Demi Vollering ready to conquer Ardennes triptych: "I have a plan, but it will remain a secret for now"

Demi Vollering has won Amstel Gold Race and Fléche Wallone this week. She has an unique opportunity to conquer all three Ardennes classics in one spring tomorrow at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and admits she already has a plan in mind, but prefers to keep her cards hidden until the time comes.

"Liège-Bastogne-Liège remains a special race for me. Even before I rode my first Liège, I had often driven the Ardennes roads," Vollering said in a press release. "I could already imagine what it would be like to drive up La Redoute one day. In the Ardennes I realized for the first time that I should stop skating and start cycling. In my first season as a professional I immediately came third and in 2021 I won, in my first year at SD Worx."

Vollering attakced with the presence of Lotte Kopecky in the leading group in the closing kilometers of Amstel Gold Race to an emotional victory, and at Flèche Wallone she took a victory atop the Mur de Huy based on strength, as she did not wait until the final ramps to make a move, but dropped and held back the rest of the competition. The Dutch rider already won Strade Bianche and Dwars door Vlaanderen earlier in the year, as well as finish second in Flanders, and here she has the opportunity to race for another high-level win and should be the main favourite.

The Dutchwoman has already won the race in 2021, winning a four-up sprint that year. The same scenario could take place tomorrow, and she brings up her experience in the race. “Last year I thought about that and then it went wrong. I wanted to win so badly that I was afraid to lose. If you want to win, you must dare to lose. You have to gamble and take risks. If you don't, you will be left empty-handed. I don't want to focus too much on that triple, although it is of course in the back of my mind. I focus on what I can control, also in the race. I have a plan, but it will remain a secret for now," Vollering concluded.