The women's road race at the upcoming 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:UCI Road World Championships looks set to be anও attacking, attrition-fest that favours ൩punchy riders. 

The bunch heads sou🔴th from the start in Helensburgh, hugging the dramatic Pacific coast. The first test, Mount Keira, comes 42km into the racing after the peloton first passes through Wollongong and onto a single circuit of the 34.2km loop that takes the race back up to the Illawarra escarpment. If it’s raced full ꧂gas, its 5% average gradient over 8.7 kilometres could shatter the race early. 

Next there are six circuits around Wollongong, with the climb ꦦof Mount Pleasant the centrepiece. In all, there are an estimated 2,433 metres of climbing and the 164.3km route will be the longest in the event’s history.

The Dutch will line up on Se🃏ptember 24 as favourites, given their incomparable strength in depth. Almost eꦐvery rider in their eight-woman line-up could legitimately challenge for the win. 

However, Italian 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Elisa Balsamo is the defending champion, after breaking their four-year winning streak in Belgium last year, following the wins 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Annemiek Van Vleuten (2019), Anna van d🥃er Breggen (2018 and 2020) and Chantal van den Broek-Blaak (2017🤡).

But with Van Vleuten 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:planning to start the race with a 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:fractured elbow after crashing in the Mixed Relay event, is she still the main favourite? Or will Marianne Vos and 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Demi Vollering be their contenders for the hallowed rainbow jersey? Cyclingnews takes a look at ten riders to💞 watch for the elite women's road race in Australia.

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Annemiek van Vleuten (Netherlands)

Her power, experience and stam꧑ina make her a threat no matter what the course. For this one that suits her, Van Vleuten will be especially motivated to add a second elite road rainbow jersey to her collection. This is her penultimate chance, too, with retirement pencilled in ಌfor the end of 2023.

The form is undeniably there: the 39-year-old has been the rider of the season, with victories at the 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Tour de France Femmes, Gir🎶o d’Italia Donne, Ceratizit Challenge by la Vuelta, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Omloop Het Nieuwsblad this year.

The world title Van Vleuten 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:took in Yorkshire 2019 was a show of strength, going on a solo attack for 105 kilometres after breaking away on Lofthouse Hill. Mount Keira is longer and harder, but it also comes eve🅰n earlier in the race. 

However, with her frac💟tured elbow, Van Vleuten was pessimistic about being able to attack on the short, sharp climb of Mount Pleasant on the city centre circuit because her injury has rendered her unable to climb out of 📖the saddle.

"I am super disappointe🅘d because of this. You cannot do this s🐟teep climb seated," she said.

Read more: Van Vleuten confirmed for Worlds road race despite broken elbow

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Marianne Vos (Netherlands)

Vos is still a fearsome bike racer after 15 years at the top of the sport. She keeps on racing and winning, taking a 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:b🅠race of stage wins atไ the Tour de France Femmes and Giro d’Italia Donne this year.

She offers a lethal option from a reduced group sprint for the Netherlands. A fourth rainbow jersey on the road&n💝dash; 16 years after her first – would be a special achievement in a long and dis🍰tinguished career. Her other two titles came in 2012 and 2013.

Perennially the team to watch, the 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Dutch take that title once again this year; they also have Tour de France Femmes runner-up 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Demi Vollering on hand.🐟 Such strength in depth is a boon, but also requires a delicate balancing act of ambition, ego and teamwork. Vos will play a significant part in th𓆉at, too.

Read more: Vos brushes off favourite status for rainbow jersey at Wollongong Worlds

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Grace Brown (Australia)

Few other racers have such a powerful personal or geographical attachment to this year💯's World Cham🙈pionships. Brown grew up just 75km north of Wollongong in the Sydney suburb of Camperdown.

The home race has been on her radar ever since it was unveiled. In terms of Aussie hopes, look no further than her in both the time trial and the road race. The 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Liège-Bastogne-♛Liège runner-up is the kind of rider who takes a mile if her rivals give her an inch. She has won a Women's Tour stage, a stage at the recent Ceratizit Challenge by la Vuelta and the 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Commonwealth Games time trial this year .

A podium finish would be a fine result for the FDJ-Suez-Futuroscope racer. The rainbow jersey would be unprecedented: Australia have had three silver medals in the last decade, but have never emerged with victory in this eve𓂃nt's 64-year history.

Read more: Depth, options and the search for another Worlds podium for Australia's women

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Elisa Longo Borghini (Italy)

Longo Borghini can pretty much do it all. Her 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:historic Paris-Roubaix victory notwithstanding, she has rarely been out of the top ten in her hilly targets this year. She took W𒀰omen's Tour victory at the last gasp with a typically tenacious showing, was fourth overall at the Giro d’Italia Donne and fifth at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. 

Expect to see her mixing it in attacks in the race's finale. On a strong and versatile Italian team, 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Marta Cavalli is another option. She has broken through with Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne triumphs this spring, thou♈gh it remains to be seen how she has recovered from her Tour de France Femmes crash. 

The well-drilled squadra azzurra ultimately had the uꦓpper hand over the Dutch at last year's race with Balsamo; can they do it again?

Read more: Analysing Italy's 2022 Road World Championships teams

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Lotte Kopecky (Belgium)

In her first season with Team SD Worx, Kopecky shone in the spring, 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:driving Belgium "crazy" with her Tour of Flanders win and taking victory at 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Strade Bianche. Her transitioಌn into a puncheur-sprinter who can handle tough hills is clear to see.

It’s not been plain sailing in recent months though. By her own admission, she expected more from the Tour de France Femmes, though two third place finishes on 🌱stages were no disgrace. Last month, she sat out the European Road Championships with a reported back injury, having 𒅌won two golds on the track.

Kopecky has top 10 potential in Australia, offering a threat from a small group or a reduced bunch with her sprint. However, the less-than-id🅷eal preparation could see her consigned to the fringes.

Read more: Analysing Belgium's 2022 UCI Road World Championships teams

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland)

To describe Niewiadoma as consistent is an understatement: she has only finished outside the top 💝20 once in eight World Championships participations. On a course with plenty of climbing, she ought to be a prot🐠agonist. 

The burning question is, can she win? The Pole continues to be pipped to race victories, caught before the finish in attacks or outsprinted from small breakaways by rivals. Her last victory was over three years ago at the Women's Tour, yet she has finished second or third 19 times since, 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:including this summer's To🌊ur de France Femmes. That barren sp🎀ell has become a source of pressur🐷e.

Winning at Worlds would end the hoodoo in some style, and she has the strength and desceꦑnding skills to hold on ♑off Mount Pleasant.

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Kristen Faulkner (USA)

The BikeExchange-Jayco rider has stepped up a level this season, having moved to the Women's WorldTour  and is not afraid to test the waters, as the second of her Giro 💯d’Italia Donne stage🎉 wins showed. 

A latecomer to the sport having worked in venture capital before making tཧhe switch, the 29-year-old Alaskan has learned the ropes rapidly and is still improving and growing in confidence after shifting up to the WorldTour ranks with BikಌeExchange-Jayco this season.

With fast-finishing teammate 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Coryn Labecki out of the race with a broken collarbone, it looks like the stars and stripes squad will favour going on the offensive and with Faulkner they have the perfect rider for that challe🔯nge.

Read more: Analysing the USA's 2022 Road World Championships teams

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Mavi García (Spain)

Her 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Trophée Ceratizit triumph in Plouay lastﷺ month will give the former duathlete heaps of confidence. Third place in the Giro d’Italia Donne overall and a stoic battle with Van Vleuten on the surprisingly pivotal stage 4 was another suggestion that the 38-year-old is only getting better.

She'll be racing on the scene into her fifth decade, too, having ♎signed fo൩r Liv Racing Xstra through to 2024.

While her so-so sprint often sees her bꦉeaten, there's no doubting her stamina or audacious style that regularly sees her up the road, leading from the front in gruelling one-day races.

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Denmark)

Something has clicked in recent months for the pe🤪loton's queen of charisma. After knocking on the door of big wins for a long time, she has burst through it.

She took a Tour de France Femmes stage win, outsprinting Vos no less, and 16🥂8澳洲5最新开奖结果:followed it up with Tour of Scandinavia victory. The Danish champion has yet to really leave her mark at a Worlds road race yet, though two eighth places in thওe past two attempt🅷s suggest she's getting closer.

Ludwig should be in contention for Wollongong, though she'll need to be at her ver🍨y best to beat the Dutch or Italian teams, who are packing far more firepower.

168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Elisa Balsamo (Italy)

The 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:reigning world champion will do well to get over the hills under the෴ pressure of attacks from the world’s best puncheurs. However, her win in Leuven last year was a case in point of what can happen when a strong team goes all in for one rider.

What's more, Balsamo looks to have come on in leaps and bounds in her first season with Trek-Segafredo. She has won nine times in 2022, unburdened by the rainbow jersey, including her final race before Australia, the closing stage of the Ceratizit Ch🐈allenge by ꦇLa Vuelta.

However, the nature of the course and the number of rivals who want 🅷a small breakaway or a solo wꩲin could play against her.