The women’s Fleche Wallonne had been the province of Anna van der Breggen for the past seven seasons, but with her retirement from professional cycling the title of the Queen of the Mur de Huy was vacated. With a host of strong climbers on hand to contest the Belgian classic, the race came down to the final ascent of the Mur de Huy after the race was lit up by attacks on the Cote de Cherave.
The final ascent of the famous ‘wall’ of the Belgian classic proved the decisive moment, with van Vleuten attacking mid-way up the steepest sections of the gruelling climb. Cavalli was able to slowly claw her way back to van Vleuten, before the final dash to the line saw the emerging Italian star beat her established rival to claim her second win in 10 days after success at Amstel Gold.
"After Amstel and Roubaix, I can’t believe I had these legs today,” said Cavalli. “It isn’t easy to beat Annemiek, everybody knows how strong she is, and to be able to attack her in the last 100 metres and win is a great emotion. We worked a lot and it’s a deserved victory.”
Cavalli played her cards cautiously on the climb, not hitting the front until the final 50 metres as she outsprinted van Vleuten on the uphill finish.
“The Mur de Huy is so steep, and in the first part you have to be patient," said Cavalli. "It’s just 900 metres, but it’s more than four minutes of effort. I stayed in the wheel of Annemiek and waited until the last metres because I knew it flattens out a bit, and if you arrive there after a big effort, you can make the difference.
“It is a big satisfaction for me, but also for my team. We were always together in the race, they protected me in the open and windy areas, and they rode to catch the breakaway that we missed. A big thanks not just to the riders, but also the staff, they work a lot, put together the lightest bike possible, it was a perfect team job."
The race was animated by a large breakaway containing Australian Amanda Spratt (BikeExchange-Jayco), among a group of 15 riders who established themselves at the front of the race with an advantage of over two minutes coming into the final 31 kilometre lap of the race.
The break’s lead was largely brought down by the hard work of Australian Brodie Chapman (FDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine Futuroscope), committing to the chase as her team had missed the move. Chapman drove the peloton throughout the penultimate ascent of the Mur de Huy to the bottom of the Cote de Cherave, receiving occasional help as the break’s lead was brought down to nothing on the climb.
Attacks from the peloton lead an elite group up to the last remaining riders from the breakaway, Anouska Koster (Jumbo-Visma) and Yuri Kastelijn (Liv-Plantur) caught last and able to hold onto the elite riders that reached them at the crest of the Cote de Cherave.
Ashleigh Moolman (SD-Worx) tried an attack over the top of the climb, but was brought to heel by van Vleuten. Several other riders tried to get clear ahead of the Mur de Huy, but Movistar shut down the moves and it was a group of 12 that contested the final climb.
Van Vleuten made her move with 500 metres to go, immediately surging clear, but Cavalli was able to respond to her attack, before finding enough strength in the sprint to take the win, flexing as she crossed the line.
Van Vleuten crossed just behind for second, with Vollering the next best in third to complete the podium.
The Classics continue on SBS, with the men's and women's races from Liege-Bastogne-Liege on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand this Sunday.
