Women's cycling events that will turn heads in 2023

Just like the men, the women are also about to come out of winter hibernation and getting ready for some massive events on the cycling calendar. Read on and discover which women's competitions you should definitely not miss this year.

A day before the men, the women head into the field in Hoogerheide, in the Netherlands. The home riders are without a doubt the big favourites in this competition. Fem van Empel-Puck Pieterse is currently 'hors catégorie'. But maybe Denise Betsema, Lucinda Brand and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado can provide a surprise. Marianne Vos is defending her world title.

On February 25, the first really big event of the road season is scheduled for the women's peloton: the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. Last year, the Dutch Annemiek van Vleuten beat her compatriot Demi Vollering.

On March 4, the women's cycling circus lands in Italy for the Strade Bianche. The white gravel roads again promise fireworks until Siena's Piazza del Campo. Last year Lotte Kopecky took out the title.

On March 26, it's time for Gent-Wevelgem, the ideal test to see how good the legs are for the Tour of Flanders. In 2022, it was Italian Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo) who got to raise her arms at the finish line.

A week after Gent-Wevelgem, for many, the most beautiful cycling race of the year takes place: the Tour of Flanders. The home fans hope for a reissue of the previous edition, when Lotte Kopecky made the Belgian beer flow freely.

A week later and it's time for the third edition of Paris-Roubaix for women. The 'Hell of the North' welcomes the ladies for a race full of dust and brutal cobblestones. Last year, Elisa Longo Borghini received the cobblestone.

Dutch women's cycling has been booming for a long time and that is why you should not miss the Amstel Gold Race. Annemiek van Vleuten and co will undoubtedly want to shine for their own people, but it was Marta Cavalli who put a 2022 win here on her list of achievements.

Three days after the Amstel Gold Race, the women head to the Walloon Arrow, the warm-up for Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Again Cavalli wants to succeed himself.

The following week it's time for Liège-Bastogne-Liège, a race that heralds the traditional end of the spring classics. 'La Doyenne' is a race that everyone wants to win. Annemiek van Vleuten took the Ardennes classic for the second time in 2022. Will she make it three this year?

In 2023 we'll see the first Vuelta for women organized separately from the men's. An evolution that only benefits women's cycling. Annemiek van Vleuten − who else − won the 2022 edition.

The Tour of the Basque Country for women was organized for the first time in 2022. Demi Vollering reigned supreme in northern Spain, winning every stage. Can she take the trophy here in 2023?

At the end of June-early July it will be time for the second big round of 2023: the Giro d'Italia Donne. Annemiek van Vleuten was also the best in the boot last year. She won two stages, the general classification and the points jersey.

At the end of July, France is the favorite setting for the best female cyclists in the world. The Tour de France Femmes gets bigger every year and promises a lot of great things again this year. Get ready for seven rides at the highest intensity in a search for the successor of – again – Annemiek van Vleuten.

The best cyclists and riders in the world will travel to Glasgow from 3 to 13 August for the World Championships. The women's road race is scheduled for August 13.

In the absence of a major autumn classic for women, the focus is at the end of the season at the end of September, at the European Championships. This year it will take place around the VAM mountain in Drenthe. In 2023 we will be looking for a successor to the Dutch spurt bomb Lorena Wiebes.