Looking at the recent editions of the Worlds, the Dutch won gold from 2018 to 2020 – respectively, with Anna van der Breggen (2021, 2019), Annemiek van Vleuten (2020) and Chantal Blaak (2018). The latter – winner of the recent Strade Bianche – did not make the selection, underlining the strength of the Dutch team.
The other two Dutch are Demi Vollering and Marianne Vos. Vollering won this year’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège and La Course, while Vos pocketed three stages wins at the Giro d’Italia Donne earlier this month. The Olympic Champion of the London Games in 2012 also took the spoils at the spring classics Amstel Gold Race and Gent-Wevelgem.
Favourites road race Summer Olympics Tokyo:
*** Anna van der Breggen, Annemiek van Vleuten
** Demi Vollering, Marianne Vos, Lizzie Deignan, Mavi García
* Ashleigh Moolman, Marta Cavalli, Chloé Dygert, Amanda Spratt