Kopecky Roars Back to Top with Victory in Milan San Remo Donne

Lotte Kopecky bounced back from a disappointing 2025 season by landing a huge win in Milan-San Remo Donne on Saturday.

The Team SD Worx-Protime rider was one of five who went clear of the rest of the peloton just before the top of the Poggio, with Kopecky biding her time before darting to victory inside the final 200 meters.

Noemi Rüegg (EF Education-Oatly) was second with Eleonora Gasparrini (UAE Team ADQ) outsprinting Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) for third.

“It is just amazing,” a joyous Kopecky said. “I had the full support today from my team SD Worx-Protime. I also was really confident after the win of Wednesday. I think for me the whole race just fell into place.

“Our team took the responsibility when we had to. Everyone today did really a great job to bring us to the right place on the climbs and then on the top I was really happy that I could finally answer an attack on the climb.

“Going on the top into the decent with the five of us, I knew that I just really had to be patient and also know that Lorena is still behind. I think I started my sprint on the perfect moment and I am super happy that I could finish it off.”

The victory marks success in three of cycling’s hallowed monuments, with Kopecky previously winning the Tour of Flanders and Paris Roubaix.

Equally importantly, it helps her put memories of a tough 2025 season behind her, and sees the Belgian puncheur build momentum after victory earlier this week in Nokere Koerse.

Nasty crash takes down Niewiadoma and others

The 156km race began in Genova and saw a long range move which was recaptured 30km from the finish. A flurry of attacks were sparked off on the climb of the Cipressa, with Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM-Zondacrypto) and Pieterse very active, but Lieke Nooijen (Visma-Lease a Bike) judging things perfectly to go clear with 2.5km to go.

She was well clear over the top and this prompted Niewiadoma to drive the pace on the descent. However she overshot a tight bend, crashing hard and colliding with the barriers. Several others also fell, with the most serious looking of those impacts involving Debora Silvestri (Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi). The Italian went over the barriers and fell a couple of meters onto a road below. Her team has said she is conscious and on the way to hospital, with further details not disclosed.

Nooijen was caught by Nikola Nosková (Cofidis) with 8.6km to go after the Czech rider surged clear on the Poggio. She in turn was reeled in, with Pieterse attacking hard 6.5km out and then Dominika Włodarczyk (UAE Team ADQ) making her own move 500 meters later.

She held a brief lead heading towards the summit but Kopecky, Pieterse, Rüegg and Gasparrini got up to her before the summit and the five hurtled down the descent, with Włodarczyk doing a lot of the driving to try to help her teammate Gasparrini to win.

Kopecky was wary about two riders from the same team being in the move.

“I was very attentive for a late attack from the one who was behind,” she said. “I knew I could not let that happen.

“We were all fast in the sprint so we gambled on the sprint. Then I also know that I have fast legs.”

That gamble paid off in spades, with a very significant triumph putting her career back on track.

More to follow soon…