Kopecky: "The Win Was Not in Our Reach" — How Losing Wiebes Reshaped Flanders and Sharpened the Roubaix Mission
Lotte Kopecky sat in the SD Worx-Protime team bus after the Tour of Flanders Women on Sunday and delivered a verdict that was as honest as it was pointed: "The win was not in our reach today." The three-time champion finished fourth, 42 seconds behind Demi Vollering's devastating solo victory, and for the first time since 2023, the world's most dominant cobbled Classics rider had no answer when the race exploded on the Oude Kwaremont.
The turning point came earlier than the decisive Kwaremont attack, however. On the Koppenberg — that impossibly steep, cobbled ramp that has broken countless Flanders dreams — Lorena Wiebes crashed on the descent. The Dutch sprinter, SD Worx-Protime's crucial lead-out engine and the rider whose positioning work on the flat roads between the bergs keeps Kopecky sheltered and fresh, was out of the race. "That's the only way to win, and we're missing one number — Lorena, in this case," teammate Mischa Bredewold said afterwards, laying bare just how critical Wiebes is to the team's Classics machine.
Without Wiebes, Kopecky was exposed to the wind and forced to do more work in the closing 30 kilometres. When Vollering launched her attack on the Kwaremont with 18km remaining, Kopecky could not follow. "Demi and her team rode the perfect race. You have to give them credit for that," the Belgian acknowledged. "I was basically where I needed to be on the Kwaremont, but I just didn't have the legs to go with her." It was a rare admission from a rider who has made the cobbled Classics her personal domain.
Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) claimed third with a powerful Paterberg acceleration, while Pauline Ferrand-Prevot took second in the sprint from the chase group. Kopecky, caught behind after the Kwaremont split, could only manage fourth — her worst Flanders result since 2021.
But there was no panic in Kopecky's demeanour. "I don't really think I need to change anything. I think I rode a pretty strong race here," she said with characteristic pragmatism. "I don't need to worry about next week. That is something completely different." The message was clear: all focus now shifts to Paris-Roubaix Femmes on Saturday, where Kopecky will attempt to become the first woman to win the cobbled Monument twice.
The Hell of the North suits Kopecky's strengths arguably better than Flanders. The flat cobbles of northern France remove the climbing advantage that Vollering exploited on the Kwaremont, and Kopecky's raw power, positioning intelligence, and team strength make her the overwhelming favourite. With the race now elevated to full Monument status by the UCI and the toughest route in the event's history awaiting the riders, the stakes could not be higher.
Wiebes, crucially, is expected to be fit for Saturday's race. If SD Worx-Protime can reassemble their full cobbles squad — including Wiebes, Bredewold and Christine Majerus — Kopecky will arrive at the Roubaix velodrome with the kind of support network that was so painfully absent on the Koppenberg descent. The Flanders defeat stings, but Kopecky has never been a rider who dwells. Paris-Roubaix awaits, and the Belgian champion has unfinished business on the pavé.