune of start on the front row:
Marianne Vos (Netherlands)
Lorena Wiebes (Netherlands)
Nicole Frain (Australia)
Wendy Oosterwoud (Netherlands)
Jade Treffeisen (Germany)
Rosa Klöser (Germany)
Sophie Wright (Great Britain)
2025-10-11T09:10:11.289Z
Quite an orange looking front row at the start. Will the Dutch dominate the race today?
2025-10-11T09:05:06.937Z
And here’s a look at the finish straight on the Groene Loper in Maastricht
(Image credit: Jackie Tyson)
2025-10-11T09:01:36.747Z
131.3km to go
2025-10-11T08:56:40.759Z
Former Unbound 200 winner Rosa Klöser is all too aware of the threat posed by the Dutch squad today. Here’s her assessment of the race tactics.
Rosa Klöser rides to victory at 2025 Ranxo Gravel, and series title at Gravel Earth Series (Image credit: © GravelEarthSeries – Ranxo Gravel – Roger Salanova)
2025-10-11T08:53:14.387Z
It’s less than 10 minutes until the start
2025-10-11T08:50:58.201Z
“I feel excited, maybe nervous…I think I can feel confident in my ability, but I know you always need some luck in gravel too
Nicole Frain on her way to victory at Houffa Gravel 2025 (Image credit: Thibaut Debelle / Houffa Gravel)
2025-10-11T08:45:19.634Z
The riders will take on a 50-kilometre circuit two-and-a-half times, with the hardest climb of the lap being the Bronsdalweg, which averages 8%.
2025-10-11T08:41:44.879Z
The riders have to cover 131km today with 1,190 metres of climbing on the course. It will be up and down pretty much all day. No long climbs, just short, steep hills.
2025-10-11T08:39:20.350Z
As ever, the Dutch team looks remarkably strong. Alongside Vos, the likes of Lorena Wiebes and Puck Pieterse will also be wearing orange today on home roads.
2025-10-11T08:35:22.880Z
Marianne Vos is back to defend her title from 2024. She’s one of a number of road stars on the start-line.
2025-10-11T08:31:09.478Z
We’ve got exactly 30 minutes to go until the elite women’s race begins in Beek
2025-10-11T08:22:39.790Z
Don’t be surprised if you see more roadies than gravel stars at the start, though.
2025-10-11T08:18:34.320Z
Wondering which riders to watch today? Check out our guide to the contenders to get an idea of who is chasing that rainbow jersey.
2025-10-11T08:16:36.064Z
We’ll be here all day with all the latest from Limburg. Our writer Jackie Tyson is on the ground in Limburg, too, so expect post-race news and analysis straight from the source.
2025-10-08T20:41:51.068Z
Hello and welcome to Cyclingnews’ live coverage of the elite women’s race at the UCI Gravel World Championships.