Van Vleuten vs Longo Borghini - the rivalry the Giro d’Italia Donne needs

Anna van der Breggen. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio. Demi Vollering. The often unbeatable Annemiek van Vleuten has had many rivals over the years - some more successful in challenging her than others - but over the last 12 months, a new name has been rubbing shoulders with the Dutchwoman.

Elisa Longo Borghini and Annemiek van Vleuten have been racing together for over a decade now, a few times going toe-to-toe in the Classics, but in the last year, Longo Borghini’s ascendency into the group of GC riders in the peloton has seen them battle it out on climbs and week-long races, too.

Longo Borghini was often - perhaps surprisingly - one of the riders who could follow Van Vleuten for the longest at last year’s Tour de France Femmes, and the racing between the duo is hotting up again this July.

On stage 4 of the Giro d’Italia, the pair attacked on the final climb before the finish, bridging across to solo leader Veronica Ewers (EF Education-TIBCO-SVB) and leaving their GC rivals in their wake. They tried a few attacks on each other, but ultimately worked together to the finish, lining it up for a sprint that Longo Borghini won to take the stage.

In her winner’s interview, one of the first things Longo Borghini wanted to say was in praise of her Dutch rival.

“Winning here in front of a rider that I respect a lot, Annemiek van Vleuten, is such a good thing,” Longo Borghini commented at the finish.

There are certainly a lot of differences between the focused, calculated Van Vleuten and the humorous, flamboyant Longo Borghini, but there are also a lot of similarities. Both are riders who love racing from the front, keener to attack and try something out than follow a wheel, and it’s clear they both respect how the other races.

“Love to race aggressive,” Van Vleuten said in a Tweet after the race. “Only Elisa Longo Borghini could follow, always good company in the break.”

It’s no secret that the relationship between Van Vleuten and some of her other rivals has been neutral at best, and actively strained at worst. Van der Breggen and Van Vleuten seemed to have little relationship at all, whilst the rivalry between the world champion and Demi Vollering seems to be becoming fiercer every race.

There have been awkward falling outs within the Dutch national team around the Olympics and Worlds, and most recently the toilet break controversy at the Vuelta Femenina when Movistar attacked whilst Demi Vollering had stopped, ultimately costing the SD Worx rider the race.

The racing between the likes of Van der Breggen and Vollering and Van Vleuten has been exciting, yes, but there was often a certain tension hanging over it.

With Van Vleuten and Longo Borghini, we are granted all the aggression, all the competition, all the excitement, but without any of the animosity. There’s a mutual respect for each other’s styles, and indeed a shared enjoyment for racing together. They actually like going up against each other, as they know the other will work with them when needed, but still battle all-out for the finish. There’s no cat-and-mouse racing or tactical sitting on, it’s just two racers racing.

Whilst some may be waiting for the Demi Vollering vs Annemiek van Vleuten showdown we’re expecting at the Tour de France Femmes later this month, Vollering’s absence from the Giro is granting us a new, fresh, and dare we even say more exciting rivalry in the form of the Italian champion.

Vollering and Van Vleuten will surely show us a climbing masterclass at the end of July, but if it’s fun, aggressive and playful racing you want, look no further than the Longo Borghini vs. Van Vleuten battle brewing in Italy.