The peloton is in the UAE, but mentally, I am in Italy.
Cor Vos
Goodbye, Australia and hello, desert? The peloton is headed to the United Arab Emirates for the fourth edition of the UAE Tour. Of course, the home nation team, UAE Team ADQ, is there with their A-squad, including defending champ Elisa Longo Borghini, fresh off an altitude camp. Meanwhile, in Spain, we’ve got the Vuelta CV Feminas to look forward to. But the most exciting athletic event of the year kicks off this week in Italy: the 2026 Winter Olympics.
First things first: Lucinda Brand, you hero
Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t watch cyclocross. It is nothing against the sport; in fact, whenever I watch it, I am entertained. The problem is there’s only so much time in the day and space in my head, and when winter rolls around, it’s winter sports that I gravitate towards. This weekend, in between watching Ryan Cochran-Siegle come third in the Crans-Montana Downhill and Breezy Johnson land on the Super-G podium, I did tune in to watch the cyclocross World Championships.
It’s the one cross race of the year that I will never miss, despite the fact that it’s almost always basically the Dutch national championships.
I might not watch the races religiously like I do the road races, but I still keep an eye on World Cup results, so I knew Lucinda Brand was on a tear this season – but DAMN. The Worlds win was something else! The race had everything. Drama. Disappointment. Even though Brand was on another level, she kept me on the edge of my seat. I would have been thrilled to see Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado win as well, but for Brand to take the title after winning eight World Cups this year, with only one finish off the podium at the Maasmechelen World Cup, and her history with Worlds (her only other world title was in 2021 but she’s finished on the podium every year since 2019)… just wow.
CX Worlds gallery: A date with history as Hulst turns orange
The Netherlands dominated its home World Championships, with Lucinda Brand and record-breaker Mathieu van der Poel topping the medals.
Who’s to say when we will see Brand on the road, no doubt she needs a break now after the season she had.
Take a bow, Lucinda. And maybe a holiday. You’ve earned it.
Racing continues…
At the UAE Tour, February 5-8.
The next round of the WorldTour takes place in the UAE at the UAE Tour, where UAE Team ADQ is hoping to back up a dominant performance from last year. Three sprint stages will go to the fast women (probably), and yet again the general classification will be determined atop Jebel Hafeet, this year taking place at the end of the final stage. There is very little wind predicted in the first three stages – the highest number I’ve seen was 19 km/hr tailwind during the first stage. The fourth stage does have some 20.8 km/hr head/crosswinds predicted for that long straight stretch leading into the bottom of the climb that saw some climbers fighting to stay in position in 2023.
Stage 1 – Thursday, February 5: Al Mirfa to Madinat Zayed (111 km)
Stage 2 – Friday, February 6: Dubai to Dubai (145 km)
Stage 3 – Saturday, February 7: Abu Dhabi to Abu Dhabi (121 km)
Stage 4 – Sunday, February 8: Al Ain to Jebel Hafeet (156 km)
A startlist is not yet available as of writing this, apart from Instagram footage of Longo Borghini on the ground and news from Movistar that Marlen Reusser would be in attendance. Kim Le Court-Pienaar is also supposed to line up for AG Insurance-Soudal, as well as Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney for Canyon-SRAM-Zondacrypto. If true, this will be the biggest edition yet.
Closer to the race, you will be able to find a full startlist here.
The 1.Pro Vuelta CV Feminas takes place on Sunday in Spain. The race covers 93.8 km from Bétera to Valencia.
A startlist for that will also be available later this week on FirstCycling.com.
Wheel Talk podcast
Gracie and Georgie joined me this week to talk about the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race and the upcoming UAE Tour. We discussed the lack of willingness to form an early breakaway by WorldTour teams and how they should probably have a little more fun. We also discussed Heated Rivalry. Plus! Georgie chatted with Tour Down Under winner Noemi Rüegg about her stage victory against three UAE Team ADQ riders and more.
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