Isabel Best is the author of 'Queens of Pain: Legends and Rebels of Cycling', and has contributed to Cyclingnews with feature stories 'Vital Statistics', 'Can women race a three-week Grand Tour?' and 'International Women's Day: 7 remarkable women who made their mark on cycling's history'. You can follow more of Best's historical writing on Cyclingnews during the 2019 season.
The colour à la mode of spring/summer 2018 was orange. Seen everywhere that mattered, it continued into autumn/winter, and looks set to remain on trend through 2019.
Last year, Dutch riders and/or Dutch sponsored teams won two thirds of all Women's WorldTour races. They dominated the World Championships in Innsbruck, Austria, with a clean sweep of the podium in the individual time trial and a crushing victory in the road race. If that wasn’t enough, they also took the junior ITT.
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Throughout the season, the battle for WorldTour points was a purely Dutch affair, with Annemiek van Vleuten, Marianne Vos and Anna van der Breggen taking the top three spots, while Dutch teams took first and third place in the team classification. Mitchelton-Scott, the Australian team in second place, were there largely thanks to Van Vleuten’s efforts.
Dutch women took the most prestigious races on the calendar, from spring Classics like Strade Bianche, the Tour of Flanders, Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (all of which fell to Van der Breggen) to the high-summer specials of the Giro Rosa and La Course (which went to Van Vleuten). And they did it with such panache. Who can forget Van Vleuten’s dogged pursuit of Van der Breggen in the final 14km of La Course, finally overtaking her by barely a second on the finish line? Or Van der Breggen’s invincible strength, riding the last 39km of the Worlds road race on her own to win with a jaw-dropping margin of 3:42? Or Van Vleuten’s utter grit in the same race, riding through the pain of a broken kneecap to finish in seventh place?
Anna van der Breggen on her winning ride in Innsbruck
A cycling nation
Club culture
Investing in children
Infrastructure for developing talent
The importance of rivalry
Role models
Professionalism and culture
Why don't other countries succeed?
Is there a Dutch racing style?
Conclusion
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/dutch-dominance-what-makes-the-netherlands-so-successful
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