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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