"It'd be nice to win another rainbow jersey" - Lotte Kopecky sets her sight on doubling up at home Gravel World Championships
Gravel
Lotte Kopecky has only just won her second road world title but she already aims for another rainbow. No, we're not looking as far as to 2025 Worlds in Rwanda. That race is firstly in a distant future, secondly unlikely to suit Kopecky. The Belgian all-rounder instead aims to make a grand debut at the gravel, taking on the Gravel World Championships in Belgium.
"I've never ridden a gravel race in my entire life but it'll be fun," Kopecky admitted in Zurich, after having won the road race ahead of Chloé Dygert and Elisa Longo Borghini. "I'm excited to do a different kind of race. I heard there's a lot of asphalt as well as the gravel and I'll do a recon when I'm back in Belgium."
"It'd be nice to win another rainbow jersey. It's a goal but without ever racing on gravel, it's hard to say what I can do. I just want to enjoy the race. Of course, I'll try to be up there to win the race."
One of her big opponents will be another multi-discipline star and compatriot Puck Pieterse. The mountain bike world champion is still yet to win road and cyclocross titles, but the gravel title would be just as valuable addition to her rapidly growing list of palmares.
"The plan is to be at the start of the Gravel World Championships in Belgium next weekend, although I heard that almost all the elite women from the Netherlands are also racing. It should be a fun race to watch," Pieterse said, with a clear sense of humour after the Netherlands tactical blunder in Saturday's women's road race.
"I'll continue to surf on a positive vibe for a while just like the last few weeks. It has been very busy but so far everything has always worked well."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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