"In hindsight, maybe it wasn't the right choice" - Demi Vollering regrets tactics against rivals in Kigali
Cycling
Demi Vollering led a strong and diverse Dutch team at the women's elite road race in Kigali but the team was left stunned and lacking a top result. There was a tactical set of decisions that didn't work out for Vollering, who regrets the gamble she took after the winning group went up the road.
From early on the Dutch had been racing strongly and putting pressure on their rivals, with Shirin van Anrooij and Yara Kastelijn being part of early attacks, and then Riejanne Markus marking the winning attack of the day. However, the Visma rider didn't have the legs to keep up with the group of eventual winner Magdeleire Vallieres, and behind Vollering would not chase, whilst the team also lacked the numbers in comparison to the likes of Switzerland and France.
"It was good that we had Riejanne [Markus] up front. It's a shame we didn't make the podium in the end. It was a crazy race. It was quiet for a long time, but the laps crept in. When it opened up, everyone was immediately exhausted," Vollering said in words to NOS.
"I was mainly thinking, wait, wait, wait... When they've all fired their arrows, maybe there will be a moment for me. Because those arrows are expensive here. If you go too deep into the red a few times, it's hard to recover. Your heart rate is high and stays high." Perhaps this fear is what led to the conservative attitude from many riders, who saw the chance of a medal escape before their very eyes.
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Bad tactics?
"You can see that clearly with the favorite group at the back: we're all completely done at the same moment. You just had to be very conscious of your energy today. That's what I wanted to do, and I did it, but in hindsight, maybe it wasn't the right choice." Vollering simply left it too late, but she was not the only one. Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, Katarzyna Niewiadoma and Elisa Longo Borghini dropped her in the penultimate climb of the day, showcasing just how many riders had good legs on the day but did not time their efforts well.
Vollering certainly also didn't have confidence on her side. "I didn't know how well I was going to perform. I felt really good at the beginning, but then I had some problems with my nutrition, which kept coming up. I was also a bit worried that I'd start feeling the pinch".
Ultimately the gamble did not pay off, whilst Vollering then did win the sprint for 7th place, leading in the main favourites group home ahead of Kim Le Court.
"That's why I was very frugal with my energy. Like I said: it was a gamble, a gamble, a gamble. The group at the front might just come back anyway. Then you might have a good guess. But yeah, it didn't quite work out this time. You always have a few things. Until it does, and then you can celebrate."
Should she have raced differently? "That's hard to say. I think we, as the Netherlands, simply rode a good race. If you have a slightly stronger group across the board, if Anna [van der Breggen] had also felt better, then you have one more pawn in the final" she argues. "Then you might be able to get even closer to the top group. That's a different story."
But ultimately, the team is left with a fifth and seventh place to show for in the race where they had the best chances of succeeding out of the elite races. "But under these circumstances, we rode a pretty good race with the Netherlands. I'm really proud of everyone, how they rode, and how they took responsibility at the right moments. The communication between us was excellent. The girls took care of me with water bottles and everything. I'm very happy with how we rode as a team".
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- More to the point, it isn't his remaining goal.Renz08-11-2026
- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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