Kristin Armstrong is Olympic champion. Of course it’s possible she will take gold again, yet it seems unlikely as she is 42 years of age, while her younger compatriot Evelyn Stevens (33) is in the form of her life. Recently she took three stages in the Giro Rosa and one of these was an individual time trial at 21.9 kilometres, in which she outperformed Anna van der Breggen and Elisa Longo Borghini by 4 seconds. The route might have been different – in fact it was mostly flat and the route in Rio is rather hilly, yet all three riders are good climbers, too, so we can expect them to come to the fore in the Olympic time trial in Rio.
Linda Villumsen is the World Champion of Richmond (2015), with Anna van der Breggen and Lisa Brennauer the two other women on the podium. Brennauer is the World Champion of Ponferrada (2014).
Favourites Olympic ITT for women
*** Evelyn Stevens, Anna van der Breggen, Elisa Longo Borghini
** Lisa Brennauer, Megan Guarnier, Trixi Worrack, Ellen van Dijk
* Emma Pooley, Emma Johansson, Kristin Armstrong, Linda Villumsen